I will mention that I generally do not pick two players playing against each other in the same game for a daily fantasy hockey lineup. The same applies for a goalie and a player from opposite teams. You might see two players among the “value picks” from opposite teams, but that doesn’t mean you should take them both. No matter the value, you’re also likely cannibalizing points, so any gains made below a certain price point – the point where production and cost intersect – can be lost if production declines overall as well.
There are many things that determine value: The player’s history (both short and long-term), the price, recent production, opponent, line matching at even-strength, power play time and injuries are just some of the factors to consider. The “Top Value” doesn’t necessarily mean the cheapest player, either.
Finally, as far as goalies go, it’s the one position I’ll pay through the nose for if I really like the match-up. The same applies for back-ups with good match-ups. In a given night, with a full slate of games, I won’t have more than three different goalies across all my lineups, usually two. I’ll name the goalies I like specifically in the match-ups they appear in.
Here is today’s slate of games (and DraftDay values). Reminder: check Left Wing Lock for up-to-the-minute information on starting goalies.
Games are color-coded as follows:
Green means load up. Yellow means grab a couple of players. Red means value plays only.
Florida Panthers at Buffalo Sabres
The Panthers are coming off a rather surprising 5-1 in Pittsburgh last night, a game that was pretty closely contested from start to finish. The Panthers’ problem has never been five-on-five play, it’s that they are last in power play efficiency (9.1-percent) and 27th on the penalty kill (77.7-percent). Their goalless streak on the power play continued last night and they have now gone over three weeks without a power play goal.
Buffalo has lost three in a row, though two of them were in a shootout and they did manage to score nine goals in those games, an offensive outburst for this team. Though they aren’t racking up the wins, the Sabres have averaged two goals per game in their last seven (an improvement) and are nearly 20-percent on the power play in those games (also an improvement). Small victories here, people.
These two teams met just over a week ago in Buffalo and the result as a 2-1 shootout win for the Sabres. While both teams are probably a bit better than their record shows, prior history tells us this should be a low-scoring game. I’ll take the Sabres (and Miller), though there shouldn’t be many goals so I’ll stay away from most skaters.
|
Top RW Value |
Top LW Value |
Top C Value |
Top D Value |
Bargain Bin |
|
Drew Stafford $7900 |
Matt Moulson $9950 |
(FLA) $6150 |
(FLA) $6300 |
(BUF) $5000 |
