I generally do not pick two players playing against each other in the same game for a daily fantasy 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 DraftStreet values). Reminder: check Left Wing Lock for up-to-the-minute information on starting goalies.
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Games are color-coded as follows:
Green means stack for GPPs. Yellow means targets for cash games. Red means value plays only.
Columbus Blue Jackets at New Jersey Devils
Columbus had an incredible run from January 1st on, winning eight straight games at one point and posting a 12-5-1 record overall. On top of that, they are getting scoring winger Marian Gaborik back – again – this time after breaking his collarbone. This adds another dimension to the lineup and most importantly, scoring depth. Gaborik was also seen on the top power play unit in practice. Unlike many Olympic goalies returning, there’s a good chance that Sergei Bobrovsky gets the start tonight.
A lot of top Devils players were in Sochi including Jaromir Jagr, Patrik Elias and Marek Zidlicky. How that tournament affects their play coming out of the break is a toss-up. Coming out of the break, many of the lines remained the same as they were going into the break and there aren’t any notable injuries. Cory Schneider is expected to get the start in net.
Columbus has won all three meetings this year with the Devils with the most recent coming just after Christmas, a 2-1 shootout win. I think this is another game where both teams come out sluggish from the break and ends up being low-scoring. I’ll take a few skaters to sprinkle around my cash games but that’s about it.
Top RW Value |
Top LW Value |
Top C Value |
Top D Value |
Bargain Bin |
Nathan Horton |
Matt Calvert $6551 |
(NJD) |
James Wisniewski $8899 |
(NJD) $5508 |