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 DraftStreet values). Reminder: check Left Wing Lock for up-to-the-minute information on starting goalies.
Sign up for DraftStreet to create your own Daily Fantasy Hockey lineup
Games are color-coded as follows:
Green means stack for GPPs. Yellow means targets for cash games. Red means value plays only.
Minnesota Wild at New Jersey Devils
Minnesota went into Long Island a couple of nights ago and put a six-spot up on the Islanders. It was a bit curious, as they scored six on just 22 shots on goal. It seems to be a normalization of averages, as they had scored just four goals on 93 shots in their last three games before that. I wouldn’t read too much into the offensive outburst.
The latest Wild player to win the second line lottery in Minnesota has been Justin Fontaine as the 26-year-old rookie spent the entire Islanders game playing with Mikko Koivu and Matt Moulson. Moulson remains on the second power play unit though so his upside is still a little limited.
New Jersey comes into the game hanging on to the slimmest of hopes for a playoff spot; there are just 13 games remaining and they are five points back of the final playoff spot. This team has lost three games in a row in regulation and have allowed 12 goals against in those three games. As much as Cory Schneider may have helped earlier in the season, they’ll need his best games now. New Jersey’s penalty kill has started to get on a roll, killing off 12 straight penalties. That should help the Devils keep this game close tonight.
This should be a low-scoring game but it would seem to favour the Wild, given how the teams are playing right now. The Devils went into Minnesota back in November and were shutout 4-0. I will be staying away from the goalies and focusing on value plays in this one.
|
Top RW Value |
Top LW Value |
Top C Value |
Top D Value |
Bargain Bin |
|
Justin Fontaine (MIN) $6722 |
(NJD) $5525 |
(MIN) $8053 |
(NJD) $6309 |
(MIN) $5483 |
