Get the red-hot David Pastrnak into your daily fantasy hockey lineup.

Top Budget Plays

Centers

Phillip Danault $3300 – The center is never going to generate a ton of shots and chances but is taking advantage of his increased ice time. With the injuries to Alex Galchenyuk and David Desharnais, someone has to get top six minutes and that was Danault. Will he keep playing over 15 minutes? That is the question but all signs point to yes. He may not be a value play for long.

Wingers

Phillip Di Giuseppe $3400 – There is just a theme here that the risks must get higher. Di Giuseppe meets the criteria simply because his season really did not get going until about three games ago. His points per game has been above value over the last six contests and has a goal and assist in the last three contests. Carolina could fare well against a San Jose team that has a shaky penalty kill and defensive lapses.

Defensemen

Scott Mayfield $2900 – Early on, taking risks in moderation is paramount in DFS hockey. This is insane but Mayfield has three points in three games on the season while slightly exceeding value. The drawback is the defenseman only plays 13-15 minutes a night. Limited minutes typically means very little if any special teams time. However, he has shown a knack for hitting the net and getting lucky. Mayfield could save a lot of money in an effort to spend up.

Goalie

Semyon Varlamov $7000 – This is an extremely dangerous GPP play because of how great Montreal is at home. Just consider they nearly put 50 shots on New Jersey and Colorado is banged up defensively. The expectation is that Varlamov or Calvin Pickard ($6900) will be so low owned that they are worth a try somewhere. Saturday only has eight evening games and that will mean some interesting risks are quite likely.      

Since we saved some money on the budget plays let’s look at the few of the pricey options that are worth paying up for today.

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Centers

John Tavares $7100 – Tavares was key in the Islanders avoiding a letdown against St. Louis after beating the New York Rangers. This will be more of a consistency play but New York is in a good spot against a Columbus team who will be on the back end of a back to back and has the flu bug going around. The question is could he hit a little harder? That answer is yes. He should be a consideration in both cash and tournament options.

Wingers

David Pastrnak $7200 – Though we may be buying a little higher than usual here, all Pastrnak does is score goals. The winger has goals in three straight games and points in five consecutive contests. When a player has 18 goals in 23 games, one takes definite notice. This is no doubt a breakout year that will have more to come. Toronto will yield plenty of chances and the forward shows few signs of slowing down anytime soon.    

Defenseman

Dustin Byfuglien $6100 – So this might be a trap but Winnipeg going to Calgary could be more fun than expected. The Flames have a so-so penalty kill and Byfuglien has one hard shot. He has two goals and seven assists in the last 10 games. Furthermore, his floor keeps on improving. Maybe the defenseman will get back to that top five in the league level. His key is always the same. If those pucks hit the net, Byfuglien will have some success even on the road.

Goalie

Carey Price $8400 – The choices out there may appear to be better but it is hard to go away from a goalie who keeps getting good match-ups. Montreal draws a Colorado team coming off the high of a win in Boston. He did have an easy effort against New Jersey but the Avalanche may surprise. Yes, the number one goalie on the slate is quite a chalk play. He is a considerable cash option on Saturday as Price is most likely to get the win. There are other choices such as maybe Matt Murray and even Chad Johnson.

Chris Wassel has been playing DFS for the past couple years and has played Fantasy Hockey for over two decades. You can follow him on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. Please note that this is a mega Saturday slate. We are targeting the eight game evening slate to give readers more of a range on what to go on. Finally, please note that Saturday’s slate has several options and smaller Late options. Thanks for reading and enjoy the big slate daily fantasy hockey fans!