Match-Up Spotlight:

With the 12- game slate, there are several games to look at. The Florida Panthers face the Boston Bruins in what is expected to be one of the highest event games of the night. These are two teams that can shoot the puck a lot. New Jersey and Toronto is another game where scoring should be elevated. Do not sleep on the battle of New York.

New Jersey and Winnipeg may appear to be chalky on the surface. Washington has the stronger top ten power play. Los Angeles and San Jose could also experience some moderate to high ownership as they should be significant favorites. Watch out for teams on the back end of a back to back. Risk may be worth the reward but could dud. All prices are from DraftKings.

Top Budget Plays

Centers
 

Dylan Strome $3500 – The center is a decent play at the least. However, playing against Vancouver and some bad home numbers might boost his ownership a fraction. It is tough to roster a player who struggles at times. However, this has value as Strome gets just enough ice time to justify such a play. Vancouver does allow well over three goals a game at home. Strome has much to play for. Four points in his last two games offers some hope. Look to some depth like Brock Nelson and maybe even Tyson Jost.   

Wingers

Brandon Pirri $3500 – This is one of the riskiest tournament plays of the night. No one is saying this will work perfectly but Pirri’s debut for Vegas may have gone too well. He fired seven shots on net in 18 minutes and had two goals. It looks like he may play on the second or third line with Jonathan Marchessault back, but stay tuned there. Pirri is an offensive threat every time he touches the puck. There are other values out there tonight like Spencer Foo of Calgary, among others.   

Defensemen

Ryan Sproul $3000 –There may be better plays like Colin Miller even, but Sproul could be a nice punt play for a low price. His floor is kind of low (shots and blocked shots combined). Risk always exists with value plays, but Sproul has looked better in the last few games. Both New York teams are going to have plays galore from forwards to defensemen. They even have been allowing more shots at home per 60 over the previous month. This may be a chance to sneak a value play in. With the 12- game slate, there is a little more value.

Goalie

Antti Niemi $7100 – This is a cheap GPP/cash play, but this is a Montreal team that could get cratered easily against Detroit even. However, both teams can be quite the adventure at times. Watch closer to lock for other possible choices. Again, any goalie around $7000 carries an extreme amount of risk. If there is any inkling of taking risk, look to Calgary and maybe even the magic of Jaroslav Halak (New York Islanders). However, the risks are pretty much the same.                   

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

Connor McDavid $7700 – People know this is a chalky play that still has to be used in quite a few lineups. The center has a solid matchup against Vegas. This is a Golden Knights team which does allow some chances to top lines. McDavid has a high shot output floor. He will draw good match-ups and a shaky penalty kill of late. Edmonton and Vegas could be high scoring. Edmonton and even Vegas will have a number of plays. This might be one of the weirder late hammers all season. Points per dollar is projected to be around $1200. That may be low.

Wingers

Taylor Hall $8100 – Toronto can be a tough matchup, but Hall has had few problems against anyone since January 1^st (27 goals in 39 games). He had two goals and two assists on Tuesday against the New York Rangers. This could be a high-event and high-scoring game, honestly. There are several plays from both sides of the equation including Mitch Marner and Kyle Palmieri. The expectation is that this will have a playoff feel. Expect the unexpected. With a chance to clinch a playoff spot, Hall will bend over backwards to help New Jersey win.                       

Defenseman

Brent Burns $7300 – Again this will be high-risk in cash or even GPP’s but Burns is going up against a Colorado team that San Jose wants revenge on. Burns has had some awful luck this year (11 goals on 321 shots). His booming shot has not found the back of the net much since the middle of February. Burns has had 14 shots in his last four games which just indicates a solid floor. He is a bit due there. Roman Josi and Aaron Ekblad are other good plays along with Dustin Byfuglien if one is not comfortable with Burns. Plenty of defensive options exist for pretty good prices among the first and second tiers of defense. Look to Ryan Pulock, now that he has seemed to gain back his minutes. His price is under $5000 to boot.

Goalie

Jonathan Quick $8200 – There may be better choices, but this has potential to work well. The Los Angeles Kings do have some trouble with Minnesota at times from a shots allowed standpoint. Quick is a rhythm goalie who thrives on seeing a large volume of shots and chances. There are goalies like Pekka Rinne and Sergei Bobrovsky on the slate. Also, Keith Kinkaid and Connor Hellebuyck may be decent cash like plays. Quick likely has the greatest chance of winning which makes him the cash play, especially on the late slate.

Saturday Outlook
 

The Saturday slate features 14 games on what will be the main slate. It will also feature a hot match-up between the St. Louis Blues and Colorado Avalanche. This will feature an expected goals of over six. A main slate will include an intriguing match-up between Montreal and Toronto. New York and Detroit will be a bit tough to fade but it is possible.

Buffalo and Florida have probably one of the best top six match-ups so they may go crazy. It is something to look at, however. Nashville will be a very attractive play (watch resting of players though) and Arizona could be enticing in late slates and as a turbo hammer. Clayton Keller is piling up points over the last month. Watch out for line shifts and some injuries. The best bet is to get as close to lock as possible before making lineup decisions. With this big of a slate, values will be plenty. Be patient and choose wisely. Do not just jump on a hot prospect, just because they look good.

Chris Wassel has been playing DFS for the past several years and has played Fantasy Hockey for three decades. You can follow him on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. Finally, please note that Thursday’s slate has several options. Thanks for reading and enjoy the slate daily fantasy hockey fans!