NHL

NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Friday 11/2/18

With just two games on the main slate, who can you trust in NHL DFS on Friday night?

A good chunk of you probably already play daily fantasy football, and I'd be willing to bet a significant portion have also tried out daily fantasy basketball and baseball. But hockey? Hockey?

It's time to give it a try over on FanDuel, because it's a ton of fun. And our analysis and projections can help you win.

To help, let's take a look at some goalies, high-priced skaters, and lower-priced players to target for today's slate.

Goalie to Target

Antti Raanta ($7,700): The goalies are mostly cheap tonight and Raanta faces a Carolina Hurricanes team that is top three in the league in shot and chance generation. Carolina may not get 40-plus shots every night but they are easily a threat to hit 30-plus. The Arizona Coyotes allow just 28.5 shots per contest (fourth-best). Despite those low numbers, Raanta has won three of his four previous starts and is the likely expected starter on Friday night at home. Scott Darling ($7,600) would be another option from the Hurricanes, but make sure he is confirmed first.

High-Priced Skaters

Nathan MacKinnon ($8,900): MacKinnon on his off days is better than most players on their best. He is the chalk GPP play for tonight. He did struggle a bit in his last two contests -- generating three shots a game with only a couple high-danger chances -- but that is not likely to continue. The Colorado Avalanche are not rested but that may not matter. When it comes to the Vancouver Canucks, their high-danger chance to scoring chance percentage is among the five worst teams in the league. It may not take much to see MacKinnon's fortunes turn.

Sebastian Aho ($6,700): Aho is a relatively safe choice on Friday night. His 13 assists rank among the league leaders and he has four goals on 31 shots. Shot volume for the Hurricanes is moderate and he even sprinkles in a few blocked shots (nine on the year). Aho has registered a real-world point in every game this year which means double-digit FanDuel points every time. High-output games are possible here as the Carolina top line is third in the league in scoring chances and high-danger opportunities. As a stack, Carolina's first line is around $18,000, which is more reasonable than Colorado line one.

Value Skaters

Vladislav Kamenev ($3,000): Kamenev does not play a lot of minutes but his big, bruising frame is effective in any team's top nine. The Colorado forward has two points in his last two games. His minimum price on FanDuel is at least worth a punt play on Friday night where values are at a very scant premium. Another center option may be Brad Richardson at $3,500, as his points-per-dollar is better than even Kamenev.

Richard Panik ($3,500): The Coyotes forward is still on the top line which alone warrants a value play. It helps that Arizona is home and that Panik can generate points in spurts. He has goals in two straight games. The only concern is erratic shot volume (six shots in the last five contests). On the other hand, Panik can sometimes shoot the puck a ton (he had 11 in two games in October). Some options from the wing may include Brendan Gaunce ($3,000), and Michael Grabner ($3,300). Both choices are very risky but for punt plays -- not as much.


Chris Wassel is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Chris Wassel also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username chriswassel. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.