NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Monday 1/10/22
NHL DFS is similar to MLB in terms of how you build lineups, how you view stacking, and how to value players.
Two main points to always focus on in NHL DFS are what lines the players are on and making sure the goalies you are rostering are confirmed as the starters. Two of the best resources for that are LeftWingLock.com or DailyFaceOff.com. That is where you can find updated forward and power-play lines for each team, along with which goalies are confirmed as the starters.
Let's jump in to take a look at today's slate and some players to consider for your lineups.
Goalie to Target
Darcy Kuemper ($8,200): It's crazy to see a moneyline sitting at -410, but that is where the Colorado Avalanche find themselves tonight at home against the Seattle Kraken. Considering this is a small three-game slate, Kuemper should be the overwhelming chalk at goalie on the slate. Just know that going into tonight.
The Kraken come into this game scoring 2.20 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the ninth-lowest in the league. They also have just a 48.92 Corsi For (Total Shot Attempts Created), which is the third-lowest in the league. They are a below-average offense, so the Avs' netminder has an extremely high win expectation tonight.
High-Priced Skaters
Mikko Rantanen ($9,500): Tonight's slate is headlined by the Avalanche as -410 home favorites, and that means we are expecting plenty of goals from their offense. If that is the case, we should be looking directly to the Avs' top line where we find Rantanen. Mikko enters with a staggering 21 NHL points and 37 shots on goal through his last 10 games. This matchup against the Kraken couldn't be any better since they are dead last in the league allowing 3.18 Goals Against per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations.
Ideally, you'd stack Rantanen with Nathan MacKinnon ($10,400) and Gabriel Landeskog ($9,600), but they are both very expensive. However, the full correlation they have between the first forward line and the first power-play unit gives them a ceiling of points that cannot be matched on this slate.
Chris Kreider ($7,500): The New York Rangers are in a coin-flip game against the Los Angeles Kings; both teams come in with 2.75 implied goal totals. The Rangers are a rather top-heavy offense where the noticeable majority of their production comes from their top lines. Therefore, we can look towards Kreider, who has 21 goals in 36 games this season and 32 NHL points overall. His role on the top forward line and the top power-play unit put him in a spot to be a consistent offensive producer every night.
The matchup against the Kings looks tougher on paper, but they are due for some defensive regression. They are currently allowing 1.90 Goals Against per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the second-best in the league. But, if we look at their Expected Goals Against (xGA), they should be allowing 2.56 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which would put them in the bottom 10 of the league.
Value Skaters
Adrian Kempe ($5,300): As noted above, the Kings are in for a close game tonight, and if that is going to be the case, there's no reason we shouldn't be looking to their offense. Kempe is on the first forward line and the first power-play unit, which has led him to produce 21 NHL points and 103 shots on goal in 35 games this season. With Rangers' top goalie, Igor Shesterkin, in the COVID protocol, they will have a backup in net tonight, making things a bit easier for the Kings' offense.
