Friday, December 15th
Five games tonight in the NHL.
5pm & 6pm Updates ….
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Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn are re-united together (that didnt last long) on the Stars top line. They're immediately the chalk option tonight because there's a ton of mid-low salary plays that are in good spots tonight with limited studs going tonight…. Benn is still my favorite one off but consider pairing these guys together. -
6pm — so the news about the Seguin & Benn pairing being back together appears wrong… Here's the latest Stars lines….
- Seguin-Shore-Elie
- Spezza-Radulov-Janmark
- Faksa-Pitlick-Benn
- All that confusion aside… I would still play Seguin & Benn together. If you want to do a full stack look at Shore or Elie.
- Kari Lehtonen, Curtis McElhinney, Martin Jones are all confirmed tonight in goal.
INDIVIDUALS
CENTER
Jack Eichel (FD: 7200, DK: 7200) … Eichel is one of our favorite guys to use and he did enough the other night as he usually does on home ice. Eichel remains split up from Evander Kane at full strength but as we saw he got paired with the stud winger on the power play the other night and I expect more good production from Eichel tonight. Eichel is shooting a bit less this year and Carolina allows the fewest shots per game, but he has points in 4 of his last 5 and remains one of the top plays night in and night out — especially at home.
Logan Couture (FD: 6900, DK: 6400) … The Sharks are on a B2B tonight going into Vancouver, but the B2B issues arent bothering me a ton right now. The Canucks have been dreadful lately and got ran out of their own building the other night by the Preds. I don't think the Sharks should expect to drop a touchdown on the Canucks tonight but Couture and Burns are the two leaders from San Jose that you should look at in cash lineups if you dont stack tonight.
WINGS
Jeff Skinner (FD: 6200, DK: 6000) … One of the premier SOG leaders each year, Skinner finds himself in a great spot tonight against the Sabres. I expect him to have his usual 5 to 6 shots and believe he will get one through tonight. I would lock him in for sure if Chad Johnson somehow draws the start for Buffalo in net.
Jamie Benn (FD: 7600, DK: 7400) … The Stars are being weird with their lines. They took Seguin-Benn-Radulov and split them up across three different lines. It's an interesting move by them and it worked the other night, but tonight they've shuffled Benn up to the top line and Seguin down to the third line. It feels like a matchup strategy to force the other team to decide where to put their best defensive unit while opening up opportunities for the three stars. Don't be scared off from stacking two of these guys together, but for a one off look at Benn who is the best goal scorer of the bunch and is on the top line tonight.
Dustin Brown (FD: 5500, DK: 6100) … Brown is too cheap tonight on FanDuel despite what on paper appears to be a low scoring matchup. The Kings were red hot and got smacked around in New Jersey and the Rangers finally let the Senators win a game. I think both teams come back tonight and play a really solid, physical game and we see a few scrappy goals. Brown benefits a ton by playing with Kopitar but I like the road matchup here against the Rangers who remain without their top center, Zibanejad.
DEFENSEMAN
Brent Burns (FD: 7100, DK: 7000) … Burnsy is back to being the top DFS defenseman night in and night out. He's been riding a torrid pace and will not get shutout two nights in a row and not against a Vancouver team who allowed PK Subban and Roman Josi to walk all over them the other night. Burns should be a lock in any cash games and is a great one off defenseman to lock in tonight (and any night).
Esa Lindell (FD: 3900, DK: 4200) .. Lindell is seeing 22+ minutes per night and will be on the 2nd PP unit tonight with Seguin and Shore. For value defenseman you won't find much better options for a solid floor than Lindell tonight.
STACKS
Leafs … Matthews remains out, but Nazeem Kadri should step up tonight and Willie Nylander cannot be held in check by the Red Wings. I strongly believe he gets going tonight and this line does a ton of damage. Kadri-Nylander-Komarov
Kings … My contrarian stack of the night is the Kings-Rangers game. I really like both sides but want to ride the Kings coming off a terrible performance. Kopitar-Brown-Doughty. Consider Kreider and Buchnevich from the Rangers.
Stars … I think Jamie Benn is the top one off here, but for stacking I would lock in Tyler Seguin and Esa Lindell on the power play together and pair them with Benn to play for the multi-goal upside. Seguin-Benn-Lindell
GOALIES
Make sure you check confirmations on goalies starting tonight, lots of teams on B2B or going into a B2B so check who is starting around 6:30 PM EST….
Martin Jones (Unconfirmed – Sharks) … This is the chalk, give me a win goalie of the night. If Aaron Dell starts in his spot then Dell becomes the new chalk in my mind. Sharks should win this game easily against a reeling Canucks team.
Curtis McElhinney (Unconfirmed – Toronto) … Nothing about the Red Wings appeals to me tonight.
Kari Lehtonnen (Confirmed – Stars) … Shockingly Kari gets another start for the Stars, but considering how well he has played I cannot fault them. In his last 4 starts he has allowed 2 goals or less and has won back to back games. The Stars line shuffling likely has something to do with their recent positive play and for 7400 on FD tonight you can get a ton of salary cap relief by plugging Kari in.
LINE LOCK OF THE NIGHT: Nazeem Kadri – Willie Nylander – Leo Komarov (Maple Leafs)
ONE OFF STUD WINGER: Jamie Benn (Dallas)
ONE OFF VALUE WINGER: Dustin Brown (Kings)
TOP DEFENSEMAN: Brent Burns (Sharks)
Good luck!