DailyFaceoff DFS Cheat Sheet – January 4th
How’s it going everyone! Welcome to the first Cheat Sheet of the 2017 calendar year. I’ve been cashing in regularly lately, so hopefully that will translate into my advice tonight. Below I’ve listed some of my favourite DFS forward, defence and goalie plays are for tonight’s six-game slate.
This Cheat Sheet includes DraftKings and FanDuel salary as well as SaberSim dfs projections. These projections don’t tell you exactly what’s going to happen. One game samples have too much randomness to pin down exact predictions. Rather, the projections represent what a player’s performance would look like on average if that particular matchup were played over and over again. There is a wide range of possible outcomes, and the projections represent the average of those possibilities for each player.
Forwards
Vincent Trocheck – vs. WPG – (DK-$5,500 / FD-$6,300)
SaberSim Projection: DK-3.46 / FD-12.40
Aleksander Barkov was hurt during a game vs. the Maple Leafs last Wednesday and Trocheck has elevated his game in Barkov’s absence. Including that game vs. Toronto, Trocheck has three goals, two assists and 13 shots on goal in his last three games. Trocheck regularly plays 21-plus minutes a night and will often play 25-plus minutes and with Barkov out, the offence is going through him, making him a great play tonight against a Winnipeg team who played last night and that is struggling to keep the puck out of their net.
Mikael Backlund – vs. COL – (DK-$5,600 / FD-$5,800)
SaberSim Projection: DK-2.54 / FD-9.01
Backlund is having the best offensive season of his career and he has been scorching hot since the middle of December. In nine games since December 10th, Backlund has scored seven goals with five assists and comes into Wednesday on a four-game goal scoring streak. The Avalanche are in town and they’re brutal. Calvin Pickard is in net having posted a 4.55 GAA and .856 SV% during a four-game losing streak.
Anthony Mantha – @ ANA – (DK-$5,200 / FD-$5,300)
SaberSim Projection: DK-3.03 / FD-10.88
The Red Wings are not good, trust me I’m a Red Wings fan, but Mantha is very good. Mantha was excellent in the Centennial Classic, scoring twice and adding an assist to give him five goals and four assists (nine points) during a six-game point streak. Mantha is currently third among rookies in goals per game (.409), fifth in points per game (.727) and seventh in shots per game (2.45).
Patrick Sharp – vs. MTL – (DK-$4,900 / FD-$5,400)
SaberSim Projection: DK-3.64 / FD-13.05
Sharp returned after a 12-game absence on Saturday and registered three shots on goal in 15:46 TOI. Tonight he will be the beneficiary of a Jamie Benn injury as he moves to the top line to play with Jason Spezza and Tyler Seguin. Sharp has had a tough season with injuries and his salary is reflective of that, so take advantage of that tonight.
Defensemen
Jeff Petry – @ DAL – (DK-$4,900 / FD-$5,000)
SaberSim Projection: DK-1.60 / FD-5.54
Petry has become a force in Daily Fantasy over the last month. During that time, he is tied with Aaron Ekblad for the most shots among defenseman available tonight, as well as being tied for first in goals and averaging over one block per game. He might not have the Shea Weber bomb, but he first seven shots last night and has had at least five shots in five of his last seven games.
Keith Yandle – vs. WPG – (DK-$4,400 / FD-$5,500)
SaberSim Projection: DK-3.76 / FD-13.26
Yandle had a slow start to his career with the Panthers, but has been much better lately, recording assists in three straight games and is tied for 18th among defenseman with 15 points (2G / 13A) since November 1st. Yandle is a strong Daily Fantasy option because he averages close to 2.5 shots per game and over one blocked shot per contest. That stable floor and the fact that he plays over three minutes per night on the Power Play make him a safe play tonight.
Michael Matheson – vs. WPG – (DK-$3,800 / FD-$4,300)
SaberSim Projection: DK-2.57 / FD-8.82
Matheson isn’t an elite option, but he has been extremely consistent. The Panthers’ blueliner has averaged over three shots and nearly two blocked shots over the last month and plays big minutes alongside Ekblad at both even strength and on the power play. If you can’t fit Yandle in your lineup, Matheson is an excellent fallback option.
Goalies
Brian Elliott – vs. COL – (DK-$8,100 / FD-$7,700)
SaberSim Projection: DK-4.73 / FD-18.93
Remember when Elliott was playing terribly and then was riding the pine with Chad Johnson stealing the show, well it’s Elliott’s crease again. He will start for the fourth time in five games and comes in on a four-game winning streak, while posting a 2.00 GAA and .918 SV% over that stretch. He started the Flames 6-3 win in Colorado last Tuesday and should be able to win again tonight—this time in the comfort of hiss own barn.
Roberto Luongo – vs. WPG – (DK-$7,900 / FD-$8,800)
SaberSim Projection: DK-4.49 / FD-17.97
Luongo hasn’t recorded a win since December 20th and was given the last two games off, so he comes into tonight well rested and draws a really nice matchup against a Jets team who is 8-11-2 on the road and that played last night. Despite losing his last two starts, Luongo has averaged 35.7 saves per game in his last three games and has produced really nice DFS numbers without the win bonus.