DFS Lines To Target: 01/14/20
It’s an 11-game slate in the NHL tonight, including Sidney Crosby making his return for Pittsburgh against Minnesota. I’ve highlighted my top high-priced, medium-priced and value stacks to help you out. Good luck!
High-Priced
Vancouver 2 – J.T. Miller ($6,000), Elias Pettersson ($6,500), Brock Boeser ($6,500)
Vancouver’s second line has a great matchup at both even-strength and on the power play against the Jets tonight. This line continues to be one of the best possession lines in the NHL, and they’ll be mainly matched up against the Wheelers, Ehlers and Copp line. Ehlers and Wheeler have played almost 400 minutes of ice time together this season and own a mediocre 51.29 CF%. This Canucks trio should generate a ton of chances on goalie Connor Hellebyuck, who has surrendered at least three goals in six of his past eight starts.
The best value for this Canucks trio might come with the man advantage. All three players in this stack play on the first power-play unit and will be operating against the worst PK unit (tied with Detroit) in the NHL. Pettersson scored a power-play marker last game and is riding a four-game point streak, while Miller had two assists with the man advantage on Sunday. Boeser is playing his best hockey of the season, scoring three times in his last three games, including a recent two-goal, eight-shot outing versus Buffalo.
Medium-Priced
Pittsburgh 1 – Jared McCann ($4,900), Sidney Crosby ($7,100), Dominik Simon ($2,900)
Sidney Crosby makes his return from injury tonight and has a favorable matchup going up against Minnesota’s first line. The Zucker, Staal and Zuccarello trio own a lackluster 44.35 CF% this season while Simon and McCann own a lethal 60.51 CF% together. They’ll only benefit from the addition of the superstar Crosby, who missed the last 28 games following core muscle surgery.
The Wild are one of the worst defensive teams in the NHL and have struggled of late. Minnesota has lost three straight games and have allowed 11 goals in that span. The speedy McCann has scored three times in his last four games while Simon is on track for a career year with 16 points through 42 games. I don’t expect much rust from Sid, as the Penguins got the job done in his absence and made sure he was fully healthy before inserting him back into the lineup.
Value Stack
Dallas 2 – Dennis Gurianov ($3,400), Roope Hintz ($4,400), Joe Pavelski ($4,900)
The Stars’ second line has some nice value tonight going up against Colorado’s Kadri, Nichushkin and Burakovsky line. This Dallas trio has been particularly solid when it comes to high-danger chances, as they own a 64.86 HDCF% in over 80 minutes of ice time. This Colorado trio hasn’t been put together much this season, but Kadri and Burakovsky have played over 200 minutes together and they own a concerning 42.42 HDCF%.
The Avalanche will be turning in goal to Philipp Grubauer, who has had a few rough outings of late, allowing three or more goals in three of his last for starts. I also see some solid upside with the power play, as all three players see time with the man advantage and will be up against a Colorado PK that ranks in the bottom half of the league. When you consider that Hintz has four points (two goals) in his last four games, and Pavelski and Gurianov found the back of the net recently, it’s hard to find better value than Dallas 2 tonight.