DraftKings Fantasy Hockey Cheat Sheet: January 15th

Tonight’s featured DraftKings contest has the usual $3 entry fee with a $37,500 prize pool. First place wins a cool $2,500 and over 2,900 players will get paid! Use this cheat sheet and try your luck!

Here’s a quick explanation on how to build your lineup an play! You have $50,000 in Salary space, to build a team that consists of 2C, 3W, 2D, 1G and 1 Util. Below you will find how skaters and goalies scoring works!

• Players will accumulate points as follows:

Goal = +3 PTS
Assist = +2 PTS
Shot on Goal = +0.5 PTS
Blocked Shot = +0.5 PTS
Short Handed Point Bonus (Goal/Assist) = +1 PTS
Shootout Goal = +0.2 PTS
Hat Trick Bonus = +1.5 PTS

• Goalies only will accumulate points as follows:

Win = +3 PTS
Save = +0.2 PTS
Goal Against = -1 PTS
Shutout Bonus = +2 PTS

• Goalie Scoring Notes:

Goalies WILL receive points for all stats they accrue, including goals and assists.
The Goalie Shutout Bonus is credited to goalies if they complete the entire game with 0 goals allowed in regulation + overtime. Shootout goals will not prevent a shutout. Goalie must complete the entire game to get credit for a shutout.

Below I’ve listed my top DFS plays at each position as well as a few sample DraftKings lineup for tonight.

Centres

Jonathan Toews – @ TOR – $6,200

It is hard to pick between the Toews line or the Patrick Kane line right now. The Blackhawks are red-hot, coming into Friday on a nine-game winning streak. Over that span, Toews has six goals, five assists and 5.2 DraftKings points per game (FPPG). If you want to roll the Toews line, you could pair him with Marian Hossa ($5,700), who has two goals and two assists in his last three, or Andrew Shaw ($3,800), who has two goals and three assists in his last three.

Ryan Spooner – @ BUF – $4,200

Spooner continues to be red-hot with David Krejci out of the lineup. Spooner has collected one goal, seven assists and 4.2 FPPG over his last seven games. He failed to record a point in just one of those games and he draws a great matchup tonight in Buffalo, where Robin Lehner will make his first start since October 8th.

Bo Horvat – @ CAR – $3,400

After recording just two goals and eight assists (10 points) in his first 39 games, Horvat has four goals and three assists during his five-game point streak. Over that stretch he has averaged 5.4 FPPG and makes for a great value play tonight in Carolina.

Wingers

Patrick Kane – @ TOR – $8,900

Like I said, you won’t really be able to stack both the Blackhawks top lines and you will save money going with Toews’ line, but Kane is a safer bet for points. During the nine-game winning streak he has four goals, nine assists (13 points) and 5.4 FPPG. You’ll have to pay a pretty penny for his partner in crime Artemi Panarin ($6,000), but Artem Anisimov ($4,800) offers some nice value.

Zach Parise – vs. WPG – $7,800

Since December 31st, the Jets have given up an average of 3.00 goals per game. In addition to there recent stretch of terrible defence, they played last night which means they’ll be tired and could mean that Michael Hutchinson starts for the Jets (head coach Paul Maurice did not name a starter). Parise has five goals and 5.5 FPPG in his last five games and is the best Wild forward you’ll find tonight.

Loui Eriksson – @ BUF – $5,500

I like Eriksson better than Matt Beleskey ($4,200) as an option with Spooner. Ericsson has two goals and five assists in his last nine games and is coming off of a game where he had one goal on six shots (6 FP).

Defensemen

Kris Letang – @ TB – $6,000

Since returning to the Penguins lineup on December 30th, Letang has registered four goals and six assists (10 points) in seven games. In the last two weeks, he has averaged 7.0 FPPG, which is 1.5 points per game more than Steven Stamkos ($7,600), who is second among available skaters. He is an elite option on the blueline and a borderling must-play in any format.

Duncan Keith – @ TOR – $6,000

Keith only has three assists in his last five games but two goals and seven assists in his last nine games. Over that span he is averaging 4.4 FPPG and a matchup with the Maple Leafs is a juicy one.

Jared Spurgeon – vs. WPG – $4,700

If you have cap room, I suggest looking at Ryan Suter ($6,100), who has one goal and five assists in his last six. Spurgeon doesn’t pickup points at a great clip, but he shoots with some regularity and blocks a tonne of shots, so he has a stable floor. Despite having only one assist in his last four games, he has 3.25 FPPG.

Goalies

Devan Dubnyk – vs. WPG – $7,800 – Confirmed

Despite losing four of six (2-2-2) in January, Dubnyk has posted a 2.31 GAA and .924 SV% in those games. He has been consistent all year long and he has a solid matchup vs. a Jets team on the wrong end of a back-to-back. The Jets average just 2.38 goals per game on the road.

Kari Lehtonen – @ANA – $7,200 – Likely

Lehtonen’s 2.96 GAA and .905 SV% on the road is nothing to write home about, but he has gone 7-1-0 in those games. He plays for the team that scores the most in the NHL and faces the team that scores the least, so that recipe should lead to a win for Lehtonen.

Jonas Gustavsson – @ BUF – $6,800 – Likely

Gustavsson has played well when called upon this season, going 7-3-1 with a 2.44 GAA and .909 SV%. He struggled in his first start vs. the Sabres, but with Robin Lehner making his first start since October 8th, Gustavsson offers some real value at $6,800 tonight.

Scott Darling – @ TOR – $7,400 – Unconfirmed

Darling is not confirmed or even likely for that matter, but if there is a pregame update and he starts, he is also a solid option.

Sample Lineups