Written by LineStar Fantasy Life Coach @ZeroInDenver.

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Welcome to the NHL Hat Trick.

ICYMI - The NHL Season Preview & Strategy guide goes over the basics of NHL DFS and what I look for when researching players.

I'm really hoping you had Zibanejad in your lineup last night. I had some, but not nearly enough, as he clearly broke the slate.

If you didn't have Zibanejad, let's try to find someone or some stack that can break the slate tonight.

LETSSSSSSSSSSGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tonight's Slate

Here's numbers on the teams from their past 10 games. Generally, I start my research by looking for teams in good spots. For example, teams that score goals (GF60) that are facing teams that give up goals (GA60). I also look at teams that shoot a lot (CF60) that are facing teams that give up a lot of shots (CA60).

Based on this, teams that stand out to me are Tampa, Florida, Pittsburgh, Edmonton, and NYI

Line Stacks

The first favorite on the night for me is Tampa. Both top lines are priced reasonably and have a decent matchup against a Chicago team that giving up 3.7 goals a game over their last 10 games.

Nashville is one of the worst teams in the league and I'm going to continue to stack against them. Like Tampa, I have little interest in the 3rd line for Florida. I'm going to lean more towards the Barkov line, but like a PP1 stack of Barkov, Huberdeau, and Hornqvist as well.

For Pittsburgh, I'm really only interested in the top line. However, they're extra expensive and I don't think you can build a viable lineup with PIT1 and any of the top two lines for Tampa or Florida.

Edmonton ranks highly again for me tonight. They shifted lines last night and scored seven goals, so I hope the offense can keep it up again tonight. Winnipeg can be good at limiting goals at times, but they allow a ton of shot attempts and scoring chances each night.

Risk It For The Biscuit

Here's some stacks that you can pair with PIT1 or any of the stacks mentioned above. Philly gave up 9 goals last night and have given up an average of 4.2 goals a night over their last 10 games. I prefer NYI1, but wouldn't talk anyone off of NYI2, or even an NYI3 pairing of JGP and Wahlstrom.

Goaltender Rankings

How to Read This: 

I'm giving you a comparison of LineStar projections vs the average fantasy points scored over their last 10 games. I've also given you their save percentage (over 0.910 is ideal), goals allowed (lower is better), saves per game (more is better), GAA (Goals Saved Above Average), and my projected upside for each goalie.

Generally, if I'm stacking a team, I'll correlate a goalie if I can. In GPPs, I may not have the salary to make this work. In this case, I usually spend down on someone that I expect will take a lot of shots and could pick up the W.

As always - double-check that your goalie is starting before the game starts.

My Favorites:

CASH: Alex Nedeljkovic - CAR (DK: $8100, FD: $8100)

GPP: Jonathan Bernier - DET (DK: $7100, FD: $6900)

Forwards and Defensemen Rankings

How to Interpret C/D/W charts: In NHL DFS, I think it's most important to look at peripheral stats instead of goals which is why I put so much emphasis on shots. This includes shot attempts, high danger shot attempts (those shot attempts closest to the net with the highest probability of going into the net), shots on goal, and scoring chances. I've included projections and average fantasy points to see how each compares so you can more easily find value.

Center

My Favorite

Brock Nelson - NYI (DK: $5600, FD: $5700)

You don't need me to tell you that McDavid is a good play any given night, but I'm hoping I can provide insight on plays that you might not have considered, like Zibanejad last night. Now I don't expect a multi-point game from Brock Nelson tonight, but he's priced right, gets PP1 time, and has a good matchup against a flailing PHI team.

Wing

My Favorite:

Kyle Connor - WPG (DK: $5700, FD: $6900)

Someone asked last night if "Connor" was a lock, and honestly, this was who came to mind first. Kyle Connor has been going off for Winnipeg lately and it seems like his price has barely moved.

Defensemen

My Favorite

Miro Heiskanen - DAL (DK: $5500, FD: $4700)

I love all who I have listed and will have shares of each, but I like Heiskanen the best. He's projected lower than the rest, which leads me to hope that he'll be lower owned as well.

Bottom of the Barrel

Here are my cheap calls for a skater to pick up a goal or assist.

Yanni Gourde: TBL - C (DK: $ 4100, FD: $ 3900)

Yegor Sharangovich: NJD - W (DK: $3500, FD: $3800)

Josh Morrisey - WPG (DK: $4100, FD: $4800)

Disclaimer: Keep in mind, plays and thoughts listed are my own. You should all do your own research and you might (and probably should) disagree with me in some spots. Don't be afraid to go your own way.

Good luck today! Tag me in the LineStar Chat @ZeroInDenver if you have any questions or feedback. Follow me on Twitter @ZeroInDenver.

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