3 NHL FanDuel Studs to Target on Monday 11/22/21
In any daily fantasy lineup, spending up in any daily fantasy lineup is how to get the superstars and the highest upside players in your lineup.
In NHL DFS, it’s different from paying up in sports like NBA or NFL. Someone can be one of the highest salaried players at his position and put up a total dud of a performance, and paying that much for him would be a huge mistake. Let’s make sure we are paying up in the right spots when building our lineups tonight.
Monday night features six games on the NHL slate. Studs can be found. Let's roll.
Mark Scheifele, Center, Winnipeg Jets
FanDuel Salary: $6,300
While waiting for Sidney Crosby to rediscover his scoring prowess, two other centers are the focus. One is Sebastian Aho, who will be rostered heavily from Carolina. However, one might consider Mark Scheifele of the Winnipeg Jets on Monday.
Yes, the model projects Winnipeg to score just 3.18 goals, which could prove to be a solid number as Winnipeg can easily score 3-4 goals at home. Now, Pittsburgh did shut down the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, but the Jets are a bit more dynamic offensively. Also, Scheifele has a modest four-game real-world point streak going (two goals and two assists). His shot volume (2.5 shots per game) is okay during this span, but he does block a few shots here and there.
There is a risk here. The Colorado Avalanche appear to be a safer play against an Ottawa Senators team just coming out of COVID protocol. However, many will be chasing that game just for that obvious rationale.
Stacking players on both sides of Winnipeg and Pittsburgh is plausible. There are also Winnipeg's defensemen to consider in the form of Josh Morrissey, Neal Pionk, and even Nate Schmidt.
Matt Duchene, Wing, Nashville Predators
FanDuel Salary: $6,600
The Nashville Predators care not when he scores, but that he does so -- period. Even in a blowout on the road, Matt Duchene turned a brief stretch in the third period on Saturday into the "Duchene Show". He scored three goals on consecutive shifts basically with four scoring chances. This lifted his goal total to 12 in just 17 games this 2021-22 season.
He shoots from all angles it seems and is now averaging over three shots a game. There is riding a wave of confidence, and he keeps shooting, so roll with it.
Again, this further increases Duchene's floor. Since he has become the focal point of the Nashville offense, he keeps delivering. Last year, Filip Forsberg went on a run when Duchene was out, this year it is the reverse. Nashville is home to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday in what should be a good matchup for the winger.
There are many wingers salaried above Duchene which means he may be overlooked. Also, rostering Duchene means the ever-reliable Roman Josi enters the discussion as a stacking option.
Zach Werenski, Defenseman, Columbus Blue Jackets
FanDuel Salary: $6,000
It's not necessary to consume yourself with the top two projected defensemen. Take a look at the third one (Zach Werenski) as well.
Quietly, the defenseman and the Boone Jenner line have become a sort of cheat-code DFS players are secretly using. It has been a solid plan for season-long as well.
Werenski has been on a four-game real-world point streak (two goals and four assists). The peripherals are nice as well; the Columbus defender has three or more blocked shots every game in this span and he averages 3.6 shots per game this season.
With an abundance of options on Monday night, Werenski's value could slip under some noses.
Chris Wassel is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Chris Wassel also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username chriswassel. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
