There were a few choices for the lede today, but I’m going to go all in on Stackin’ The Kraken despite them lining up against a tough opponent in the Florida Panthers. Seattle is riding a 7 game winning streak and is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games. They don’t have a flashy superstar to write up but they’ve got a pretty cohesive group of players that are definitely getting results.
One of the leaders of said skater group is center Matty Beniers, (DK: $4,800). I had Beniers slotted in as one of our mid-value picks for today as early as Thursday afternoon, and he did not disappoint in that night’s matchup. The Kraken gave up 2 first period goals to the Caps Thursday night, but stormed back to tie it in the 3rd and won it on a Beniers goal just 7 seconds into OT. Taking a peek at some other picks today, you’ll see just how hot the west coast’s newest NHL addition has been.
As far as games go, we’re back up to a total of 12 matchups for this Saturday. That gives us quite a few options. We’ll leave the 2:00 PM ET Wild/Ducks game alone and draw from the main slate that starts at 7:00 PM ET and runs through the late ones (ending with Carolina at LA at 10:30 PM ET).
C – Sean Monahan, DK: $4,000 – Monahan has been enjoying a bit of a resurgence in Montreal and has continued to restore his self confidence. With 7 points in his last 6 games, he certainly qualifies as a hot pick to continue to produce. Don’t be scared off by the third line minutes either, as Monahan has been riding on the right wing for PP1.
W – Tomas Tatar, DK: $4,000 – I wrote up Tatar once this season already and was surprised then at his DraftKings pricing given his strong production. Well, it looks like things haven’t changed much as he’s still below that $5,000 threshold. Tatar has been a fixture on line 1 for a while now, and is still getting PP time (albeit on PP2). If you’re a pattern person, you can even look at his consistency of scoring in every other game over the last 6. He went 0G 0A on Thursday night, so if he follows that pattern he’s due to light the lamp tonight.
W – Brock Boeser, DK: $3,800 – Boeser was off to a rough start at the beginning of the year, then missed 6 games at the end of October. Since his return, he’s been one of the few bright spots on an underachieving Canucks roster. He rode a 9 game point streak until going pointless in three straight, but is still getting powerplay time. This pick is more about the combination of an affordable winger with PP time facing a weaker opponent (Arizona) than anything else.
W – Leon Draisaitl, DK: $8,000 – Chalk winger alert! Draisaitl really doesn’t need much of a write up here. You know what you’re getting and it’s pretty close to a sure bet that Draisaitl gives you some FPTS on any given night. 38 points in 24 games is good for third overall in league scoring, and Leon has scored in 6 of his last 7 games. Play him with confidence at home against Montreal tonight.
D – Vince Dunn, DK: $4,300 – This is another guy that I had picked for today ahead of Thursday night’s games. In the past, Dunn was always a middle pairing D-man with the potential to break out into something more. Since his Seattle expansion draft selection, he’s had a chance to prove his doubters wrong. Dunn has turned into Seattle’s #1 defenseman on the first line for both even strength time as well as on the powerplay. He assisted on two of the three goals in Seattle’s comeback OT win on Thursday night and should continue to get the lion’s share of time on the back end for the foreseeable future.
D – Jacob Chychrun, DK: $6,800 – The winner of the “most likely to be traded” award for what seems like forever, Chychrun is finally healthy and starting to show why he’s one of the most coveted assets on the trade market. He has 3 points in 5 games played and is averaging 5 shots on goal each night. Even if the Canucks manage to hold him off the scoresheet, he should be able to put up some FPTS here.
G – Martin Jones, DK: $7,700 – Sticking with our Stackin’ The Kraken theme, we might as well head back to Seattle for our goalie pick today. It might seem kind of crazy to take Jones here vs Florida, but hear me out. The good news is he’s given up 3 or fewer goals in 8 of his last 11 starts, has a 12-4-2 record, and has registered a 2.90 GAA on the year. Sounds like a lock of a pick to me! The bad news? Those 3 starts with 4+ goals against have been in his last three games, including an 8 spot to the Kings in his last outing (a 9-8 win!). I can see veering away to Linus Ullmark ($8,000 at home, where the Bruins are still undefeated) if you aren’t sold on Jones, but I think Stackin’ The Kraken still makes sense during this hot streak. Florida is 3-4-3 in their last 10 games too.
UTIL – Nico Hischier, DK: $6,600 – This was my last add to the lineup after filling the rest of our list, so we’ve got a healthy $6,600 remaining (or $6,300 if you chose to pivot to Ullmark over Jones in net). Hischier has registered at least one point in 7 of his last 8 games, is centering New Jersey’s top even strength and powerplay lines, and is cashing in at above a point per game pace (26 PTS in 23 GP). It’s another hot hand here, similar to the Seattle picks above.
If you want to steer away from Martin Jones and go with Linus Ullmark instead, here are some less expensive picks at UTIL, (that are also playing home games tonight)…Charlie McAvoy ($6,200), Tim Stuetzle ($6,100), Nazem Kadri ($6,000), Artemi Panarin ($5,800).
Here’s the three moneyline picks for the week too…
The Sea Bass : (Favorite)
The heart says the Bruins (-165) continue their unprecedented run at home today against Colorado, but the smarter money is in Alberta. The Flames (-170) are a good bet against the Caps, but I’m rolling with Edmonton (-230) as the favorite vs. Montreal in this spot.
The Happy Gilmore : (Underdog)
I almost took the Leafs (+110) at Tampa, but that seems like a tough call especially at such a low underdog payout. Instead, let’s throw our money where our mouth is and head out to Vancouver for the Arizona Coyotes at (+170). As bad as Arizona is, Vancouver has just two more wins and are without Thatcher Demko (which may be a good thing for them), Tanner Pearson, Jack Studnicka, and Travis Dermott.
The Claude Lemieux : (Turtle/Flop)
I kind of hate to lay it on the Vancouver Canucks, and it’s a bit of a cheat to use this game twice, but the only things looking pretty in British Columbia these days are the mountains and the actors. Vancouver at (-200) looks like a lock at home against the lowly Arizona Coyotes, but I think it’s anything but that. Steer clear of the favorite-trap in this one.
That’s it for this week! I hope everyone enjoyed it. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below or give me a shout @MarmosDad.
