There are a couple huge college football games Saturday, not to mention a World Series game. Me, though? I’m focused on 10 NHL games starting at 7 p.m. EDT or later. Hey, you can play DFS hockey and still watch all that other good sports stuff if you want. Just be sure to get your lineups in, and hopefully these recommendations help.
GOALIE
Cam Talbot, OTT vs. PHI ($36): Talbot will be making his first start of the season after making a cameo in Ottawa’s last game. This is a nice matchup to step into. Carter Hart has really been salvaging this season for the Flyers, who have struggled offensively and defensively. Philly has averaged a mere 2.60 goals and 26.3 shots on net per contest.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Ilya Samsonov, TOR vs. BOS ($30): Samsonov has stepped in for the injured Matt Murray and been stellar for the Leafs. He has a 2.30 GAA and .920 save percentage. That lifts the Russian’s career save percentage all the way to, well, .904. The Bruins, meanwhile, are currently topping the NHL with 4.45 goals per game.
CENTER
Dylan Strome, WAS vs. ARI ($17): Injuries have hit the Capitals hard, but Strome has helped paper over the cracks. He has nine points in 12 games, including five on the power play. The Coyotes are as brutal defensively as most of us assumed they would be. They have a 4.30 GAA and have allowed 37.1 shots on net per contest, and neither of those numbers surprises me given their roster.
CENTER TO AVOID
Tage Thompson, BUF at TAM ($23): Thompson has been a big part of the Sabres being a feel-good story to start this season. However, Saturday night Buffalo is the sole team on the second leg of a back-to-back. While Andrei Vasilevskiy is off to a slow start, his .911 save percentage is still not all that bad, and of course if any goalie has a track record you can trust, it’s him.
WING
Matt Duchene, NAS at VAN ($20): In three of his last four games, Duchene has put up multiple points. On the season he’s averaged 3:54 on the power play, and last season he had 29 points with the extra man. Speaking of last season, the Canucks had the league’s worst penalty kill in that campaign, and they are last to start this season as well.
Brandon Hagel, TAM vs. BUF ($17): Hagel is playing on the wing on Tampa’s top line – the old Ondrej Palat position – and wouldn’t you know it, he has seven points in his last six games. As I noted, the Sabres are the one team on the road for the second night of a back-to-back Saturday. Eric Comrie is getting the start in this one for Buffalo, and he has an .898 save percentage.
WINGS TO AVOID
Alex DeBrincat, OTT vs. PHI ($21): DeBrincat has been an excellent goal scorer in the NHL, and a big part of that has been his ability to routinely manage elevated shooting percentages. As such, it’s quite surprising that DeBrincat has a mere 4.3 percent mark in his first year as a Senator. Positive regression will come, but right now he’s struggling and facing a red-hot Hart who has a 2.10 GAA and .943 save percentage.
Cole Caufield, MON vs. VGK ($20): Caufield has come out the gate on fire, but so has Logan Thompson. The Golden Knights goalie has a 2.01 GAA and .934 save percentage. Vegas has also only allowed 29.8 shots on net per contest. With so many options at your disposal Saturday, there’s little reason to roster any Montreal shooters.
DEFENSE
Brandon Montour, FLA at LOS ($19): Montour has been playing an outsized role with Aaron Ekblad out of the lineup. He’s averaged 26:30 in ice time, including a whopping 5:23 with the extra man. That’s helped him rack up eight points and 30 shots on net. Jonathan Quick has a 3.26 GAA and .889 save percentage, and over the last five seasons he has an .899 save percentage as well.
Shea Theodore, VGK at MON ($19): Theodore has eight points in 12 games, even though he doesn’t have a point on the power play yet. He’s had double-digit power-play points in each of the last three seasons, so that should change. Since joining the Canadiens, Jake Allen has a 3.00 GAA and .906 save percentage, and the Habs have allowed 32.6 shots on net per contest this year as well.
DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID
Morgan Rielly, TOR vs. BOS ($22): Rielly has been shooting less and has zero goals, but he does have nine assists including four on the power play. However, the Bruins have the league’s best penalty kill. Plus, Linus Ullmark has a 2.17 GAA and .929 save percentage.
John Klingberg, ANA vs. SAN ($11): In his first season as a Duck, Klingberg has been placed on the top power-play unit. Three of his five points have come with the extra man. The Sharks have the second-ranked penalty kill though, and even last year when their overall defensive numbers weren’t strong, they had a top-five unit. For whatever reason, it seems like San Jose excels at killing penalties.
