Yahoo DFS Hockey: Saturday Picks

Yahoo DFS Hockey: Saturday Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.

There are seven games in the NHL on Saturday. A number of games have been postponed due to the COVID-19 protocols, and a number of teams are also missing key players for the same reason. You'll want to keep tabs on the RotoWire NHL news feed before finalizing your lineups. The Stars, Hurricanes and Flyers are all notable home-ice favorites, whereas Chicago and Dallas are both playing for the second consecutive night. Additionally, it's also worth noting Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Los Angeles, Carolina, New Jersey and Seattle all play Sunday, so double-check your goaltenders.

All statistics from Natural Stat Trick and Hockey Reference.

GOALIE

Anton Forsberg, OTT at PHI ($24): This is a reasonable salary to take a flier on Forsberg's recent form. He's won five of his past six starts with a .932 save percentage and 2.14 GAA, and Philadelphia enters on a 3-8-3 stretch with just 2.7 goals per game.

GOALIE TO AVOID

Jonathan Quick, LA at CAR ($37): Carolina is 8-3 with 3.63 goals per game on home ice while also ranking first in expected goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five. Obviously, the Hurricanes have some regulars out of the lineup, but this might be a bad spot to spend up on Quick assuming his high-end play continues. After all, maintaining a .961 save percentage too much longer is asking a lot. 

CENTER

Auston Matthews, TOR at VAN ($34): There's a solid case for Connor McDavid ($38) and/or Leon Draisaitl ($35) on Saturday, but Matthews is just a little cheaper, and he's in better current form. He's up to 13 tallies, five helpers and 47 shots through the past 10 games with double-digit fantasy points in all but two outings. Additionally, the Canucks aren't going to win every game the rest of the season and could be due for a letdown showing following six straight victories under new coach Bruce Boudreau. Vancouver's league-low penalty-kill percentage is another plus.

CENTER TO AVOID

Anze Kopitar, LA at CAR ($22): In the noted tough matchup against Carolina, Kopitar lands in fade territory. He hasn't registered a multi-point showing in seven games, and the Hurricanes rank first in goals against per game, second in penalty-kill percentage and second in Corsi For percentage for the campaign.

WING

Drake Batherson, OTT at PHI ($21): With two tallies and 10 helpers through his past seven games, Batherson is up to a sixth-ranked 3.97 points per 60 minutes for the campaign. Philadelphia has also surrendered the most expected goals per 60 in the league at five-on-five. 

Michael Bunting, TOR at VAN ($15): After racking up three tallies and eight helpers through an eight-game stretch, Bunting has missed the scoresheet entirely in the past three outings. As a result, he's a bounce-back candidate Saturday. His role on the No. 1 line alongside Matthews and Ondrej Kase helps his cause, as the trio have generated an impressive 18.17 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes at five-on-five.

WINGS TO AVOID

Patrick Kane, CHI at DAL ($28): While there's reason for optimism with Kane shooting at an unsustainably low 2.7 percent rate through his past 13 games, he's only generated 10 individual high-danger scoring chances during that time. Chicago also travels to Dallas to play its second game in consecutive nights, and the Stars aren't a plus matchup. Dallas ranks in the middle of the pack in both goals against per game and penalty-kill percentage. 

Cam Atkinson, PHI vs. OTT ($19): On the flip side of the regression discussion, Atkinson has scored five times through his past seven games on 27.8 percent shooting, and three of those goals came in a single game. The Senators have also been sneaky good of late with wins in five of their past seven games while allowing two goals or fewer in five of those contests. 

DEFENSE

Dougie Hamilton, NJ at DET ($23): It's been a ho-hum run for Hamilton of late with just a single goal and five assists through his past six games. However, he's racked up 44 shots during the stretch, and his 2.3 percent shooting is a little low. Additionally, it's a solid matchup with Detroit ranking 27th in penalty-kill percentage. Hamilton's current 1.73 points per 60 minutes trails the 2.1 mark he posted over the previous two seasons.

Tony DeAngelo, CAR vs. LA ($19): The first-year Hurricane scored in his return to action Thursday to improve to 20 points (including five goals) through 20 games for the campaign. He quarterbacks the No. 1 power-play, and Los Angeles' penalty-kill percentage ranks 26th in the league, so the special-teams matchup checks out.

DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID

Morgan Rielly, TOR at VAN ($22): With 11 points through his past six games, Rielly is scorching hot. However, he missed the scoresheet entirely in four of six games prior to that, so there have been a lot of peaks and valleys of late. Additionally, expect him to be a popular target given his current form, and Vancouver's noted penalty-killing woes. 

Quinn Hughes, VAN vs. TOR ($18): Toronto has surrendered the fourth-fewest goals per game in the league and ranks 10th in penalty-kill percentage, so this probably isn't an ideal matchup to target Hughes in. He's also been matching up against the opposition's top players, which might not be ideal Saturday.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Neil Parker plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: naparker77, DraftKings: naparker77.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neil Parker
A loyal Cubs, Cowboys and Maple Leafs fan for decades, Neil has contributed to RotoWire since 2014. He previously worked for USA Today Fantasy Sports.
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