Welcome to November! Saturday kicks off a new month with DraftKings offering eight evening NHL games starting at 7 p.m. EDT. Here are my DFS lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
Only one team is on the second leg of a back-to-back with the Capitals visiting the Sabres. Every team has now played double-digit games, so we're getting a better sense of the more favorable DFS matchups.
GOALIES
Filip Gustavsson, MIN vs. VAN ($8,400): Gustavsson's season-opening shutout certainly feels like a distant memory as he currently lists an .892 save percentage, though his career .911 gives me hope he'll turn it around. The Canucks have only averaged 2.58 goals and 24.8 shots, which shouldn't make any goalie - including Gustavsson - work very hard.
Joey Daccord, SEA vs. NYR ($7,200): Looking at Daccord's starts this season have been really all-or-nothing, which makes it feel like he's either going to drive your DFS success or let you down. That being said, he's posted a 1.96 GAA and .932 save percentage at home. And just as important, the Rangers have managed a mere 2.33 goals per game.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Jordan Kyrou, STL at CLM ($6,000): Kyrou has been a 30-goal scorer each of the last three seasons while also racking up at least 239 shots. He's currently at four goals on 25 shots through 11 games. I'm particularly interested in shooting here as the Blue Jackets have allowed a league-high 33.0 shots per outing, so Kyrou should have opportunities to light the lamp on Saturday.
Drake Batherson, OTT at MON ($5,600): Batherson missed the first three games, but has made up for lost time with 13 points and at least two from three of the last four matchups. Jakub Dobes has been starting more often recently for the Canadiens on account of him being a better goalie than Sam Montembeault, yet the latter is projected to start Saturday and enters with a 3.81 GAA and .842 save percentage.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Sabres vs. Capitals
Ryan McLeod (C - $3,400), Alex Tuch (W - $6,400), Josh Doan (W - $3,600)
In addition to being on the road for the second straight day, Logan Thompson got the nod for the Capitals on Friday. That leaves Charlie Lindgren to tend goal Saturday. During his Washington tenure - now in its fourth season - he's registered a .902 save percentage. That's not great, and neither is the seven goals Lindgren allowed last time out. You may not be familiar with the production of Buffalo's second line, but it's actually been quite good.
McLeod has notched five points in his last five games. I'll note his current 27.3 shooting percentage and also mention the 20.6 from last season where he netted 20 goals. A lot of the talk about the Sabres tends to be about the lack of playoff success, though not much gets heard about Tuch scoring 36 goals in two of the last three years. He also comes into Saturday with 11 points in 11 games, and that's without anything on the power play. Doan is getting the first significant playing time of his career and has responded with four goals, four assists, and 34 shots.
Canadiens vs. Senators
Nick Suzuki (C - $6,700), Cole Caufield (W - $7,300), Juraj Slafkovsky (W - $4,300)
The Sens have only allowed 25.4 shots per game, which seems unsustainable while they still list a 3.92 GAA largely thanks to a 31st-ranked penalty kill. Montreal's top trio doesn't need power-play minutes to succeed, yet all participate on the first unit. It's one of the best lines in hockey and any favorable opportunity makes for a great reason to stack.
Suzuki is even surpassing the pace that yielded 89 points last year as he's already at 16. Not only that, but he's done that while posting a 7.7 shooting percentage that should at least double by season's end. Caufield is on the flip side with an elevated 29.0 mark while potting nine goals and directing 31 shots on net. Slafkovsky can't keep the pace of his linemates, yet he's been a 50-point player during each of the last two seasons. He also has three PPPs from his last two games and gets to face Ottawa's 31st-ranked penalty kill on Saturday.
DEFENSEMEN
Lane Hutson, MON vs. OTT ($4,600): Hutson made a big splash as a rookie last season by racking up 26 points while up a man. He's currently averaging 3:09 during that situation, though that's only yielded two points thus far. That hasn't slowed Hutson down as he's still found the scoresheet in eight of his last nine appearances.
Ivan Provorov, CLM vs. STL ($3,400): Zach Werenski is the Blue Jackets' big star. But for the sake of offering a defenseman with a lower salary, I'm turning to Provorov. He's usually good for a little over 30 points and 100 shots each year and has so far tallied two goals and two assists alongside 22 shots and 14 blocked shots. And I wanted a Columbus blueliner as the Blues have struggled to a 4.27 GAA.
