Allan Fabrykant 
As we head towards New Year’s Eve, NHL action is heating up very fast. We have a great nine-gamer for tonight’s Friday Night 12/29 NHL slate. The first puck drop begins at 7:00 pm ET. Don’t forget to lock your lines and check the discord for any updates! Without further ado, let’s get right into it!
12/29 NHL Stack Report
1. Toronto Maple Leafs 1 (Knies-Matthews-Marner)
— Offensively, the Leafs have been one of the hottest teams in hockey. They are currently tied for third in the league in goals per game, with an average of 3.53 goals per game. Their offensive charge is led by their superstar forward, Auston Matthews, who has been on an absolute tear as of late with 12 goals and five assists over his last eight games. His performances have been improving the fantasy status of his teammates as well, with both Knies and Marner benefitting from Matthews’ production. Tonight, they’ll be coming in against a Blue Jackets side who have lost their last three games. The Leafs have also faced off against the Blues Jackets twice this month, and on both occasions, it ended up being a goal fest for Toronto as they have nine goals combined over those two games (6-5 OT Loss for the Leafs and a 4-1 Win for the Leafs). Although the Leafs may have some work to do on the defensive end, their offence is certainly not an issue and they are in an excellent spot to score high for your DFS lines tonight.
Ideal Defensive Partner(s): Morgan Rielly
2. Dallas Stars 1 (Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski)
— Dallas is arguably in an even better spot than the Leafs tonight as they are coming in against their divisional rivals and the second-worst team in the league, the Chicago Blackhawks, in the first half of a home and away series. The Stars are coming into their home arena as one of the hottest teams in the league as they have put together an impressive stretch of games as of late with five wins over their last seven games (their only two recent losses came against the St. Louis Blues and were one-goal games). The Blackhawks on the other hand have lost five of their last seven and are in arguably one of the worst matchups of the slate. Dallas’ top line has been particularly impressive with every member of their top line averaging a point per game or more over the sit last four games while also seeing time on Dallas’ top powe play unit. Putting their whole line together for Daily Fantasy can end up being a little pricey but I highly recommend having some exposure to Dallas’ top line tonight.
Ideal Defensive Partner(s): Miro Heiskanen (Honorable Mention(s): Thomas Harley)
Honorable Mention(s): Arizona Coyotes 2 (Maccelli-Bjugstad-Crouse)
12/29 NHL Goalie Tracker
Best (Goalies to Roster)
- Scott Wedgewood
- Alexander Georgiev
Honorable Mention(s): Ilya Samsonov, Connor Ingram
Worst (Goalies to Target)
1. Petr Mrazek
Honorable Mention(s): Elvis Merzlikins
12/29 NHL Wild Card Targets
Ilya Samsonov
– Sammy has a lot to prove. Leafs’ other top goalie, Joseph Woll, is out with an injury, and with his late struggles, Samsonov has been unable to grasp firm control of the starting job, so much so that in their last game, the Leafs turned to their third-string option, Martin Jones. In tonight’s matchup, Samsonov is being given another opportunity. He is starting in a game that he is very well positioned to win, with the Leafs coming in one one of the best odds to win on the slate, along with a very low implied goal total from the Blue Jackets. Samsonov is in a good spot here and has something to prove in tonight’s game. Despite some shaky recent performances, he is worth considering on a slate with not many solid goaltending options.
Honorable Mention(s): Colton Sissons, Anthony Mantha
Core Four: (ALWAYS BE STACKIN’)
Center – Auston Matthews
Winger – Jason Robertson
Defenseman – Gustav Forsling
Goalie – Scott Wedgewood
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