Joel Bartilotta 
Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of Between the Benches. We have a nice-sized 9-game slate tonight. We have some lopsided matchups tonight so there should be plenty of offense to go around.
Let’s dig in and see if we can make some money.
NHL DFS Goaltending
Tristan Jarry ($8.4K DK/$8.4k FD) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets – Even though they have some nice shiny weapons on offense, this Blue Jackets team just hasn’t been getting it done. Over the last 2 weeks, the Blue Jackets are scoring just 2.20 goals per game on around 30 shots per game. Their 7.59% shooting percentage is one of the lowest of any team playing tonight.
With Jarry, we have a goalie on a roll right now. He hasn’t given up more than 3 goals in any of his last 6 games. On DK, he’s had at least 19 points in all 5 of those games. This seems like one of those lopsided spots that we’ll want to take advantage of both offensively and with our goalie. The Pens are massive favorites tonight so Jarry should get the W here. Look for him to continue his stretch of really solid play.
Ilya Sorokin ($8k DK/$8.5k FD) vs. St. Louis Blues – The Islanders and Sorokin get a nice matchup tonight vs. the St. Louis Blues. The Blues played a tough one last night against the Rangers and although they scored 4 goals, it was against a struggling Rangers team. They’re still a team that has scored just 2.86 goals per game over the last couple of weeks and are 1-6 in their last 7.
Sorokin has been one of the top goalies in the NHL this year and one that i use often with my NHL DFS lineups. Although he’s coming off a rare stinker vs. the Predators a few nights ago, i still really like his chances to be one of the top goalies on the slate tonight and his $8k DK salary is very reasonable.
NHL DFS Stacks
Pittsburgh 1 (Crosby, Guentzel, Rakell) + Petry vs. Columbus
I mentioned in the goalie section that the Penguines are in a lopsided affair offensively tonight. In net for the Blue Jackets tonight will be Elvis Merzlikins. Merzlikins is statistically the worst goalie in the NHL these days. His Goals Saved Above Average is -12.9, by far the worst mark in the NHL. When he’s in net, we’ll want to take full advantage of the opportunity.
This top line for the Penguins has been playing great. Over their last 10 games together, they’ve scored 7 goals. Now we’ll want to keep an eye on Crosby’s status tonight as he’s listed as day-to-day, but if he’s in this line will be a core for me. Over his last 5 games, Crosby has 3 goals and 3 assists. His linemate Guentzel has also been extremely productive with 2 goals and 4 assists. This duo should be able to dominate tonight.
Seattle 2 (Beniers, McCann, Eberle) + Schultz vs. Montreal
Season 2 for the Kraken has been significantly better than the premier season. Over their last 6 games, the Kraken are 5-1 all while scoring on average 5 goals per game. This is a solid offense these days and one that will more than likely get to face Jake Allen tonight. Since November 1, Allen has played in 9 games. He’s given up less than 3 goals just twice and has given up more than 3 goals 6 times. He’s the equivalent of getting to face Dallas Keuchel.
This second unit for Seattle has been great. They’ve combined for 10 goals over their last 10 games, tied for the most in the NHL over that time. We’ll want to build around Matt Beniers and his 7 points over his last 5. At just $5k on DK, we’re getting someone putting up a ton of points at a low price. If we want to chase assists here, we’ll go with Jordan Eberle and his 6 assists in his last 5 games. This entire line makes for a solid full stack in a great matchup.
Islanders 2 (Nelson, Lee, Beauvillier) + Dobson vs. St. Louis
I would never call the Islanders a powerhouse of an offense, but oh do they get a great matchup tonight. The Blues are coming off a 6-4 loss to my New York Rangers and will get railroaded by yet another New York team tonight. The Blues are really struggling right now to keep the puck out of the net. Over the last 2 weeks, they’re giving up north of 5 goals per game. This is something we want to attack, especially since they’re on the second leg of a back-to-back.
The main scoring line for the Islanders is the second line, led by Brock Nelson. Nelson has 3 goals and 2 assists over his last 5 games and with this type of matchup, should continue to excel. I’ll prioritize getting Anders Lee into this stack as well. If you look at his metric right now, he’s got virtually nothing. Just one assist over his last 5. That said, he has 13 high danger chances and a 2.46 ixG. At some point, he’ll find the back of the net. It should be tonight.
Other Stacks: Devils 1 and 2, OTT 1, TB 2, Pitt 2, Tor 1, Dal 1 (Jason Robertson is playing like Gretzky)
NHL DFS Top Value Defenseman
- John Marino – $3k on DK
- Erik Cernak – $2.9k on Dk
- Erik Gudbranson – $3.3k on DK
- Johnathan Kovacevic – $2.5k on DK
Summary
Tonight’s looking like a great slate of hockey with some really clear spots for offense. While i didn’t list Jersey as a top line, they should smash in this spot.
Make sure to use our Projection model when setting lineups.
Good luck and hope to see you in the green!
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