Joel Bartilotta 
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Saturday Slapshot. I’ll be focusing on tonight’s nice-sized 9-game main slate of NHL DFS on DraftKings and FanDuel. We’re now a couple of weeks into the 2022/2023 season and trends are somewhat becoming clearer. We have some lopsided matchups tonight that we’ll hopefully be able to take full advantage of.
Let’s dig in and see if we can make some money.
NHL DFS Goaltending
Tristan Jarry ($8.4K DK/$8.6k FD) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets – This is a little bit more than I normally like to spend on my goalie, but you have to love the spot for Tristan Jarry tonight. Through 3 games so far this season, Jarry’s play has been exceptional. So far in this young year, he’s sporting a 1.68 GAA and a .952 save %. While that high of a save % is probably not sustainable, the matchup tonight is a good one for him.
The Blue Jackets’ offense has yet to really click on all cylinders and against a solid Penguins team, I just don’t think they start tonight. Through 5 games, the Blue Jackets are scoring less than 3 goals a game. Knowing that I’ll look heavily at Jarry as my starting goalie tonight.
Jake Oettinger ($8k DK/$7.9k FD) vs. Montreal Canadiens – Another goalie that has really started out the season playing really well is Jake Oettinger. Through his first 3 starts, Oettinger has a GAA of just 1 and a .966 save %. Again, a save % that high isn’t really sustainable, but with a struggling Canadiens offense Oettinger should be able to continue his solid play.
The Canadiens have also scored less than 3 goals per game to start the year and outside of their top line of Caufield and Suzuki, they have few offensive weapons. As it stands right now, I do like Oettinger just a smidge better than Jarry due to that extra $400 we’ll be able to save for our offense.
Another goalie that has my interest tonight is Jake Allen of the Canadiens. I don’t think he’ll get the W tonight, but so far he’s played really well. He’s had at least 15 DK points in all 3 of his starts this season.
NHL DFS Stacks
Pittsburgh 2 (Malkin, Rust, Zucker) + Jeff Petry vs. Columbus
This has been one of the better lines in the NHL to start the season. Together as a line, they’ve combined for 4 goals so far and they have an expected goals of 4.5. No line has a higher expected goals number so far than this line. With this line, we’ll want to make sure to build around Evgeni Malkin. He’s been the guy leading the way so far as he has 3 goals and 2 assists through the team’s first 4 games.
We’ll also want to make sure to grab Bryan Rust here. Through 4 games, he also has 5 points. He’s second on the team with 8 high danger chances. Against a poor defensive team in the Blue Jackets that is giving up 4 goals per game, the Penguins should put up a big number tonight. They’ll do so thanks to their second line.
Washington 1(Ovechkin, Kuznetsov, Sheary) + Orlov vs. Los Angeles
The Capitals have yet to really click this season. They’re only scoring 3 goals per game, which for an offense like theirs is pretty low. Their time is coming and it’s going to come at the hands of the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings so far have been challenged defensively. Through their first 6 games this season, they’ve given up 4.5 goals per game. That’s the highest of any team on tonight’s slate. A lot of this has been due to their goaltending has really struggled so far with a combined save % of just 86%. That’s pretty bad!
Alex Ovechkin so far has just 2 goals on the year. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him double that number tonight. He’s still the same old Ovechkin that fires pucks on the net at will. Through 5 games, he has 19 shots on goal and has also had 18 scoring chances. His goals will come.
To save some money, I will focus on pairing him with Connor Sheary. Sheary is just $2.9k on DK. Being able to get someone that cheap on a top line is rare and we’ll want to take advantage of it. He’s also been pretty good so far with 3 goals.
Buffalo 1 (Thompson, Skinner, Tuch) + Dahlin vs. Columbus
I’m going to go against the grain a bit with this NHL DFS stack. Vegas has the Canucks as the favorite in this tilt and has the Sabres at just 2.5 goals tonight. I disagree with them. The Canucks have been pretty bad so far. Through 5 games, they’ve given up at least 4 goals 4 times. They’re still winless and when all is said and done tonight, I think they’ll still be winless.
My favorite target on this line is Alex Tuch. He’s been red hot to start the season with 5 goals. Now I will add that he’s shooting % of 38% on the high end. But he does have one of the higher expected goals of anyone on the slate tonight. Against a team that is giving up way more than 4 goals per game, his stellar play should continue.
If you decide to pay up for a defenseman tonight, you’ll want to do so with Rasmus Dahlin. He’s been great so far in the young season. Through 4 games, he’s already up to 4 goals and 2 assists. He’s been firing on the net a ton with 16 shots on goal. He’s pricy on DK tonight at $6.7k, but he’s essentially been playing like another forward.
Other stacks (Tor 1, Pit 1, Van 1, Vegas 1, Col 2, Cgy 1, Nash 2(very cheap!))
NHL DFS Top Value Defenseman
- Brayden McNabb – $3.1k on DK – Gets a decent amount of shots and blocks.
- Dante Fabbro – $2.5k on DK – Has been blocking a decent amount of shots
- Jordan Harris – $3.2k – Has at least 8 DK points in all but 1 game this season.
Summary
Tonight should be a fun slate of NHL DFS. I plan on going heavy with the Penguins tonight against a Blue Jackets team that likes to have the lamp light up behind their goaltender.
Good luck and hope to see you in the green!
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