Yahoo DFS Hockey: Friday Picks

Yahoo DFS Hockey: Friday Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.

Friday is keeping things breezy on the NHL front. There are only three games on the slate. To help make some DFS decisions based on your limited selection of players, here are some guys to target, and to avoid, for your lineups.

GOALIE

Marc-Andre Fleury, MIN vs. CHI ($35): Fleury was briefly a Blackhawk, and now he will host his former team. The veteran hasn't had a good season, but this matchup is worth targeting. Chicago is in the bottom three in goals per game, and it is on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back as well.

GOALIE TO AVOID

Karel Vejmelka, ARI vs. STL ($33): This was a little tricky, as every other goalie was either a clear "yes" or an obvious "no" on the goalie front. Vejmelka is the only guy in the middle at all, because he does at least have a .913 save percentage. However, he has a 3.03 GAA because of how many shots the Coyotes allow. The Islanders aren't particularly good offensively, but it has averaged 3.17 goals per game, which is enough for me to avoid Vejmelka at home.

CENTER

Brock Nelson, NYI at ARI ($21): Nelson has 14 goals and 16 assists through 30 games. On top of that, he has put 93 shots on net. That's what entices me, as the Coyotes have allowed a ton of shots, as I noted. Arizona has given up 35.1 shots on goal per game.

CENTER TO AVOID

Ryan O'Reilly, STL at CGY ($15): The Blues are on the road for the second night of a back-to-back, which doesn't bode well for O'Reilly. He has picked it up after a slow start, but the Flames have only allowed 28.5 shots on net per contest. Plus, over his last six starts Jacob Markstrom has a 2.15 GAA and .919 save percentage.

WING

Jonathan Huberdeau, CGY vs. STL ($21): Huberdeau has found his footing for the Flames. Over his last 10 games he's notched nine points. As I noted, the Blues are on the second night of a back-to-back, and expected starter Thomas Greiss has a 3.69 GAA and .899 save percentage.

Matthew Boldy, MIN vs. CHI ($19): Boldy has put together a fine encore to his rookie campaign. He has 11 goals on 85 shots on net and has added 10 assists. Twelve of those points have come on the power play. The Blackhawks have a bottom-10 penalty kill, and it is also away from home for their second game in as many days.

WINGS TO AVOID

Clayton Keller, ARI vs. NYI ($19): Keller has racked up 27 points in 27 games, though his 18.9 shooting percentage is likely to regress a bit. Ilya Sorokin could help him with that regression, as he has a 2.36 GAA and .925 save percentage.

Patrick Kane, CHI at MIN ($19): Kane just can't get his shooting on track. Somehow, he only has four goals this year. That being said, he's on the second leg of a back-to-back here. On top of that, 12 of his 21 points have come on the power play, and the Wild have a middle-of-the-pack penalty kill. In these circumstances, that's enough.

DEFENSE

Rasmus Andersson, CGY vs. STL ($19): Andersson is building on his breakthrough 50-point campaign from last season, in part due to his power-play success. The Swede has averaged 3:25 per game on the power play, and he has nine points with the extra man. St. Louis is in the bottom three on the penalty kill, and it is also on the road for the second game of a back-to-back for good measure.

Jared Spurgeon, MIN vs. CHI ($17): Spurgeon has tallied six points in his last nine games. He'll be squaring off with a Blackhawks team that will likely be starting Petr Mrazek in net. It's been a brutal campaign for Mrazek, who has a 4.37 GAA and .873 save percentage.

DEFENSE TO AVOID

Jakob Chychrun, ARI vs. NYI ($19): Chychrun has hit the ground running since returning from his injury. He's racked up nine points through 11 games. That being said, the Islanders have a top-eight penalty kill, and Sorokin has a 2.36 GAA and .925 save percentage.

Torey Krug, STL at CGY ($16): Krug is usually strong on the power play, and five of his 12 points have come with the extra man, including four his five goals. Well, the Flames are in the top eight on the penalty kill. Also, as I noted, the Blues are on the second night of a back-to-back.

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. Chris Morgan plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: cmorgan3, DraftKings: cmorgan3.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chris Morgan
Chris Morgan is a writer of sports, pop culture, and humor articles, a book author, a podcaster, and a fan of all Detroit sports teams.
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