Monday, March 7th, has several NHL games scheduled. For the dedicated daily fantasy hockey fan, putting together a roster on a night like this can be tough, especially with so many good teams squaring off against one another. As you start thinking about who you have on your roster, we’ve put together some of our top picks here for you to consider.
Picking a Solid Center
Center has some heated competition, with a few choices being a tossup for best draft here. The Washington Capitals have two top ranked centers, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom. Both are pretty similar in fantasy point per game averages with their 3.7 and 3.5 at DraftKings, respectively. However, if you are going to choose one of these players, it should probably be Backstrom. He’s been getting a few more minutes per game lately, and he’s a bit cheaper in salary right now. The 0.2 point difference is likely going to be overcome because of his increased playing time as of late.
Another great choice on Monday night is Joe Pavelski of the San Jose Sharks. He has 29 goals on the season and 32 assists. He’s likely to be quite cheap in most leagues, and that could give you a big edge if you use him as a second tier player. Despite the tiny price tag, he should be a top contributor.
Filling the Wing Position
The clear choice as a favorite for the wing position is Alex Ovechkin. He’s by far the most expensive player in any league, and when it comes to wing, Ovechkin is worth that price. The only drawback is that Washington is going up against the Anaheim Ducks, who have a pretty good defense. Ovechkin will still be a top performer for this game, but his price is likely to be higher than it should be, depending on which site you play at.
Johnny Gaudreau of the Calgary Flames could be just as expensive as Ovechkin in some leagues, but most likely not. That makes him a steal, because he should be priced higher. Gaudreau has 24 goals and 32 assists, making him one of the top scoring wings in the NHL right now.
Defensemen are Key
Brent Burns of San Jose is putting up surprisingly good offensive numbers for a defensive player, with 22 goals and 34 assists. You should also take a look at Oliver Ekman-Larsson of the Arizona Coyotes. He will be a lot cheaper than Burns, but his stats are still pretty good. He’s even doing well offensively with 19 goals and 29 assists. Other than Burns, he’s taken more shots on goal than any other defensive player ranked in the top 20 so far this year. That increases his odds of success by a lot.
A decent secondary choice here will be T.J. Brodie of Calgary. He has only 4 goals right now, but his 36 assists show that he’s a great team player. His counterpart at Calgary, Mark Giordano, is also a strong choice. His 24 assists are not as impressive, but his 15 goals show that he’s more aggressive and capable of putting the puck in the net in tougher situations. Depending on price, either of these skaters could be strong additions to your daily fantasy roster.
A Strong Goalie
The best goalie playing on Monday night when it comes to percentage of shots blocked is Ben Bishop of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He has a 0.926 save percentage. Right behind him is Michal Neuvirth of the Philadelphia Flyers with a 0.925 percentage. These two teams are playing against each other, which means that the better team is likely to have the better goalie on this night. Tampa Bay’s win-loss number is far better than Philadelphia’s, 38-22-4 compared to 29-23-11. Bishop and Neuvirth have very similar numbers, but Bishop is the far superior choice, even if you have to spend quite a bit more on him for this game. He will be worth it.
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