On every game day this season, THN Fantasy will highlight players and goalies for fantasy managers to stream or roster for the rest of the season. The recommended players and goalies are rostered in less than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues and can be selected in standard fantasy leagues and/or for daily fantasy games.
Ivan Demidov, RW, MTL at TOR (80% rostered) – FanDuel $4,800
Relatively to his talent, it’s hard to pass on Demidov as a value play at this salary in DFS. Though he’s playing L3 and PP2, look for Demidov to lead the offence for his lines. He had two points and five shots in two games last season while averaging 13:43 TOI per game, so the lack of ice time doesn’t really concern me when it comes to his production. He’s going to find ways to get pucks on net.
Connor McMichael, LW, WSH vs. BOS (29% rostered) –
FanDuel $4,500
Ryan Leonard, RW, WSH vs. BOS (11% rostered) – FanDuel $4,300
McMichael is coming off a breakout season with 57 points and he will start the season on the second line with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Tom Wilson. It’s likely Spencer Carbery will use this as a matchup line but McMichael has the most playmaking ability and may be the key player to generate offense on that line.
Leonard, a top Calder candidate, will open the season on the third line but I do like his value proposition because he’s a goal scorer. He scored 61 goals in 78 games over two seasons with Boston College. Both McMichael and Leonard will play PP2.
Ivan Barbashev, LW, VGK vs. LA (27% rostered) – FanDuel $4,900
Barbashev doesn’t provide much shot volume but he’s in a great situation on Vegas’ stacked top line with Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner. There’s a good chance he can finish off a play while hanging around the net and waiting for his linemates to set him up. The Kings are playing the second game of a back-to-back with travel.
Elias Lindholm, C, BOS at WSH (20% rostered) – FanDuel $5,000
Lindeholm is entrenched as the Bruins’ No. 1 center with David Pastrnak on his wing, and there aren’t many top centers available at this salary in DFS. Lindholm will also play PP1 and PK1, giving him the potential to score points on the man advantage and also provide blocked shots.
Mattias Maccelli, LW, TOR vs. MTL (15% rostered) –
FanDuel $4,100
Bobby McMann, LW, TOR vs. MTL (3% rostered) – Fan Duel $4,500
Maccelli is expected to play right wing on L1 with Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies, while McMann will play L2 with John Tavares and William Nylander, and both will play PP2. I like McMann slightly more, however, because he offers more potential for shots and goals. Maccelli is a slick playmaker but often offers little else and prone to disappearing for stretches; he’s coming off a career-worst 18 points last season despite scoring 57 in the prior season.
Trent Frederic, C/LW/RW, EDM vs. CGY (13% rostered) – FanDuel $3,900
The upside is capped but note Frederic is slated to play with Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. That’s a dream set up for Frederic, who offers maximum roster flexibility in standard leagues with C/LW/RW eligibility, though he’s not expected to play PP1. There is some potential for points by virtue of who Frederic’s playing with and not what he can actually do.
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