FanDuel NHL: Monday Value Plays

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Published on March 25, 2019

For the first day in a while, there's no March Madness basketball to distract sports fans. That means all our attention can be focused on the nine NHL games Monday. Here are my recommendations for your daily fantasy lineup.

GOALIE

Connor Hellebuyck, WPG vs. DAL ($8,000): Finally, Hellebuyck has been playing like the goalie he was last season. Over his last 10 games he has a 2.33 GAA and .931 save percentage. It wouldn't be a surprise if he kept that up against the Stars. Dallas has only scored 2.51 goals per game, 29th in the NHL.

CENTER

Mikael Backlund, CGY vs. LOS ($6,100): While Backlund isn't the first name you think of when it comes to the Flames, he's garnered attention by notching seven points in his last seven contests. The Kings, meanwhile, have not been up to the task defensively for a while. Since the All-Star break, they have a 3.46 GAA and .880 save percentage.

Nico Hischier, NJD vs. BUF ($5,000): Hischier didn't score in his return to action from an injury absence, but he did play over 21 minutes and put four shots on goal, so he seems to be good to go. Plus, before getting injured, he notched 44 points in 63 games. If you think the Kings have been bad since the All-Star break, you should get a load of the Sabres. They have a 3.88 GAA in that time.

WING

Matthew Tkachuk, CGY vs. LOS ($6,900): Perhaps Backlund's numbers have risen because of how well his linemate Tkachuk has been playing. Keith's son has a whopping 17 points in his last 13 games, including 10 goals. Tkachuk also has 24 points with the extra man, and the Kings have the 29th-ranked penalty kill.

Kevin Labanc, SAN vs. DET ($5,200): Labanc has started 59.0 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, highest among Sharks forwards. This has helped him notch 50 points in 75 games, but 18 of those have come with the extra man. Meanwhile, the Wings have a 3.55 GAA on the road, and they've given up 34.0 shots on net per contest away from home as well.

William Nylander, TOR vs. FLA ($4,900): The 22-year-old has started 56.5 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, second among Toronto forwards to linemate Auston Matthews. While Nylander has had some struggles since ending his holdout, he has six points in his last seven games. As for the Panthers, they have a 3.70 GAA in away games, bottom five in the NHL.

DEFENSE

Alex Pietrangelo, STL vs. VGK ($6,200): Pietrangelo has notched five goals and four assists in his last nine games, including five points with the extra man. While the Golden Knights have good defensive numbers overall, on the road they have a 3.05 GAA. Their penalty kill is also a more middling 14th in the rankings in away games.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SAN vs. DET ($4,400): Suddenly, the defensively-minded Vlasic has decided to get involved in the offense. Over his last nine games he's notched 10 points. In addition to their issues on the road (3.55 GAA), the Wings have also been bad since the All-Star break. In that time, they have a 3.50 GAA overall.

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.