As is the case with every FanDuel Fades, we are going to look at some players who should think twice about placing in your lineup or who you should avoid using entirely. Remember to check back on this page later in the day for confirmations on starting goalies and keep an eye on Rotoworld’s daily blurbs for all your fantasy hockey needs.
Braden Holtby (WAS) - G - $9,500
Holtby is the most expensive player on a busy Saturday night. He was 3-0-1 versus the Islanders last season with a .918 save percentage and a 2.19 goals-against average, but there are less costly options who can bring just as much value to the table.
Matt Duchene (COL) - C - $6,800
Duchene and the Avalanche will host Dallas on Saturday in their 2016-17 opener. The 25-year-old has been nearly a point-per-game producer versus the Stars over his career, but he struggled against them last season with one assist in four matches. Duchene might also start the year with Carl Soderberg and Mikhail Grigorenko as his linemates, which has less appeal than a potential combination of Gabriel Ladesnkog, Nathan MacKinnon and Jarome Iginla. It’s uncertain if Antti Niemi will start again for Stars, but if he does then he could be tough to beat after he impressed against Anaheim in Thursday’s opener.
Nazem Kadri (TOR) - C - $5,800
Kadri was strong on faceoffs in Toronto’s opener versus Ottawa, but he posted doughnuts in all the relevant categories for FanDuel skaters. The Leafs got much more out of the lines centered by Auston Matthews and Tyler Bozak, which will probably be the case on Thursday as well.
Patrick Marleau (SJS) - C - $5,100
Marleau isn’t expected to get back on track this season after declining over the past two years. He slipped to 48 points in 82 games in 2015-16 and didn’t find the scoresheet despite four shots in the Sharks’ opening victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday night. Marleau is skating on the third line with Chris Tierney and Joel Ward. He is getting power-play action, but he isn’t worth hitching your wagon to at this time.
Zach Parise (MIN) - W - $7,100
Parise was relatively quiet against St. Louis in Thursday’s opener. It is difficult to get shots versus the Blues and he should have more room to operate with Winnipeg in town. Although, he picked up one goal and one assist in four contests versus the Jets last year. Parise appears to be trying to find a rhythm with Eric Staal and Charlie Coyle, so you can feel free to look elsewhere until something clicks.
Taylor Hall (NJD) - W - $6,100
Hall registered two shots and zero points in his Devils debut versus Florida. He logged 20:38 of ice time, which ranked him second among New Jersey’s forwards. It won’t get any easier for him to generate offense on Saturday night against Tampa Bay. The Lightning will likely tighten it up after yielding four goals in a 6-4 win over Detroit during their season opener. I fully expect Hall to break through with his new team eventually, but I don’t think it will come on the road against a strong Tampa Bay squad.
Alex Killorn (TBL) - W - $5,800
Killorn began the regular season with a goal and an assist on Thursday against the Red Wings. He has hovered around the 40-point mark for the last three seasons, so typically he isn’t a player who has enjoyed much offensive consistency. I’m not looking for him to have a repeat performance against the Devils on Saturday.
Alexander Wennberg (CBJ) - C - $4,600
Wennberg is another player who came out swinging on opening night with a goal and an assist in Columbus’ 6-3 loss to Boston on Thursday night. He is expected to take positive steps forwards this campaign after contributing eight goals and 40 points in 69 matches last year. However, it will probably prove to be difficult for the Blue Jackets to score on a stingy Sharks team Saturday night.
Mark Giordano (CGY) - D - $6,900
Giordano logs heavy minutes for the Flames and Saturday’s match will be his third in four nights and the second game of a back-to-back situation. There are only three defensemen more expensive than him on Saturday’s slate, so you can afford to leave him off your lineup by either going cheaper or selecting a different premium defender who is more rested.
Al Montoya (MTL) - G - $8,000
Montoya will be called upon again to start for the Canadiens on Saturday because Carey Price is still recovering from a nasty case of the flu. He turned aside 30 of 31 shots in Thursday’s win over Buffalo, but Ottawa should prove to be a tougher matchup. Montoya won’t be facing a banged up Sabres offense here. The Senators ranked ninth in the league last year with 2.80 goals for per game and the team is arguably better this campaign with Kyle Turris and Derick Brassard patrolling the middle of the ice on the top-two lines.
Probable Goatenders:
Anaheim (Jonathan Bernier) Confirmed @ Pittsburgh (Marc-Andre Fleury) Confirmed
NY Islanders (Thomas Greiss) Confirmed @ Washington (Braden Holtby) Confirmed
Boston (Tuukka Rask) Confirmed @ Toronto (Frederik Andersen) Confirmed
San Jose (Martin Jones) Confirmed @ Columbus (Sergei Bobrovsky)
New Jersey (Cory Schneider) Confirmed @ Tampa Bay (Andrei Vasilevskiy) Confirmed
Montreal (Al Montoya) Confirmed @ Ottawa (Craig Anderson) Confirmed
Winnipeg (Michael Hutchinson) Confirmed @ Minnesota (Devan Dubnyk) Confirmed
Detroit (Petr Mrazek) Confirmed @ Florida (Roberto Luongo) Confirmed
NY Rangers (Henrik Lundqvist) @ St. Louis (Carter Hutton) Confirmed
Nashville (Pekka Rinne) @ Chicago (Scott Darling)
Philadelphia (Steve Mason) Confirmed @ Arizona (Mike Smith)
Dallas (Antti Niemi) @ Colorado (Semyon Varlamov) Confirmed
Calgary (Chad Johnson) @ Vancouver (Ryan Miller)