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NHL Plays will highlight the best and the most underrated daily fantasy options among forwards, defensemen and goaltenders.
Please note, these players were chosen early in the day, so make sure to check NBCSports Edge’s player news for any lineup changes, injuries and potential changes in the crease for starting goaltenders.
Additionally, it is worth reminding everyone that FanDuel allows you to roster nine players (2C, 2W, 2D, 2UTIL, 1G) with a salary cap of $55,000, while DraftKings has a cap of $50,000 for nine players (2C, 3W, 2D, 1G, 1UTIL). Yahoo has a $200 cap for nine players (2C, 3W, 2D, 2G).
Don’t forget, for everything NHL, check out NBCSports Edge Player News, and follow @NBCSEdgeHK and @mfinewaxhockey on Twitter.
There are eight games in the NHL on Sunday.
Forwards
Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh), C $8,300 (FanDuel), $8,000 (Draft Kings), $32 (Yahoo)
Crosby has been rather hot of late with points in 10 of his last 11 games. Crosby, who scored his 500th career goal last week, has 15 goals and 49 points in 42 games this season. Crosby had three goals and an assist in his only game against Columbus this season.
Tage Thompson (Buffalo), C $6,700 (FanDuel), $6,400 (Draft Kings), $20 (Yahoo)
Thompson has seven goals in his last seven games and has crushed his previous career highs in all categories as he has 21 goals and 39 points in 49 games. The former first-round pick of the St. Louis Blues in 2016, Thompson has finally found a home in Buffalo.
Patrick Kane (Chicago), W $8,300 (FanDuel), $7,300 (Draft Kings), $25 (Yahoo)
Kane is coming off his best game of the season as he had the hat trick and an assist in an 8-5 win over New Jersey Friday. Kane is headed for another point-per-game season with 53 points including 16 goals in 49 contests.
Alexis Lafreniere (NY Rangers), W $4,200 (FanDuel), $2,600 (Draft Kings), $11 (Yahoo)
This is a hunch pick as Lafreniere has been moved to the right wing on the top line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider after spending most of the season on the left side of the third line. The first overall pick has 11 goals and 15 points this season but should get a great chance to show some of his offensive potential on the top unit.
Andrei Svechnikov (Carolina), W $8,000 (FanDuel), $5,100 (Draft Kings), $27 (Yahoo)
After a bit of a tough season last year when he had 42 points in 55 games, Svechnikov has returned to form with 22 goals and 48 points in 48 games on a very good Carolina team. The 20-year-old winger is one of the best in the NHL and will only get better with age.
Bargain Bin: Derek Ryan (Edmonton), C/W $3,800 (FanDuel), $2,500 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo), Tyler Seguin (Dallas), C $5,600 (FanDuel), $4,900 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo), Jamie Benn (Dallas), W $4,800 (FanDuel) $3,300 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo), Zach Parise (NY Islanders), W $4,800 (FanDuel), $2,900 (Draft Kings), $17 (Yahoo), Jeff Skinner (Buffalo), W $6,100 (FanDuel), $5,800 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo)
Defensemen:
Noah Dobson (NY Islanders), $6,200 (FanDuel), $5,800 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo)
Dobson is finally showing his offensive capabilities of late as he has two goals and seven points in his last seven games. He has eight goals and 25 points in 46 games this season but the former 12th overall pick in 2018 has lots of offensive upside and the Islanders are starting to let him loose.
Adam Fox (NY Rangers), $6,800 (FanDuel), $6,700 (Draft Kings), $25 (Yahoo)
Fox won the Norris Trophy last season as the NHL’s best defenseman and is definitely in consideration this season. Fox missed three games before the All-Star Game with an upper-body injury but is back and 100 percent at this time. Fox has seven goals and 49 points in 49 games and is a good play Sunday as they face Vancouver at Madison Square Garden.
Darnell Nurse (Edmonton), $6,300 (FanDuel), $6,200 (Draft Kings), $18 (Yahoo), Dean Kukan (Columbus), $3,900 (FanDuel), $2,800 (Draft Kings), $12 (Yahoo), Jakob Chychrun (Arizona), $5,100 (FanDuel), $5,500 (Draft Kings) $17 (Yahoo), Jaccob Slavin (Carolina), $5,900 (FanDuel), $6,100 (Draft Kings), $19 (Yahoo)
Goaltenders:
Jake Oettinger (Dallas), $7,900 (FanDuel), $8,500 (Draft Kings), $28 (Yahoo)
Oettinger started the season in the minors as the Stars had too many goaltenders on their roster and he still had options. But the play of Anton Khudobin left plenty to be desired and Ben Bishop ended his comeback bid, leaving the Stars to recall Oettinger. There has been no regrets with this move as the 23-year-old has taken over the net from Braden Holtby, going 16-6-1 thus far with a 2.26 GAA and a .921 save percentage. The Stars face Buffalo in a must-win contest Sunday in his first career start against the Sabres.
Other plays:
Scott Wedgewood (Arizona), $6,800 (FanDuel), $7,200 (Draft Kings), $27 (Yahoo), Elvis Merzlikins (Columbus), $6,900 (FanDuel), $7,000 (Draft Kings), $23 (Yahoo)
