With 10 games slated for an eventful Saturday, let’s take a look and see who should be in your Starting Six for your NHL daily fantasy hockey team:
C- Evgeni Malkin, PIT
Evgeni Malkin has 2 goals and 6 assists in his last five games in Montreal. He has points in all five of those games. Geno is always a safe fantasy play, but tonight especially he’s going to be one to watch. The Canadiens have had a rough go of it after a brutal eight-game road trip. After a win in their first game home against New Jersey, Pittsburgh is a tougher customer. Not by record necessarily, but in that their stars are starting to heat up, starting with Malkin.
LW- Brad Marchand, BOS
Brad Marchand is returning from a three-game suspension for an illegal hit, and boy have the Bruins missed him. Number 63 is tied with Patrice Bergeron for the team lead in goals with 15. He had an assist in the last game he played, which was against Ottawa, coincidentally. Marchand is a contributor in plenty of areas- points, shots on goal, and penalty minutes. Look for him to be a factor in his first game back.
RW- Marion Gaborik, LAK
After a very slow start to the year, Marion Gaborik is starting to turn it around. The 33-year old winger has 17 points on the year, but four in his last four games. Gaborik is starting to, slowly but surely, see a bit more ice time. Previously Gaborik was logging third-line minutes of about 12-14. In his last three games, he’s been more in the 14-16 minute range. Gaborik has earned every bit of ice time he receives. He has been a possession force of nature this year, with an incredible 58.6% 5v5 corsi rating. The more Gaborik plays, the more shots he will generate and the more points he will get, as his 1.4 points/60 indicates. Give Gaborik a start tonight against the St. Louis Blues. While you’re at it, lobby Darryl Sutter to get him more ice time, because he’s doing your fantasy lineup a disservice.
D- Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI
It’s hard to believe that Oliver Ekman-Larsson is not more of a widely recognized name. He is consistently labeled by his peers as one of the most underrated players in the league. OEL has 11 goals and 16 assists this year from the Coyotes’ blueline, and has the potential to get points in bunches. He had a seven-game point streak in November and has three multi-point games to date. Recently, he has 5 goals and 4 assists in his last 10 games. He is a difference maker in every sense of the word, and he belongs on your NHL daily fantasy team most every day.
D- Kris Letang, PIT
Another somewhat obvious play but it needs to be said. Kris Letang is on a four-game point streak with 3 goals and an assist heading to Montreal. The over is always a good play when Pittsburgh is in the Bell Centre. Not even Mike Sullivan’s infamous whiteboard can deter Kris Letang from racking up points on the man advantage. Letang has 6 powerplay points in his last six games. He is the quarterback of the Penguins offense, controlling breakouts and generating chances from all areas of the ice. Letang is a fantasy player’s dream for a reason.
G- Ryan Miller, VAN
Ryan Miller is facing the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight, and the odds may just be in his favor. The Lightning are on the tail end of a back-to-back. Last night the Bolts had to overcome a 2-0 deficit in the third period. Goals in rapid succession by Victor Hedman and Steven Stamkos late in the period gave them the boost they needed. However, Tampa usually has a very hard time in back-to-backs. And as any Eastern Conference team can attest to, Western Canada back-to-backs are the worst kinds of back-to-backs. Expect the Lightning’s attack to be high in quantity, low in quality. Miller should have a decent work load tonight, but the game has “stone cold under” written all over it. Round out your starting six with Miller.
