NHL DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups & Stacks Today: Monday Playbook
Published: Nov 25, 2024
We have a massive 11-game slate to kick off the week and there is a ton to sort through tonight!
Thanksgiving week is always interesting for the NHL since we have a full day off on Thursday, which usually means huge slates on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
NHL DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, November 25th
With so many teams in action tonight, there are a number of different stacks and value options to consider. These are great slates if you are going to multi-enter contests or go with a 3-max.
You can have some main exposure to the teams/stacks you like, then a slight pivot to some secondary options.
Today’s NHL DFS Slate Overview
NHL DFS Pick'em Picks on Underdog With Promo Code ALARM
- Alexis Lafreniere Higher Than 2.5 Shots on Goal
- Sam Reinhart Higher Than 2.5 Shots on Goal
- Kevin Fiala Higher Than 0.5 Goals
Alexis Lafreniere and the New York Rangers come in with a 3.8 implied goal total against the St. Louis Blues and are in need of some more offense. With Chris Kreider out of the lineup for the Rangers, they are missing the player with the second-most (52) shots on goal this season. Lafreniere should step up to fill that void with a new role on the first power-play unit.
Sam Reinhart and the defending Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers are on a three-game losing streak, which is not something we often say for this elite team. It's a long season and there are plenty of ups and downs, but I see this matchup against the Washington Capitals as a spot for the Panthers to get back on track. The Capitals allowed the ninth-most (62.11) Total Shot Attempts per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which puts an elite shooter such as Reinhart in a great spot.
Kevin Fiala and the Los Angeles Kings have a juicy 3.5 implied goal total against the San Jose Sharks tonight. Fiala has a solid offensive role on the second forward line and the first power-play unit, but he's on a bit cold streak. He has no goals over his last seven games but a solid 13 shots on goal. It's a great matchup against the Sharks, who've allowed the second-most (83) goals this season for Fiala to finally find the back of the net.
Monday Salary Cap DFS Picks
Goalie Of The Day: Semyon Varlamov - NYI
Semyon Varlamov and the New York Islanders have a great matchup tonight against the Detroit Red Wings to pick up another win. The Red Wings come in scoring just 1.50 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the second-lowest in the league.
That puts them at only 49 total goals on the entire season, which is also the second-lowest in the league. Varlamov has a great salary on both FanDuel and DraftKings, which makes him an easy addition to any lineup. We've seen Varlamov allow two goals or fewer in four straight starts while having 24 saves or more in each of those four starts. This is a great matchup for Varly to pick up a cleaner win.
Play Of The Day: Jack Eichel - VGK
While we have both Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov on the slate, Jack Eichel takes the top spot for me tonight. There's certainly nothing wrong with MacKinnon or Kucherov tonight, but Eichel has a far easier matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers.
This season, the Flyers are allowing 3.15 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five, which is the third-worst in the league overall and the worst of any team on tonight's slate.
Eichel comes in on fire with 16 points, 37 shots on goal, and 7 blocked shots in his last 10 games. For comparison's sake, MacKinnon has 17 points, 36 shots on goal, and 4 blocked shots in his last 10 games. Kucherov has 15 points, 39 shots on goal, and 5 blocked shots in his last 10 games.
It's all essentially even between these three players, but the matchup for Eichel against the Flyers is clearly the easiest. The Flyers are also in the top five of the league for the most penalty minutes this season, which could play right into the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights, who have the fourth-best (29.6%) power play in the league.
Value Play Of The Day: Oliver Bjorkstrand - SEA
Oliver Bjorkstrand the Seattle Kraken have a solid matchup for some offense against the Anaheim Ducks tonight. Bjorkstrand is only $3.3K on DraftKings tonight and is seeing time on the third forward line and the first power-play unit. The Ducks come in with a league-worst 70.96 Total Shot Attempts Allowed per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations.
This should give the Kraken a solid floor of points tonight and a chance to reach for a fantasy ceiling. Bjorkstrand has 4 points and 15 shots on goal in his last 10 games, a level he can build on tonight.
Stack Of The Day: Kings L1 (Anze Kopitar, Adrian Kempe, Alex Turcotte) and Rangers L1/PP1 (Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, Alexis Lafreniere)
Both the Kings and the Rangers have implied goal totals at 3.5 or higher today and good matchups to get their respective offenses rolling. As noted above, Chris Kreider is out for the Rangers which bumps Lafreniere up to the first power-play unit, giving us full correlation between that unit and the first forward line.
The Blues allow 2.97 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the sixth-worst in the league, while the Rangers are scoring 2.96 Goals in the same situations, which is the fifth-best in the league.
The Kings are an interesting stack tonight not only because of their favorable matchup against the Sharks, but Alex Turcotte is under $3K on DraftKings. We don't get full correlation since he is on the second power-play unit while Kopitar and Kempe are on the first, but it's a good bit of savings in a great matchup.
Today's NHL DFS Cheat Sheet & Stacks
Player Pool
Stacks
| Kings | Anze Kopitar | Adrian Kempe | Alex Turcotte |
 DraftKings | 6400 | 7100 | 2700 |
 Fanduel | 6500 | 6500 | 3800 |
| Rangers | Artemi Panarin | Vincent Trocheck | Alexis Lafreniere |
| DraftKings | 8900 | 6200 | 4900 |
| Fanduel | 8400 | 5900 | 5700 |
| Golden Knights | Shea Theodore | Ivan Barbashev | Jack Eichel |
| DraftKings | 5700 | 4300 | 9000 |
| Fanduel | 6100 | 6200 | 8400 |
| Kings | Anze Kopitar | Adrian Kempe | Alex Turcotte |
| DraftKings | 6400 | 7100 | 2700 |
| Fanduel | 6500 | 6500 | 3800 |
| Rangers | Artemi Panarin | Vincent Trocheck | Alexis Lafreniere |
| DraftKings | 8900 | 6200 | 4900 |
| Fanduel | 8400 | 5900 | 5700 |
| Golden Knights | Shea Theodore | Ivan Barbashev | Jack Eichel |
| DraftKings | 5700 | 4300 | 9000 |
| Fanduel | 6100 | 6200 | 8400 |
Player News
Dolphins signed No. 13 overall pick DT Kenneth Grant to a four-year contract.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Grant will sign his contract today. The former Michigan defensive tackle is expected to fill a major void left by Christian Wilkins, who left for the Raiders in the 2024 offseason. Grant totaled 32 tackles, three sacks, and seven TFLs in his final season at Michigan and excelled at stopping the run while also generating 27 pressures in his final season, per PFF.
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.