The NHL is back and we have a loaded seven-game slate to close out the weekend! It's championship week in fantasy football and World Juniors is going on, giving us plenty of action throughout the day!

 

NHL DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, December 29th

We are coming off a very high-scoring slate and that should continue for the foreseeable future. There's simply too much talent right now and teams are pouring in the goals, which is great for stacking. 

 

NHL DFS Pick'em Picks on Sleeper Fantasy

Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins got smoked last night by the New York Islanders but run back the same matchup tonight in Pittsburgh. The Penguins have a 3.1 implied goal total today and will likely be facing the Islanders' third-string goalie, Marcus Hogberg. The Penguins need that offensive push and it should come from Crosby, who has 13 points in his last 10 games. 

Brady Tkachuk and the Ottawa Senators are looking good right now and have an interesting matchup versus the Minnesota Wild. Over the last two weeks, the Wild have allowed 2.94 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the ninth-worst in the league. Tkachuk continues to fire the puck at a high volume but doesn't have a goal in his last three games. 

Adrian Kempe and the Los Angeles Kings have a super soft matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers, who are giving up goals in bunches. Over the last two weeks, the Flyers have allowed a staggering 4.27 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the worst in the league. Kempe is a solid goal-scorer and has no goals over his last four games despite having 11 shots on goal.

 

Sunday Salary Cap DFS Picks

Goalie Of The Day: Ilya Samsonov - VGK

The Vegas Golden Knights are rolling and come in as solid -215 moneyline favorites against the Calgary Flames. Let's turn to Ilya Samsonov, who has allowed two goals or fewer in four of his last five starts. 

Over the last two weeks, the Golden Knights as a team have allowed 1.65 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the fifth-best in the league. As for the Flames, they are only scoring 2.37 Goals in the same situations, which is the 11th lowest in the league. It's a good spot for Samsonov to continue his strong trend. 

Play Of The Day: Nikita Kucherov - TBL

Nikita Kucherov is on fire right now with 19 points and 27 shots on goal over his last 10 games. The Tampa Bay Lightning are pouring in goals right now and that should continue tonight with a 4.1 implied goal total versus the Montreal Canadiens. 

He's expensive but the multi-point potential is clear for Kucherov, who is solid for all types of lineups. I'd love to spend up for the Tampa top line, but it's super expensive and pushes you into a stars and scrubs build. 

Value Play Of The Day: Quinton Byfield - LAK

While we don't want to chase the two-goal performance from yesterday, Quinton Byfield is in a great spot today against the Philadelphia Flyers. The Los Angeles Kings have a solid 3.4 implied goal total and as noted above, the Flyers have allowed a league-worst 4.27 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations over the last two weeks. 

Byfield is on the second forward line and the first power-play unit, coming in with 7 points and 22 shots on goal over his last 10 games. 

Stack Of The Day: TBL L2 (Brandon Hagel, Anthony Cirelli, Conor Geekie)

The Tampa Bay Lightning have a slate-high 4.1 implied goal total against the Montreal Canadiens and it should be a goal onslaught tonight. There's no doubt the Tampa top line of Nikita Kucherov, Jake Guentzel, and Brayden Point is amazing. However, they are generally pretty popular and also expensive. 

This Tampa line two stack is a good bit less expensive and shouldn't be as popular. You still have multi-point upside from these players while still leaving salary for a secondary stack, potentially from the Kings. 

Today's NHL DFS Cheat Sheet & Stacks

Player Pool

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Stacks

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