NHL DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups & Stacks Today: Wednesday Playbook
Published: Jan 22, 2025
Welcome to another Playbook of NHL DFS picks! We have a tight 4-game slate with teams in very good spots. There are some very expensive options we could target, but the value players are going to help you take down a GPP.
The margin for error is so small in these lighter slates so let's really dig into the must have players in your NHL DFS Lineups tonight.
NHL DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, January 22nd
Tuesday Salary Cap DFS Picks
Goalie Of The Day: Darcy Kuemper - LAK
Well it took me until almost to the end of January to put trust in Darcy Kuemper but today is the day! He has been a brick wall for the Kings this season in net with a 2.1 GAA and .920 SV% which are both among the best in the league to go along with just 4 regulation losses on the season over 22 starts! The matchup against the Panthers is actually a good one too as they just played last night and have struggled scoring against playoff bound team this month. The Kings also allow the fewest goals per game as a team at home at 2.11!
Player Of The Day: Auston Matthews - TOR
On a night with a small slate its tough to fade the superstars and I will not be leaving Auston Matthews off of my lineups tonight. I have said many great things about the Blue Jackets this season, the opponent for Matthews tonight but they are a real dumpster fire on the road. As a team they allow 3.61 goals per game, the 3rd most in the NHL and their goaltender tonight in Elvis Merzlikins is allowing 2.99 goals per game and has a .884 SV% away from home. Matthews is going to have lots of chances tonight in a game that Toronto will likely score 4-5 goals so he's the lock button of the day.
Value Play Of The Day: Stefan Noesen - NJD
This game is a wild card of the slate to me as the Bruins have been really bad on the road allowing 3.79 goals per game, the most in the NHL but Jeremy Swayman has been playing better in net. Either way I like the Devils at home this season a bunch and that's where Noesen fits into things at just 4.6k on DraftKings tonight. Bruins allow the 4th most DFS points to right wingers this season and he is on the top powerplay unit. Hard to beat for the price and he also has 16 points in 24 games at home this season.
Stack Of The Day - TOR PP1 (Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner & William Nylander)
Much is the same here as it was for the Matthews play of the day rationale but now we add in his top powerplay teammates to the mix! This will be an expensive stack so if you don't have the room you can replace Nylanders with Matthew Knies but either way this team is going to score the most goals on tonight's slate and I want to be loaded up!
Today's NHL DFS Cheat Sheet & Stacks
Player Pool
| $ Tier | C | W | D | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High |  Auston Matthews  $9,500 |  Kyle Connor $8,700 |  Zach Werenski $9,300 | |
 Jack Hughes $9,000 | Mitch Marner $7,500 | |||
| Medium | Nico Hischier $6,500 | Jesper Bratt $6,300 | Dougie Hamilton $5,800 | Jacob Markstrom $7,900 |
 Anze Kopitar $5,200 | Kevin Fiala $5,900 | Josh Morrissey $5,700 | Darcy Kuemper $7,400 | |
| Kirill Marchenko $7,200 | ||||
| William Nylander $6,900 | ||||
| Low | Adam Fantilli $4,700 | Nikolaj Ehlers $5,100 | Brandt Clarke $4,700 | |
| Quinton Byfield $3,800 | Stefan Noesen $4,600 | Oliver Ekman-Larsson $3,000 | ||
| Matthew Knies $4,500 | ||||
 Morgan Geekie $3,800 |
Stacks
| Maple Leafs | Auston Matthews | Mitch Marner | William Nylander |
| DraftKings | 9500 | 7500 | 6900 |
 Fanduel | - | - | - |
| Devils | Jack Hughes | Stefan Noesen | Jesper Bratt |
| DraftKings | 9000 | 4600 | 6300 |
| Fanduel | - | - | - |
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.