NHL DFS Playbook December 12: Top DraftKings and FanDuel Picks
Published: Dec 12, 2023
Welcome to Tuesday’s ten-game NHL Slate. We have a massive slate with a ton of great players to choose from, so we need to make sure we are making the correct choices. There are also some pretty good goalie matchups, so we can’t get that part wrong if we want to cash our GPPs. You can build daily fantasy hockey lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo Fantasy for Tuesday, December 12th, but before you build those NHL daily fantasy lineups, don’t forget to check out our NHL DFS projections, the NHL Value Finder, and the NHL DFS lineup generator. Let's look closer at the daily fantasy hockey top plays for tonight's NHL DFS Showdown slate.
NHL DFS Playbook December 12th
DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts
We have a massive ten-game slate that features Edmonton against Chicago, a goaltending battle between Arizona and Pittsburgh and some new forward lines in Winnipeg. We need to make sure that we are choosing the correct elit forward and maximizing our lineup with high-floor defenceman. There are lots of ways to build your lineup tonight, but here are some players you should be keeping your eyes on.
Recommended DFS Starting Goalies
Top Options for Saves
Connor Ingram Vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Pyotr Kochetkov Vs. Los Angeles Kings
MacKenzie Blackwood Vs. Winnipeg Jets
Best Odds for a Win
Stuart Skinner Vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Logan Thompson Vs. Calgary Flames
Connor Hellebuyck Vs. San Jose Sharks
Favorite Goalies to Use for DFS Lineups
Stuart Skinner, G, Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are -500 tonight so we can’t ignore Stuart Skinner. He’s the heavy favourite to win and there’s no question that he has the squad in front of him to support him. I get that paying $8600 for him on DraftKings is a lot, but if you’re chasing the win, this is the way to go.
Laurent Brossoit, G, Winnipeg Jets
San Jose isn’t the punching bag from earlier this season, but they are still a pretty bad hockey team. Laurent Brossoit is confirmed to get the start and he hasn’t been that bad this season. He’s not Connor Hellebuyck, but he can still get the job done.
Sergei Bobrovsky, G, Florida Panthers
Sergei Bobrovsky has won his last four games and has given up a total of six goals in that span. He is playing some of his best hockey and the team in front of him is supporting him with a ton of offence. Seattle is a below-average hockey team that can’t score goals, so I wouldn’t worry about rolling Bob out there in all formats.
Connor Ingram, G, Arizona Coyotes
Connor Ingram has given up nine goals in his last two starts, but those were some pretty tough matchups. The Penguins are scoring under three goals per game despite having some of the best players in the world. I get that Arizona is playing the tail end of a back-to-back, but Ingram has been good this season and his $7000 price tag is a steal.
Recommended DFS Skaters
Highest Expected Goal Totals
Edmonton Oilers Vs Petr Mrazek (4.5)
Florida Panthers Vs. Joey Daccord (3.7)
Winnipeg Jets Vs. MacKenzie Blackwood (3.6)
Favorite Skaters to Use for DFS Lineups
Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers
Connor McDavid has 24 points in 12 games at home and has a date with the Chicago Blackhawks. You don’t need me to tell you why it’s a good idea to play him.
Cole Perfetti, C, Winnipeg Jets
Coel Perfetti is playing the wing on the second line but DK hasn’t made the update, so we can take advantage of this. Kyle Connor is out of the lineup, so Perfetti is going to get an expanded role and be counted on to play more meaningful minutes. He’s in a great spot against a weak Sharks team.
Zach Hyman, W, Edmonton Oilers
Zach Hyman continues to produce at a record pace and he could add even more points to his total tonight. It’s comical that we can get him for ONLY $7100 on DK.
Carter Verhaeghe, W, Florida Panthers
I have no issue with paying up for Sam Reinhart, but Carter Verhaeghe is where the value is at. He has finished with four or more shots in each of the last five games and has seven points in that span. Despite all the success, he’s under $6K on DK. His matchup on paper is elite so I’ll gladly back him in all formats.
Connor Murphy, D, Chicago Blackhawks
Seth Jones is out of the lineup tonight, so Connor Murphy is going to have an even bigger role. He’s going to be asked to go out there and try to slow down Connor McDavid and company. He won’t be able to, but the increase in ice time and opportunity means he has a great chance of hitting value. He’s also a cool $3200, so you can’t go wrong with him.
J.J. Moser, D, Arizona Coyotes
Arizona is playing on back-to-back nights and they face a Penguins team that loves to shoot the puck. Sean Durzi is out of the lineup, so J.J. Moser is going to continue to see a healthy amount of minutes. We know he can block shots and provide some offence, so this is a smash spot for him.
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Player Pool
| $ Tier | C | W | D |
|---|---|---|---|
| High |  Connor McDavid  $9,300 |  Artemi Panarin $8,600 |  Quinn Hughes $7,400 |
 Jack Eichel $8,700 |  Nikita Kucherov $9,400 | Alex Pietrangelo $6,700 | |
| Medium | Mika Zibanejad $6,600 | Chris Kreider $6,800 |  Josh Morrissey $6,300 |
| Mark Scheifele $6,400 |  Sam Reinhart $7,200 | Adam Fox $5,700 | |
| Low | Cole Perfetti $5,000 | Blake Wheeler $3,500 | Darnell Nurse $4,700 |
| Sam Bennett $4,500 | Nikolaj Ehlers $4,900 |  Mikhail Sergachev $4,600 |
Stacks
| Oilers | Connor McDavid | Evan Bouchard | Zach Hyman |
| DraftKings | 9300 | 6600 | 7100 |
 Fanduel | 10200 | 8500 | 9500 |
| Panthers | Carter Verhaeghe | Sam Bennett | Sam Reinhart |
| DraftKings | 5900 | 4500 | 7200 |
| Fanduel | 7500 | 4700 | 9800 |
| Rangers | Artemi Panarin | Mika Zibanejad | Chris Kreider | Adam Fox |
| DraftKings | 8600 | 6600 | 6800 | 5700 |
| Fanduel | 10000 | 6900 | 7100 | 7400 |
| Oilers | Connor McDavid | Evan Bouchard | Zach Hyman |
| DraftKings | 9300 | 6600 | 7100 |
| Fanduel | 10200 | 8500 | 9500 |
| Panthers | Carter Verhaeghe | Sam Bennett | Sam Reinhart |
| DraftKings | 5900 | 4500 | 7200 |
| Fanduel | 7500 | 4700 | 9800 |
| Rangers | Artemi Panarin | Mika Zibanejad | Chris Kreider | Adam Fox |
| DraftKings | 8600 | 6600 | 6800 | 5700 |
| Fanduel | 10000 | 6900 | 7100 | 7400 |
Player News
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that Zach Eflin (lat) is likely to return and start Sunday against the Angels
It was assumed that Eflin would be back this weekend, but now we have a concrete date. The 31-year-old may not be at full strength after throwing fewer than 60 pitches in his rehab start, but the Orioles feel confident enough to have the right-hander back on the bump for the series finale against the Angels.
Riley Greene is not in the lineup for the first game of a doubleheader against the Rockies on Thursday.
Greene will get a break and likely return to the lineup for the second game of the twin-billing. Zach McKinstry will get the start in left field while Greene rests.
Panthers released TE Jordan Matthews.
Matthews converted to tight end a few years ago and hasn’t made much noise at the position. The change has, however, likely kept him in the league for a few more seasons. He appeared in four games with the Panthers last year but didn’t record any stats on offense. The Panthers also released or waived WR Dax Milne, C Andrew Raym, and TE Colin Granger.
Yu Darvish (elbow) is facing live hitters on Thursday.
Darvish has been throwing bullpen sessions and traveled to the team’s complex in Arizona to face live hitters on Thursday. It will be his first time facing live batters since a spring training appearance on March 13th. He will likely need a few sessions like this before the Padres can map out a rehab appearance timeline for him.
Adael Amador is starting at second base and batting ninth for the Rockies on Thursday.
Amador has now started three of the last four games at second base for the Rockies. He’s gone just 7-for-43 this season with 15 strikeouts in 16 games. He’s just 22 years old, so there is plenty of time for him to adjust to the MLB level, but he doesn’t need to be on redraft radars right now.
Jackson Holliday is playing second base and batting second for the Orioles on Thursday against the Twins.
With Cedric Mullins sitting out on Thursday, Gunnar Henderson will bat lead off, and Holliday will jump up from sixth in the order to second. Holliday is riding a hot streak right now, and the Orioles are taking advantage. This is likely just a one-game sample with no Mullins or Adley Rutschman in the lineup, but Rutschman has been struggling, so perhaps it could become a more permanent spot in the lineup for Holliday moving forward.