NHL DFS Playbook November 13: Top DraftKings and FanDuel Picks

Welcome to Monday's two-game NHL Slate. Nathan MacKinnon and Matty Beniers are looking to lead their teams to victory and both players should be quite popular on this slate. We still need to dig deep and find value to allow us to pay up for both superstars, so let’s take a look at some options. You can build daily fantasy hockey lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo Fantasy for Monday, November 13th, 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 now take a closer look at the daily fantasy hockey top plays for tonight's NHL DFS Showdown slate.
Highest Expected Goal Totals
Edmonton Oilers Vs Ilya Sorokin (3.7)
Colorado Avalanche Vs. Joey Daccord (3.6)
Seattle Kraken Vs. Alexandar Georgiev (3.0)
New York Islanders Vs. Stuart Skinner (2.9)
New York Islanders Vs. Edmonton Oilers
Players to target: Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, Evan Bouchard, Mathew Barzal, Oliver Wahlstrom, Noah Dobson, Ilya Sorokin
If you had told me that 13 games into the season Connor McDavid would have 25 points I would have believed you, however, at this stage in the season, McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have only combined for 25 points, which has been a big part of the Oilers struggles and their two superstars which they are so used to being superhuman have been mere mortals so far. Now in terms of DFS, we have to believe that the explosion of points that we are so used to from the two players is still going to happen, and maybe the coaching change will light that fire, but I would struggle to build only one lineup if I was going to use McDavid and Draistaitl. Zach Hyman has been consistent for the Oilers and leads the team in goals, and until further notice, I wouldn't dig too deep into the Oilers' lineup. The Islanders, have been among the lowest-scoring teams in the league so far (2.46 goals per game) but that shouldn't be a surprise. I wouldn't mind getting some shares of players like Oliver Wahlstrom who is a volume shooter, and Bo Horvat who leads their forwards in points on the season.
On the backend, Evan Bouchard is the likely target for the Oilers. He has points in three of his last four games, and he will shoot the puck and get you blocks too. For the Islanders, Noah Dobson leads the team in points, and he will shoot enough and get enough blocked shots to get to those bonuses as well. If you're looking for a lower-cost option Scott Mayfield fits the bill as he can get you blocked shots and he has a reasonable price tag.
We are expecting Stuart Skinner for the Oilers to be facing Ilya Sorokin of the Islanders. In theory, both goalies could be playable. Skinner has been terrible all season, but he is facing a poor offence in the Islanders, which offers him some value. Sorokin, typically one of the best goalies in the league, hasn't played up to his usual standard, but he will face an Oilers team that shoots the puck a lot (34 times a night on average), so he holds considerably more upside. Risks certainly exist for both goalies, but depending on which lens you want to view this matchup, both could be playable.
Colorado Avalanche Vs. Seattle Kraken
Players to target: Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar, Eeli Tolvanen, Jared McCann, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Vince Dunn
Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen are undeniable. When they play together they produce, when they play a part they produce, they are as reliable as it comes right now and they should be viewed as that today as well facing a Seattle team that gives up more goals than two-thirds of the league. You can look at Valeri Nichushkin, and Jonathan Drouin as value plays as they will both be on the top powerplay with MacKinnon and Rantanen. Seattle has gotten much of their recent production from the combination of Eeli Tolvanen and Oliver Bjorkstrand. Tolvanen has points in four straight games, and he is a player that will shoot, he is also among the few forwards who block shots as well. Bjorkstrand has had a hot start to the season with his shooting scoring on 18 percent of his shots, which while high, isn't wildly outside of his career norms.
On the blueline, we should expect Cale Makar to see the highest ownership. He has more than a point per game and he is coming off a game where he had five shots and three blocks, which place him in a small category of players who can get to all three bonuses on DK. Vince Dunn continues to be productive for Seattle. He has points in four of his last five games, and he has just three fewer points on the year than Makar. If you're looking for a less expensive option in this game, you can look to Jamie Oleksiak who has been among the top shot blockers on the season.
It should be Alexandar Georgiev of the Avalanche facing Joey Daccord of the Kraken. Both of these goalies have really struggled recently with each of them giving up three goals or more in five straight starts. Georgiev in particular. has given up six goals or more in two of his last three starts. I would likely rather pick a goalie at the minimum price I know won't play than choose either of these two today.
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.