NHL DFS Playbook November 7: Top DraftKings and FanDuel Picks
Published: Nov 07, 2023
Tuesday's ten-game NHL slate is loaded with top-tier scorers. We should expect lots of tight games with some great matchups out there, but expect some of the top scorers to shine through still. So, be sure to check in with our NHL DFS Tools, with the daily NHL projections, and our NHL lineup generator when building those lineups today to help you decide which players you should be targeting!
NHL DFS Playbook November 7th
DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts
There are a handful of key games to build around tonight. The most difficult one of them is going to be the Philadelphia Flyers at the San Jose Sharks. I wouldn't normally put a lot of DFS weight into the Flyers, but the Sharks have been awful this season. In the last two weeks, the Sharks have given up 5.83 goals per game, and if that trend continues tonight, I would want to have some Flyers players like Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny. The other matchup that I would be paying attention to is the New Jersey Devils at the Colorado Avalanche. The Devils are going to be without Jack Hughes again today, and that loss will be much more obvious today when they face Nathan MacKinnon and the Avalanche. The Avs are coming off a bad loss being shown up 7-0 by Vegas and the Devils could be in for a long night.
Recommended DFS Starting Goalies
Top Options for Saves
Lukas Dostal vs Pittsburgh Penguins
Jake Allen vs Carolina Hurricanes
Alexandar Georgiev vs New Jersey Devils
Best Odds for a Win
Antti Raanta vs Buffalo Sabres
Samuel Ersson vs San Jose Sharks
Alexandar Georgiev vs New Jersey Devils
Favorite Goalies to Use for DFS Lineups
Samuel Ersson, G, Philadelphia Flyers
I wouldn't typically recommend a goalie who has a 0.815 save percentage, but Ersson has only given up three goals in his last two starts, and to be honest San Jose has been that bad. Over the last two weeks, the Sharks have scored less than one goal per game, so the risks that come with starting Ersson are minimalized by how bad the Sharks have been.
Alexandar Georgiev, G, Colorado Avalanche
Georgiev has been flat-out terrible in his last five starts, but as a GPP play, there are good reasons to take on his risk. He has been streaky (by the way most goalies are), but he was great in his first 5 starts, before being bad in his most recent starts. He typically wins games as well, he has won six of his nine starts. Lastly, he has played much better at home, with his save percentage nearly 20 points higher than it is on the road. There is still risk facing a Devils team that can score goals, but I think Georgiev is in a good spot where he could see a lot of shots and if he stops most of them he could be one of the highest-scoring goalies on this slate.
Lukas Dostal, G, Anaheim Ducks
I love the value of Dostal in this matchup. Dostal has won four straight starts for the Ducks, and he has looked great doing it. He has a 0.920 save percentage on the season, and he could easily be among the best values on this slate today.
Recommended DFS Skaters
Highest Expected Goal Totals
Carolina Hurricanes vs Devon Levi (3.9)
Colorado Avalanche vs Vitek Vanecek (3.8)
Philadelphia Flyers vs Mackenzie Blackwood (3.8)
Favorite Skaters to Use for DFS Lineups
Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Avalanche
This is a great matchup for MacKinnon. With the Devils down both Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier, MacKinnon will be facing their third-best center and that is something I would look for him to take advantage of. I will be curious to see MacKinnon's ownership today, as I think many people will simply see that he is facing the Devils and go looking to build around someone different.
Nikita Kucherov W, Tampa Bay Lightning
There is an argument to be made that Kucherov has been the best player in the league this season, so far. He has 20 points, and nine of those points have come in his last two games. The Lightning will need him to continue to play well as the Atlantic division is very tight, and every point matters, especially against a division rival. I would look for him to have another big game today.
Lawson Crouse, W, Arizona Coyotes
Crouse has scored in three straight games, and he has points in five straight games overall. He should be a fine value play today as the Coyotes face the Seattle Kraken at home. Crouse is playing top-six minutes right now and Seattle has been in the bottom third of the league in goals against over the last two weeks, so I expect Arizona to score some goals today.
Erik Gustafsson, D, New York Rangers
With Adam Fox out, it looks like it will be Gustafsson who will take over the top powerplay time. Gustafsson is a pure offensive defenceman, and while he isn't at the calibre of Fox, he is capable of running a powerplay. While he doesn't have the floor of his teammate Jacob Trouba, his time on the powerplay gives up plenty of upside at his price.
Player Pool
| $ Tier | C | W | D | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High |  Nathan MacKinnon  $10,200 |  Nikita Kucherov $9,700 |  Roman Josi $7,200 |  Alexandar Georgiev $8,300 |
| Medium |  Mason McTavish $6,700 |  Owen Tippett $5,500 |  Moritz Seider $6,000 | Lukas Dostal $8,000 |
| Low |  Dawson Mercer $5,100 |  Lawson Crouse $4,500 | Erik Gustafsson $4,600 | Samuel Ersson $7,500 |
Stacks
| Avalanche | Mikko Rantanen | Nathan MacKinnon | Bowen Byram |
 DraftKings | 8500 | 9800 | 3100 |
| Fanduel | 9900 | 10200 | 4200 |
| Lightning | Brayden Point | Victor Hedman | Nikita Kucherov |
| DraftKings | 7200 | 6000 | 8400 |
| Fanduel | 8400 | 6600 | 9700 |
| Flyers | Travis Sanheim | Cam Atkinson | Owen Tippett |
| DraftKings | 5500 | 5500 | 5100 |
| Fanduel | 6500 | 5900 | 5500 |
Player News
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander provided 29 points and 12 assists in Sunday’s series-clinching 103-91 Game 7 victory over the Pacers, leading the Thunder to their first NBA title.
It wasn’t always pretty, but SGA — who was named NBA Finals MVP afterwards — got the job done on Sunday night as the Thunder pulled away from Indiana in the second half to secure the franchise’s first title since moving to Oklahoma City. Gilgeous-Alexander shot a putrid 8-of-27 from the field and 2-of-12 from beyond the arc, but he got to the line 12 times and sank 11 free throws to buoy his scoring numbers. The 12 assists tie his season-high in that category, and his all-around contributions were spectacular, despite the inefficient shooting. Gilgeous-Alexander’s 2024-25 season will go down as one of the best individual seasons for a guard in NBA history, as he won the scoring title, regular season MVP and Finals MVP. The Thunder are early favorites to win the 2025-26 title, and Gilgeous-Alexander has the second-shortest odds to win a second straight MVP, behind only Nikola Jokic.
Benn Mathurin finished Sunday’s loss to the Thunder with 24 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and two triples across 33 minutes.
Mathurin led Indiana in scoring and led all players in rebounds, though his -14 in the box score represented the lowest plus-minus of the game. Mathurin’s playoff run was a rollercoaster of ups and downs in minutes and scoring. His highs were high, and his lows were low, and Mathurin scored at least 20 points in four of the final 10 games of the postseason. The third-year man out of Arizona averaged career highs in points (16.1), rebounds (5.3), field goal percentage (45.8) and free throw percentage (83.1) in 2024-25, and he’ll look to improve on those numbers in Year 4.
Jalen Williams provided 20 points (7-of-20 FG), four rebounds, four assists, two steals and two triples across 38 minutes Sunday as the Thunder beat the Pacers 103-91.
Like his superstar teammate, Williams was far from efficient as he and Shai Gilgeous Alexander combined for 49 points on 15-of-47 shots. Despite the poor shooting, Williams made a positive impact on the contest. He finished with the highest plus-minus in the game at +13 after recording a -40 in Game 6. Williams broke out in the regular season and broke out in an even bigger way in the Finals, as he scored 40 points in Game 5 and cemented himself as one of the best secondary options in the Association. The future looks bright for he and SGA.
Chet Holmgren finished Sunday’s win over Indiana with 18 points, eight rebounds, a steal, five blocked shots and a triple across 31 minutes.
Holmgren struggled offensively in this series, but he came through for his team in the title-clinching win. The big man knocked down 6-of-8 shots, hit five of his eight attempts from the charity stripe and made some monster plays on defense. So long as he can stay healthy, he should once again offer an early-round ceiling to fantasy managers thanks to his ability to hit triples and block shots.
Pascal Siakam finished with 16 points (5-of-13 FG), four rebounds, two assists, a steal, a block and two triples across 37 minutes in Sunday’s loss to the Thunder.
Siakam had a tremendous playoff run and was arguably the team’s best player in the Finals, but he couldn’t get much going in Game 7. He signed a four-year deal with the Pacers last summer, so he’ll be back with Haliburton for at least the next three seasons as Indiana tries to prove that their Cinderella run was more than just lightning in a bottle.
T.J. McConnell finished Indiana’s Game 7 loss to Oklahoma City with 16 points, six rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block across 28 minutes.
Tyrese Haliburton went down just seven minutes into the game, and McConnell stepped up in a big way. He did his best to carry the listless Pacers offense, and at one point in the third quarter, he scored 12 straight points for his team. Despite being the spark that kept Indiana competitive midway through the third, McConnell wasn’t on the court to start the fourth and logged only 28 minutes. McConnell cemented his name as a legend in Indiana with gritty performance after gritty performance across seven games. Depending on the severity of Haliburton’s Achilles injury, McConnell could be forced to step into a larger role next season. He’s shown that he’s capable of great things with increased playing time.