NHL DFS Playbook October 18: Top DraftKings and FanDuel Picks
Welcome to Wednesday’s two-game NHL Slate. Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby find themselves together on a slate and are looking to help propel their team to victory. Those two are going to be popular, but there are lots of great value options to target. You can build daily fantasy hockey lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo Fantasy for Wednesday, October 18th, 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
Ottawa Senators Vs Darcy Kuemper (3.7)
Pittsburgh Penguins Vs. Ville Husso (3.5)
Detroit Red Wings Vs. Tristan Jarry (3.8)
Washington Capitals Vs Anton Forsberg (3.4)
Washington Capitals Vs. Ottawa Senators
Players to target: Tim Stutzle, Josh Norris, Brady Tkachuk, Alex Ovechkin, Vladimir Tarasenko, Matthew Philipps, John Carlson, Jakob Chychrun, Jake Sanderson, Martin Fehervary, Anton Forsberg
It’s hard to think about stacking against the Washington Capitals, but their offence outside of Alex Ovechkin is #NotGood. Ottawa has a ton of great options to choose from and some that you need to keep an eye on.
Josh Norris is expected to make his season debut and skate on the third line but on the top power play unit. At $3100 on DraftKings, that is hard value to pass up on. He’s got skill, but the problem has always been staying healthy. He’s back in the lineup, so let’s take advantage of it. You’d best pair him with Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson to complete the three-man top power play stack.
For Washington, Alex Ovechkin is a no brainer because of the number of shots he’s going to take. If you want another cheap forward, Matthew Philipps is skating on the third line and scored a goal last game. He’s going to get some looks, but he’s mostly a salary relief option. The real value is on the blue line. Martin Fehervary can block shots and the Senators love to shoot the puck. You can pay up for John Carlson if you want, but I think we can find better value elsewhere.
Anton Forsberg is confirmed to start for Ottawa and he’s got a decent chance of winning this game. As mentioned earlier, the Capitals aren’t that scary, so all he has to do is be decent and he picks up the win. I don’t like his price tag, but it’s a short slate with few options.
Pittsburgh Penguins Vs. Detroit Red Wings
Players to target: Sidney Crosby, Dylan Larkin, Jake Guentzle, Alex DeBrincat, Reilly Smith, Lucas Raymond, Erik Karlsson, Moritz Seider, Jake Walman, Ryan Graves,
Let’s get the goaltending out of the way quickly between these two teams. I can’t for the life of me trust Tristan Jarry tonight and I don’t want to go down the Ville Husso route. If you want to take the risk on either one, be my guest, but be prepared to be disappointed.
Shifting the focus to the forward, Pittsburgh has no shortage of elite options to consider. Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzle are great options but don’t hesitate to scroll down and target Reilly Smith. If you want to really go all out, Erik Karlsson is in a great spot because we know he loves to shoot the puck. If you want to look at a cheaper defenceman, Ryan Graves has 11 blocked shots in three games this season and is $3700 on DK. He’s going to flirt with the blocked shots bonus.
For Detroit, Dylan Larkin, Alex DeBrincat and Moritz Seider is the main three-man stack I’d be considering. Again, Tristan Jarry can be hot-or-miss, and tonight, I think he’s a miss. He’s been decent this season, but I’m just not buying his 4-0 shutout against Washington. Lucas Raymond is definitely the way to go if you need another affordable forward.
I’ll throw Jake Walman’s name in here too because he’s another defenceman who can provide some offence but is a great shot blocker. If you pair him and Graves together and fill the UTIL spot with someone like Karlsson/Seider, you should be able to still afford some high-priced forwards. There’s nothing wrong with going with three defencemen on this slate.
Player News
Giants released OF Vaun Brown.
Brown, a 10th-round pick in 2021, had a fantastic debut that summer and in hitting .346/.437/.623 with 23 homers and 44 steals in A-ball in 2022, but he never has managed to conquer Double-A since. He was hitting .247/.347/.282 in 32 games there this season.
MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo suggests that Mets RHP Nolan McLean “could play a key role in the upcoming pennant race.”
DiComo didn’t mention what role McLean would play, but with Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea coming off the injured list last week, it’s more likely McLean would help the Mets out of the bullpen. The 23-year-old has a 2.52 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 65/26 K/BB ratio in 60 2/3 innings at Triple-A Syracuse since being promoted after just five starts at Double-A to begin the season.
The Athletic’s Will Sammon reports that free agent RHP David Robertson is throwing for interested teams “within the next week.”
Robertson pitched for the Rangers last season, posting a 3.00 ERA in 72 innings with a 99/27 K/BB ratio. From 2022-24, the 40-year-old averaged 63 appearances per season with a 2.82 ERA, so he has proven that he still can be a quality reliever at the big league level. While many teams were interested in Robertson earlier in the season, the veteran held firm to his contract demands and, as Sammon reports, “clubs failed to meet his asking price.” With the season nearing a close, Robertson’s salary demands are likely to be more acceptable to contenders, so it would not be a surprise to see him sign with a team by the end of the month.
Jonny DeLuca (shoulder) is starting a rehab assignment on Tuesday in the Florida Complex League.
The outfielder had his rehab assignment moved to Triple-A Durham back on May 24th and then experienced a setback a few days later. It seems that the 27-year-old feels healthy enough the get back into game action. It will likely take a few weeks for him to get his rhythm and timing back, but with Jake Mangum, Josh Lowe, and Chandler Simpson all playing well, and both Jose Caballero and Christopher Morel filling in the outfield as well, it’s unclear what kind of role DeLuca might return to.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reports that the Jazz have no plans to trade Lauri Markkanen this offseason.
With the Jazz in the midst of a rebuild, there have been questions regarding Markkanen’s future with the franchise. However, while John Collins and Collin Sexton were traded this offseason and Jordan Clarkson’s contract was bought out, the team reportedly does not plan to move Markkanen. “It would be too much to describe Markkanen as untouchable, but the Jazz still project the All-Star forward as a key player in their future core,” MacMahon wrote. In addition to how he’s viewed within the franchise, Markkanen’s contract may deter some teams. Last August, he agreed to a five-year extension worth $238 million. Utah still needs some veterans to lead the way for their young roster, which is why Markkanen remains so valuable to the franchise.
The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain believes Bears WR Rome Odunze could “take off” in 2025.
The steady drumbeat for Odunze — a former top-10 pick — continues as the Bears ready for training camp. Head coach Ben Johson said in May that he was “extremely impressed” with Odunze following a disappointing rookie campaign that saw him catch 54 passes for 734 yards and three touchdowns. Thanks to erratic play from Caleb Williams, Odunze was among the least efficient wideouts in the game last season. He was 13th in air yards — leading all Chicago pass catchers — but 42nd in receiving yards. “If Odunze didn’t meet outside expectations, it’s not because he was dropping passes or running poor routes,” Fishbain writes. “With a better scheme and improved quarterback play, he should take off in Year 2.” Odunze will have to compete for targets with DJ Moore and incoming rookie Luther Burden.