Yahoo Daily Fantasy Hockey: Tuesday picks

By Daniel Dobish

It’s Valentine’s Day, and if you love to win money we have treats as sweet as a chocolate-dipped strawberry. There are seven games on the NHL slate, and there will be no love lost between the 14 teams on the ice. While you cannot select the Blackhawks’ Ryan Hartman or the Blue Jackets’ Scott Hartnell to get into the V-Day spirit, the Devils’ Ben Lovejoy is available and a recommended play. There are also three Hart Trophy winners in action with the Penguins’ Sidney Crosby (2007, 2014), the Ducks’ Corey Perry (2011) and the Canucks’ Henrik Sedin (2010) on the ice. Who else should ‘be yours’ on Feb. 14? Let’s get started.

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GOALIE

Cory Schneider, NJ vs. COL ($37): Schneider has won three of his past five starts, allowing three or fewer goals in 14 of his past 15 appearances since the calendar flipped to 2017. He suffered a loss against the visiting Sharks last time out, but that was mostly due to a lack of offensive support, as Schneider turned aside 34 of the 37 shots he faced against the high-octane San Jose offense. The visiting Avalanche are not nearly as potent, and are far and away the worst NHL team in goal differential at minus-74.

GOALIE TO AVOID

Connor Hellebuyck, WPG vs. DAL ($29): If you’re looking at the lower-tier goalies and trying to save salary, you’ll want to pass on Hellebuyck. He has allowed three goals in each of his past five outings, dropping each of his past three starts. The Jets have lost five straight games at home and are 0-4 in their past four outings, and just don’t offer enough offensive support to make their goalies winners on a regular basis.

CENTER

Mikael Granlund, MIN vs. ANH ($20): Granlund is the best value on the board among the centers, posting 0.415 fantasy points per dollar spent. He has two power-play points and 10.5 fantasy points per game over his past two outings, and he’ll be facing an Anaheim team that ranks 19th in high-danger save percentage. Granlund has scored 10 of his 16 goals at Xcel Energy Center, and nine of his 14 power-play points have come on home ice.

CENTER TO AVOID

Ryan Kesler, ANH at MIN ($22): Kesler and his teammates aren’t likely to see many open spaces against a Wild team ranked No. 1 in the Western Conference in goal differential (plus-58). They also rank fourth in the NHL in high-danger save percentage, so do not expect to see Kesler get his name onto the scoresheet. The Ducks’ leading scorer has four points over his past four games, but you can expect him to post a goose egg against Minnesota’s suffocating defense.

WING

Jamie Benn, DAL at WPG ($26): Benn is well worth the money in Tuesday’s battle at MTS Centre, as he’ll be facing the leaky defense of the Jets. Injuries have decimated Winnipeg’s rearguards, and their goaltending has been shaky at best. In fact, the Jets have allowed three or more goals in 15 games in a row dating back to Jan. 9. Benn has lit the lamp in six of his past eight games, and he had a goal with two assists and a plus-1 rating in the most recent meeting with the Jets on Feb. 2, tying a season-best with 22.0 fantasy points.

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Anders Lee, NYI at TOR ($16): Lee will face the skidding Maple Leafs, a team allowing 4.0 goals per game in seven outings since the All-Star break. The Minnesota native has caught fire since Jan. 14 with seven goals and nine assists over 13 games. There aren’t many options on the board scoring at better than a point-per-game clip, especially with this low a cap hit. Lee has been especially useful in DFS thanks to his four power-play goals and seven points with the man advantage over his past 10 outings.

WINGS TO AVOID

Evander Kane, BUF at OTT ($18): Kane has a pair of two-goal games in his last four outings, but he also has five scoreless performances in his last seven contests. Overall he has been rather erratic this season, and you never know if good Kane or bad Kane will show up. Senators goalie Craig Anderson posted a shutout last time out in his first action in two months due to personal issues, and he’ll be a tough nut to crack on his home ice. The Sabres are heavy underdogs, and a minus rating is likely for Kane and most of his teammates.

Daniel Sedin, VAN at PIT ($16): Sedin has posted a goal and three points over his past five games, but his fantasy value has been rather limited due to a minus-3 rating during the span. The Canucks are the biggest underdogs on the board Tuesday, and Sedin’s plus-minus figures to get a lot worse in what could be a lopsided road loss. He has been limited to 2.0 fantasy points or less in four of his past 12 road outings.

DEFENSE

Erik Karlsson, OTT vs. BUF ($30): Karlsson is the gold standard among fantasy defensemen in the Eastern Conference. He is the whole package, posting eight goals and 45 points while blocking 142 shots through 53 games. The All-Star leads all Eastern Conference players in blocks, and even if he is held off the scoresheet he can hold his own with a solid plus-minus and shots on goal. His shot rate has really picked up lately after he was focusing more on the defensive end earlier in the season.

Ben Lovejoy, NJ vs. COL ($12): On this day of amorousness, you have to put Lovejoy on your squad, right? Well, he is a salary saver option, allowing you to load up on studs at other spot. Lately Lovejoy has been exceeding expectations, posting two assists with a plus-4 rating and eight blocked shots over the past six games. He is averaging 5.2 fantasy points during that six-game span, topping his season average by two points a game.

DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID

Tyson Barrie, COL at NJ ($14): Barrie is a decent offensive defenseman with three goals and 20 assists through 45 games, but his awful minus-26 rating nullifies his production most nights. He has managed just two power-play assists over the past 18 games, and he was scoreless in five of the past six outings. The Avalanche have yielded 4.7 goals per game over their past six while averaging just 1.5 goals per outing, so another poor plus-minus is expected.

Ryan Suter, MIN vs. ANH ($23): Suter has been ice-cold, posting zero points over his past eight outings. While he is a shot-blocker extraordinaire and ranks third in the league in plus-minus, the veteran hasn’t been doing nearly enough to make up for his lack of offense. His fantasy points per dollar spent have been way too low, and there are clearly better options on the board.

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