John Tavares was probably sad to see the first half end
This weekend is the NHL All-Star game in Los Angeles. There is no NHL DFS slate until Tuesday, January 31, so I made a list of some of my favorite DFS players from the first half of the season. We all know that Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and even young guns like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews are obvious top plays on any given night. I wanted to reveal some of the players who may not be the best players in the league or even all-stars but were in my lineup on many occasions and helped me have a profitable first half of the season.
Center
John Tavares (NYI)
Tavares is likely one player sad to see the All-Star break come as he finished the first part of the season as one of the hottest players in the league. In a 10-game stretch in January he has eight goals and five assists and an average of 5.9 fantasy points per game. This season in 47 games he has scored 19 goals and 21 assists for an average of 3.9 fantasy points per game.
Mikael Backlund (CGY)
Backlund was on such a hot streak in December that I played him every night for about two weeks straight. Since December 10, he scored 10 goals and had 10 assists in a 17 games making him the fifth highest scoring player in that span. In 52 games played he has 14 goals and 20 assists and an average of 3.2 fantasy points per game.
Jeff Carter (LA)
Sometimes picking what line to play from a given team can be a tough choice but not with the Los Angeles Kings this season. Carter has been Mr. Everything this for the Kings and his fantasy users. He has rarely slumped this season posting 24 goals and 19 assists and averaging 4.0 fantasy points per game.
Wing
Jeff Skinner (CAR)
Skinner has had a very good first half of the season with 17 goals and 18 assists in 47 games played for an average of 3.8 fantasy points per game. Carolina has gone overlooked from a fantasy perspective, which means players like Skinner will have very low ownership percentages. He is usually good for four or five shots a game and his price tag has been around $6,000 and provides great roster flexibility.
Mats Zuccarello (NYR)
The Rangers have been the second highest scoring team this season with a total of 165 goals scored in 49 games played. While Zuccarello has just nine of those he also has 29 assists and averages 3.3 fantasy points per game. His line with Derek Stepan and Chris Kreider has been one of the top lines all season.
Patrik Laine (WIN)
He was a great play early in the season, with all the attention on the “other” rookie Auston Matthews, but with 22 goals and 18 assists in 44 games his price is now at $6,500 but the sky’s the limit for this talented rookie and should find himself on the obvious must playlist very soon .
Jonathan Marchessault (FLA)
In his first two games, he scored a goal in each contest and quickly became a nice value plug and play option in my cash lineups. After bouncing around from Columbus to Tampa Bay he looks like he has found a home in Florida at the age of 26. In 43 games played he has 14 goals and 17 assists and an average of 2.9 fantasy points per game. His price tag is $4,900 now and contributes points in a variety of ways while playing close to 20 minutes per night.
Defense
Ryan Suter (MIN)
Minnesota has aspirations of making a deep run in the playoffs this season. They have been on a mission this season with a record of 32-11-5 and the second-most points in the league with 69. Suter has been their glue, playing almost 30 minutes a game in all situations with a plus-28 rating in 48 games. He provides fantasy production in several ways with scoring, blocked shots and shots on goal. His price is only $5,100 and has been a nice security blanket in my cash lineups all season.
Jaccob Slavin (CAR)
While he only has one goal and 17 assists this season in 48 games played, Slavin has been playing top four defenseman minutes and has been a very nice value play in my cash lineups all season. Priced around $4,200 all season, he has averaged 2.5 fantasy points per game and has allowed me to pay up for higher priced studs in other spots in my lineup.
Zachary Werenski (CLB)
He was one of my favorite defenseman plays in the early part of the season, even before Columbus decided to go on a long winning streak and find their place among the best teams in the league. He had two goals and three assists in his first five games as a rookie and has been on my fantasy radar ever since. Now he is priced at $4,900 which is still a nice price but I liked him, even more, when he was around $3,700.
Goalie
Devan Dubnyk (MIN)
With wins being so important in NHL DFS, Dubnyk has been a great play all season. He has a 27-8-3 record and has been my go-to goaltender all season. His 29-save shutout against Dallas on October 29 helped me to a 10th place finish in a large 15K field tournament.
Sergei Bobrovsky (CLB)
Any goalie that wins 14 games in a row has to be on this list. After doubts about him at the beginning of the season, he is now an elite play at goalie with a 28-9-2 record in 39 games played.
Ryan Miller (VAN)
His record does not seem that impressive at 14-12-3 but he has played very well this season particularly at home where he has a 12-4-1 record. Miller and the Canucks have taken advantage of teams making that multi-game west coast swing which has made him my value goalie of choice this season but avoid playing him on the road where his record is just 2-8-2.
Feel free to tweet me or share some of the players who were your go-to players that brought you DFS success in the first half of the season.
Rob Klein is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Rob, check out his archive and follow him @RobK37.
