NHL DFS Picks Today: Brady Tkachuk, Anze Kopitar

With a couple of games on TNT and one filler, there is a small three-game slate on Wednesday night. However, there are still some great options to sift through for NHL DFS.

Let’s examine the best plays for Wednesday on DraftKings and FanDuel NHL DFS today. Of course, be sure to check Stokastic’s NHL DFS rankings and NHL DFS projections.

NHL DFS Picks for DraftKings

Stack 1 – Los Angeles Kings

(W) Adrian Kempe: $5,300

(W) Gabe Vilardi: $5,600

(C) Anze Kopitar: $5,800

The first stack to target on Wednesday’s slate features the Los Angeles Kings, who travel to Edmonton to take on the Oilers in Wednesday’s nightcap on TNT. Projected to take the crease for Edmonton is goaltender Jack Campbell, who has been terrible to start the season.

Through 10 starts, he possesses a troubling .873 save percentage and 4.27 goals against average (GAA). Among starting goaltenders, Campbell ranks second-to-last in goals saved above expected per 60 minutes (GSAx/60) at five-on-five.

In front of Campbell is one of the worst defenses in hockey. At five-on-five, the Oilers rank second-to-last in the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60).

A stack consisting of the Kempe-Kopitar-Vilardi line is a great build for this game. Through 111 minutes played together this season, this line boasts a 59% expected goals for percentage (xGF%).

Vilardi is first on the team in goals (10), Kempe is second (7) and Kopitar is second in assists (11). Now is a great time to buy low on Vilardi, who has been held off the scoresheet in three straight games for the first time all season.

Meanwhile, Kopitar’s willingness to block shots and his ability to drive play with intelligent passing always make him a threat to accumulate a good number of fantasy points. Like Vilardi, now is a great time to buy low on Kempe, who shoots the puck at will and has had some unlucky breaks over the past two weeks.

Additionally, all three of these guys skate together on the first power play unit. Los Angeles’ power play should feast against an Edmonton team that ranks in the bottom half of the league in penalty minutes and third-to-last in penalty kill percentage (penalty kill).

Stack 2 – Ottawa Senators

(C) Tim Stutzle: $6,200

(W) Brady Tkachuk: $7,800

(D) Jake Sanderson: $4,000

The second stack to target on Wednesday’s slate features the Ottawa Senators, who host the Buffalo Sabres. Since they are on the second half of a back-to-back, goaltender Eric Comrie is slated to take the crease for Buffalo.

Through 10 starts between the pipes this season, he is 4-6 with a .885 save percentage and 3.62 GAA. It has been an incredibly tough stretch for Comrie, as he has surrendered a minimum of three goals in each of his last eight appearances between the pipes, a trend that could continue against Ottawa.

Among starting goaltenders, he ranks fourth-to- last in GSAx/60 at five-on-five. In front of Comrie is a struggling defense.

At five-on-five, the Sabres rank 22nd in the league in xGA/60. A stack consisting of Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson is a great build for this game.

All three of those guys skate on the first power play unit, which should not struggle to score against a Buffalo team that ranks fourth-to-last in the league in penalty kill. Stutzle and Tkachuk are the wingers on the first line, which is centered by Claude Giroux.

Among all forward lines that have played a minimum of 65 minutes this season, the Tkachuk-Giroux-Stutzle line ranks second in the league in expected goals for per 60 minutes (xGF/60).

Tkachuk is first on the team in assists (14), Stutzle is second (10) and Sanderson is first among Ottawa’s defensemen (7). Now is a great time to buy low on Tkachuk, who has not registered a goal in seven straight games despite producing an abundance of high-danger scoring chances.

Meanwhile, Stutzle’s ability to drive play with intelligent passing while being willing to shoot the puck at a high clip always makes him a threat to accumulate a good number of fantasy points. At a mere price of $4,000, a first power play defenseman like Sanderson is always a good value pick at that low number considering how likely it is that he grabs an assist with that unit.

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Stack 3 – Buffalo Sabres

(C) Casey Mittelstadt: $3,200

(D) Owen Power: $3,700

The last stack to target on Wednesday’s slate features the Buffalo Sabres. While the Senators should have no issue scoring, their ability to stop the puck is a different story as goaltender Anton Forsberg is slated to start between the pipes.

Through 10 starts this season, he is 3-6-1 with a .899 save percentage and 3.60 GAA. Among starting goaltenders, Forsberg ranks 24th in the league in GSAx/60 at five-on-five.

It has been a specifically tough stretch for Ottawa’s netminder recently as he has surrendered a minimum of four goals in each of his last four starts, a trend that could continue against Buffalo. In front of Forsberg is a struggling defense.

At five-on-five this season, the Senators rank just 25th in the league in xGA/60. A mini stack consisting of Casey Mittelstadt and Owen Power is a great build for this game.

Both of these guys skate together on the Sabres’ second power play unit, which should not struggle to score against an Ottawa team that ranks fifth-to-last in the league in penalty minutes and 20th in penalty kill. After a slow start to the season, Mittelstadt has started to turn his play around by scoring three goals over his last five games.

Meanwhile, Power has been promoted to the first defensive line and is paired with Rasmus Dahlin, who is developing into one of the best offensive-defenseman in the league. Power has had no issue getting involved with the scoring as he has logged six assists over his last eight games.

Goaltender

Jonathan Quick (LAK at EDM): $7,500

This should be a great contrarian play considering that Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl will be among the highest-owned players on Wednesday night. If Jonathan Quick can shut the Oilers down, then this play will catapult a lot of lineups into the money.

It has been a tough start to the year for Los Angeles’ netminder, who is 6-5-1 with a .895 save percentage and 3.09 GAA through 13 appearances between the pipes. However, based on his track record against the Oilers, now is a good time to buy low on Quick.

Across his last five regular season games against Edmonton, he boasts a .924 save percentage and 1.99 GAA. The Kings’ defense in front of Quick is strong and does not nearly get enough credit in this league.

At five-on-five, the Kings rank fourth in xGA/60. Out of defensive pairings that have played at least 100 minutes together this season, both the Durzi-Roy and Anderson-Doughty pairings rank among the top 10 in the league in xGA/60.

There are only two other teams that have two defensive pairings inside the top 10, the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers. Meanwhile, the Oilers’ offense without Evander Kane is a massive concern.

This group is already thin in terms of offensive talent outside of their two superstars and Kane’s absence is a big one. In a trend that has carried over from last season, a large part of Edmonton’s offense stems from their power play.

However, the Kings are a disciplined team that ranks 12th in penalty minutes, so the Oilers will likely have to beat them at five-on-five. McDavid and Draisaitl can beat anyone by themselves, but if Quick and the Kings can limit their production, then a good game is likely from Los Angeles’ goaltender.

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