There is a quality eight-game main NHL slate going on Monday evening. Let’s dive into some NHL DFS picks stacks and top picks at other positions, including the Stars’ Jake Oettinger in a favorable road matchup.
NHL DFS Picks for Today | December 19
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Stacks
Dallas Stars vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Jason Robertson ($10,100 FanDuel | $8,300 DraftKings)
Roope Hintz ($8,600 FanDuel | $6,500 DraftKings)
Joe Pavelski ($7,600 FanDuel | $5,800 DraftKings)
The Oilers are obviously an option tonight in Nashville against the Predators, as Connor McDavid paces Stokastic’s NHL DFS projections for this eight-game slate. However, for a pivot, the Stars are the top stack as they take on the Blue Jackets on the road.
The Blue Jackets have struggled mightily on the back end this season. Overall, their defense is 31st with 4.07 goals against per game, a number well deserved considering they are 29th in expected goals against per 60 at five-on-five and dead last in shot attempts against per 60 in the same scenario. Their penalty kill is 18th but at just 77.6% for the season.
As a result, a top line and top power play stack is in order. Only four players have notched more points this season than the 46 Jason Robertson has put forth across his 32 games. Robertson has fired 129 shots on goal in that time, while his shooting rate of 17.8% is actually below his 18.6% mark from last season, so don’t expect much regression moving forward.
Roope Hintz is having himself a fine season alongside Robertson, with 13 goals and 35 points in 31 games. He doesn’t shoot the puck nearly as much as his linemate, with just 72 shots on the season, but he too has been an efficient shooter at 18.1% for the season. Hintz’s 9.5% mark on the road should be in for an uptick.
Joe Pavelski has 31 points in 32 games, along with 75 shots on goal. He’s been nothing short of fantastic as a member of the Stars and is certainly on pace to challenge his 81 points from 82 games a season ago.
Targeting this banged-up Blue Jackets back end has been profitable all season long and figures to be again tonight.
Nashville Predators vs. Edmonton Oilers
Filip Forsberg ($7,600 FanDuel | $6,200 DraftKings)
Matt Duchene ($5,900 FanDuel | $4,700 DraftKings)
Roman Josi ($8,500 FanDuel | $8,400 DraftKings)
Rather than stack the Oilers, going contrarian might not be the worst idea as the Predators host Edmonton for the second time in less than a week. Of course, there’s risk in doing so after the Oilers hung six on the Predators.
However, not only is Juuse Saros going in goal for the Predators to help prevent the Oilers attack, but the Predators also take on Jack Campbell between the pipes. Campbell earned the win over Nashville last Tuesday as he yielded three goals on 32 shots (.906 save percentage), but he has been wildly inconsistent this season, with a 4.04 goals against average and .875 save percentage in 14 outings. Campbell still has an .879 save percentage over his last four starts since getting a 13-day mental break in mid-November.
The Oilers defense also offers little help to its netminders. Edmonton is 23rd in expected goals against per 60 minutes of five-on-five action and 22nd in shots against per 60 at five-on-five.
Filip Forsberg has led the offensive charge in Nashville with 25 points in 29 games. He only has nine goals despite 92 shots on goal, but his 9.8% shooting rate should absolutely climb toward his 12.8% career mark.
Matt Duchene and Roman Josi are right behind Forsberg with 23 points on the campaign, and both are coming off of career years in 2021-22. Josi brings the higher floor to the table, with a whopping 130 shots and 72 blocks in his 29 games. Duchene hasn’t shot the puck nearly as much as he did last season but remains a threat even if he’s not skating with Forsberg at five-on-five.
This is a top power-play unit stack against an Oilers penalty kill that is 25th at just 73% on the season. They also have one of the worst, if not the worst, goaltenders in the league this season, so the Predators present a good NHL DFS stacking opportunity on home ice.
Defender
Jacob Chychrun (Coyotes vs. Canadiens): $7,400 FanDuel | $6,500 DraftKings
The Coyotes aren’t the worst GPP look considering a solid home matchup against the Canadiens, but Jacob Chychrun would make a fine stand-alone investment on the blueline at the very least.
Since returning from a wrist injury that delayed the start to his season, Chychrun has been on fire. He’ll enter this one with three goals and 12 points in 13 games, but he’s also fired 49 shots on goal in that time (3.77 per game). Chychrun has also blocked 18 shots in those 13 games.
He’s leading the charge on the Coyotes power play, with 2 points on the man advantage while averaging 22:02 of ice time per game, a figure he’s exceeded three times over his last four.
The Canadiens are 25th in goals against per game (3.55) and 25th in expected goals against per 60 minutes at five-on-five. They’re without a shot-blocking machine in David Savard, while fellow blueliner Michael Matheson has hit the shelf as well. This is a very young and inexperienced Canadiens back end.
For a potential Coyotes stack, Chychrun makes for a fantastic option on the blue line regardless.
Goalie
Jake Oettinger (Stars vs. Blue Jackets): $8,200 FanDuel | $8,500 DraftKings
As far as safe bets go on this slate, Oettinger looks like the best of the bunch in a nice road matchup with the Blue Jackets. As bad as they’ve been defensively, things haven’t gone much better at the offensive end for the Blue Jackets. Columbus is 27th in overall offense on the season and tied for 29th with a lackluster 15.5% mark on the penalty kill. Their expected goals for per 60 at five-on-five also rank 27th, so this has been among the worst offenses in the NHL.
Oettinger is a major reason as to why the Stars are seventh in overall defense. He’s predictably cooled after a white-hot start to the season followed by an injury, but he has a 2.42 goals against average and .920 save percentage in 22 appearances (21 starts), winning 12 of them. He’s on fire at the moment, allowing just five goals over his last three starts and posting a .948 save percentage in that time. Oettinger turned aside 45 of 46 Washington Capitals shots (.978 save percentage) for the win his last time out. He looks primed to earn the win against the Blue Jackets tonight at the very least.
Sleeper
Sonny Milano (Capitals vs. Red Wings): $4,300 FanDuel | $2,800 DraftKings
The Capitals get a good home matchup tonight with the visiting Red Wings, while Sonny Milano continues to have an advantageous spot in the lineup.
Skating with Evgeny Kuznetsov and Anthony Mantha on the second line, Milano should get some looks against a soft Red Wings back end. Ville Husso has been very good in goal, but the Red Wings are 20th in expected goals against per 60 at five-on-five and 22nd in shot attempts against per 60 in such scenarios. They also rank 27th in Corsi-for at five-on-five, meaning the opposition has dominated the shot attempts game against them this season.
Milano has three goals and 14 points in 20 games on the season after recording a trio of assists on Saturday against the Maple Leafs. He’s only registered 27 shots in that stretch as part of his 13:39 of ice time, but with 5 points over his last four games, he’s at least worth a look in this matchup tonight.
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