NHL DFS Picks Today: Matthew Tkachuk and Aaron Ekblad Stack

We have a solid six-game Monday night slate to comb through with a few attractive options on the board. Let’s dive into some NHL DFS picks from each position, including a cash-game building block in Logan Thompson as well as some other players worth considering.

NHL DFS Picks for Today | November 28

Goaltender

Logan Thompson (Golden Knights vs. Blue Jackets): $8,600 FanDuel | $8,500 DraftKings

There are six games on this Monday night slate but it’s obvious that Logan Thompson is the best option between the pipes as the Golden Knights take on the Blue Jackets in Columbus.

The Blue Jackets are riddled with injuries to some key offensive contributors, most notably Patrik Laine. They’ll enter this one tied for 22nd with 2.90 goals per game on the season but also 27th in terms of expected goals for per 60 minutes of five-on-five action. They’ve been slightly fortunate to score as much as they have this season.

As for Thompson, he’s been superb to the tine of a 2.48 GAA and .920 Sv% on the season. He’s a cool 11-4-0 in the process while notching a pair of shutouts in his 15 starts on the campaign. There certainly doesn’t appear to be a goaltending crisis in Vegas as some thought there might be entering the season.

Thompson is a cash game lock this evening but makes plenty of sense in GPPs as well.

Defender

Aaron Ekblad (Panthers vs. Oilers): $7,300 FanDuel | $5,700 DraftKings

Among the big boys on this six-game slate, give me Florida Panthers blueliner Aaron Ekblad as the top choice among the group.

The Panthers take on an Edmonton Oilers team that has simply struggled to keep the puck out of their own net this season. The Oilers rank 27th with 3.57 goals against per game on the season and also 28th in expected goals against per 60 at five-on-five, so it appears they are deserving of their defensive fate so far despite some quality goaltending from tonight’s starter Stuart Skinner.

Ekblad missed a good chunk of time early in the season with an injury, but he’s been fantastic since returning to the lineup. He’s collected four goals and eight points in 10 games on the season, but also three goals and five points over his last three contests. He’s averaging 3.2 shots per game on the season while also adding more than a blocked shot per game as well.

Until the Oilers prove otherwise they remain a team to target with the opposition.

Mark Giordano (Maple Leafs vs. Red Wings): $4,400 FanDuel | $3,800 DraftKings

A little lighter on the wallet, Mark Giordano is a nice cost-efficient target as the Maple Leafs visit the Detroit Red Wings.

The Maple Leafs’ blueline is decimated with injuries right now as their three highest-paid defenders are out in the form of Morgan Rielly, T.J. Brodie and Jake Muzzin. As a result, Giordano has logged a ton of minutes as the team’s No. 1 defenseman at the ripe age of 39.

Sure, his one goal and five points across 23 games isn’t going to stand out and his 31 shots aren’t anything to write home about. However, he’s also blocked 49 shots on the season and has logged at least 21:22 of ice time in each of his last four games. It’s also worth noting that Giordano’s shooting rate of just 3.2% sits well below his 6.9% career mark and would tie for his lowest rate since the 2009-10 season if the season ended today. He’s in for some positive shooting-rate regression moving forward.

He’s in for some more minutes in this one tonight and should be considered at a cheap price tag as a result.

Wing

Matthew Tkachuk (Panthers vs. Oilers): $10,100 FanDuel | $8,500 DraftKings

A Panthers stack makes plenty of sense tonight as I’m liking Matthew Tkachuk as well as his teammate Ekblad tonight in Oil Country.

Tkachuk has simply been a beast this season, his first in Florida following an off-season trade with the Flames. He’s plenty familiar with this Oilers team and should absolutely be fired up for this one tonight.

Tkachuk has notched nine goals and 27 points in 19 games on the season but has also fired a hefty 85 shots on goal to boot, or 4.47 shots per game. What’s more is his 10.6% shooting rate is below his 13.3% career mark and would tie for his lowest rate since his rookie 2016-17 season if the campaign ended today. He should score more often moving forward.

Even without Aleksander Barkov on this west-coast road trip Tkachuk should shoulder the load beginning tonight in Edmonton.

Mark Stone/Jack Eichel/Alex Pietrangelo stack (Golden Knights vs. Sabres): $23,600 FanDuel | $20,200 DraftKings

The Vegas Golden Knights should be able to have their way with this Blue Jackets back end tonight and I’d suggest loading up on the big guns in this matchup tonight.

The Blue Jackets enter this contest ranked 31st in overall defense as only the Anaheim Ducks have surrendered more goals per game than Columbus’ 4.20 mark. The underlying metrics haven’t been quite as bad as they sit 23rd in expected goals against per 60 minutes of five-on-five action but obviously, that figure leaves plenty to be desired as well.

With this trio we also get a first-unit power-play stack which is important to be sure. The Blue Jackets sit in a share of 18th with a subpar 77.6% clip on the penalty kill this season so getting a man-advantage stack going against them is an added bonus to their poor work at even strength as well.

Getting a Golden Knights stack into your lineup should provide a nice foundation tonight.

Sleeper

Brandon Hagel (Lightning vs. Sabres): $6,000 FanDuel | $3,800 DraftKings

Brandon Hagel is particularly attractive at DraftKings given the lower cost, but he makes a lot of sense in this matchup tonight with the Sabres.

The Sabres sit 24th in overall defense on the season and while the underlying data isn’t quite as bad at 19th in expected goals against per 60 at five-on-five they just haven’t been very good of late at all. Over their last 11 games, the Sabres have yielded four goals or more on seven occasions. That’s a targetable back end to be sure.

As for Hagel, he’ll get a comfy spot skating alongside Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov on the Bolts’ top line. Hagel will also get some second-unit power play reps against a Sabres penalty kill that sits 27th at just 73.1% on the season.

Hagel has notched six goals and 15 points in 20 games on the season and is coming off a one-goal, one-assist evening his last time out against the St. Louis Blues. His numbers should remain steady given his spot in the Lightning’s pecking order.

Thanks for reading to the end of this article! If you appreciate this free content and want to see more of it every day, you can help us out by sharing this article on social media!

Author

Stokastic +

Premium Data and Tools
PREMIUM TOOLS
Lineup Generator
Stokastic Sims MLB
PREMIUM DATA
Projections
Top Stack %s
MLB Data Central
FREE DATA
SoRare MLB Rankings
DraftKings Night Owl
FANTASY CRUNCHER (ADD-ON)
MLB Lineup Study
COMMUNITY
MLB Discord Server
PREMIUM DATA
Projections
Ownership Projections
PREMIUM TOOLS
Fantasy Cruncher (ADD-ON)
NHL Lineup Study
COMMUNITY
NHL Discord Server
PREMIUM TOOLS
Lineup Generator
Stokastic Sims PGA
PREMIUM DATA
Ownership Projections
Top Golfers Tool
PGA Tournament Models
FANTASY CRUNCHER (ADD-ON)
PGA Lineup Study
COMMUNITY
PGA Discord Server
Ownership Projections
Top Drivers Tool
NASCAR Discord Server
NASCAR Fantasy Cruncher
USFL Projections
USFL Discord Server
Ownership Projections
Top Fighters Tool
MMA Discord Server
MMA Fantasy Cruncher
NFL Betting Tools
Stokastic Discord Server
Best Ball
Best Ball Rankings
Best Ball Stat Projections
Stokastic Discord Server
Season Long Fantasy (Coming Soon)

DFS Winners from the Stokastic Community

Subscribe to the Stokastic newsletter

DFS advice, exciting promos, and the best bets straight to your inbox

Stokastic.com - Daily Fantasy Sports and Sports Betting Data, Tools, & Analytics

Please play responsibly. Only customers 21 and over are permitted to play. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.