RotoBallers, welcome back to our daily fantasy hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and FantasyAces. Below you will find our NHL cheat sheet - DFS lineup picks, sleepers and stacks for Saturday, December 31 of the 2016/2017 NHL season.

The last day of 2016 brings us a big split slate in daily fantasy hockey. FanDuel is the only site that will be running an All Day slate and is the only site with the Wild/Blue Jackets game. Why is this important you ask? Well, the Blue Jackets enter Saturday's key matchup with a 14 game winning streak while the Wild sit with a 12 game winning streak. FantasyAces users get just the main slate tonight while Draftkings is offering a two game early slate and eight game main slate.

Editor's Note: New users that sign up on Fantasy Aces, make a $20 deposit, and enter any game will receive our full season NHL Premium Pass (DFS Cheat Sheets) for free, a $99.99 value. Just email info@rotoballer.com with your new FantasyAces username - and boom, that's it! We will email you with your Premium pass.

NHL Daily League Lineup Picks for Saturday, December 31 

For those that are new to this, each day we'll be providing you with a few of our top DFS lineup picks for daily league cash games on FanDuel, DraftKings, and FantasyAces. We will also provide you with one of our favorite teams to stack for GPPs. You can grab the rest of our Premium DFS lineup picks and stacks through the NHL Cheat Sheet and DFS Premium Pass below.

Jeff Carter (C, LAK)

DraftKings - $6,800, FanDuel - $7,600, FantasyAces - $5,700

If you aren't willing to pay up for center tonight take a look at Jeff Carter who falls just below the top tier on DraftKings and FanDuel. He has been red hot lately eight goals in his last 10 games including three on the powerplay. With his high shot volume(3.2 shots on goal per game) he is a safe play in all formats.

Jason Spezza (W, DAL)

DraftKings - $6,200, FanDuel - $6,600, FantasyAces - $5,100

After a very slow start to his season, Jason Spezza has turned it around and has been red hot while playing on the top line with Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn. He has tallied 11 points over his last 10 games and has recorded 15 of his 22 total points for the season on home ice.

Alec Martinez (D, LAK)

DraftKings - $4,900, FanDuel - $4,800, FantasyAces - $5,300

He is best utilized on Draftkings and FanDuel where he will cost less than 10% of your salary cap. He has cooled off offensively with just five points in his last 10 games but continues to provide a high floor with blocked shots. He is coming off a six-block game and has tallied 32 over the last 10 games.

Stacking Option

Dallas Stars - Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Jason Spezza

The Stars lethal top line has been one of the hottest combinations in the league over the last few weeks. All three have at least 10 points over their last 10 games and have helped bring the Stars powerplay rank back inside the Top 20. The matchup and high price will have most people looking elsewhere making them an excellent low owned tournament stack.

Premium Cheat Sheets for Daily Fantasy Hockey

Get an edge on your NHL DFS competition with our Premium cheat sheets -- more lineup picks, deeper analysis, and advanced stats to unlock DFS player value.

Premium access to 15 deeply researched lineup picks including stats like Shots Attempted per 60, Points per 60, and more. Come see for yourself:

• Weekly Premium Pass - includes playoffs
• Monthly Premium Pass - includes playoffs
• Year-Long Premium Pass - includes playoffs

Sample NHL Premium DFS Cheat Sheet

Want to know what the Premium NHL DFS Cheat Sheets looks like? Below is a sample. We go above and beyond standard daily fantasy hockey analysis.

Click image to enlarge

 
Bonus: General NHL DFS Strategy Notes

For cash games, look at players who can contribute to your score even when they are not providing offense. Some examples are guys who take a ton of shots and defensemen who block a lot of shots. Also, look for guys who get power play time. You can find value in players who join a new line due to an injury, or just get a promotion and more ice time. It is also recommended to spread out your exposure to three or four different lines, and not put all your eggs in one basket.

For large field tournaments (GPPs), find payers who have multi-point upside and can grab double-digit fantasy points. If you want to stack the most upside in your forwards, a common strategy is to punt the defense position. This doesn't mean just grab anyone - try and look for a defenseman who will get power play time, or a playing time boost due to an injury. For a contrarian approach, paying up at the defense position can be a great strategy - but it also comes with more risk. GPPs bring a great opportunity for goaltenders in the value price range - you can look for backups on good teams.