We have a nine-game slate to break down giving us plenty of options to look at tonight. There are a ton of high-priced skaters you want to be rostering tonight and plenty of games with high over-unders, so could be in for a slate with inflated scores.
Vegas lines are big when it comes to picking games to target, and that's a good place to start for goalies. When it comes to skaters, goal totals is another main place to start. Usually, 5.5 goals are average, so targets game at six, and can look for goalies in games with a total at five.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy hockey lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 12/15/18. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @DFS_Tom. Let's get to it, shall we?
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DFS Forwards to Consider
Auston Matthews - C, TOR @ FLA (FD - $8,400, DK - $8,200)
Matthews is coming off an oddly bad game against the Lightning where he only had two shots and not points. You should be willing to go right back to him tonight since he should be able to bounce back and put up solid points tonight versus the Panthers, who are giving up over three goals per game this season. Matthew is still up on the first power-play unit, which should give him plenty of upside in this matchup. He should be fine for cash games with the normal volume of shots and potential scoring he has.
Nick Foligno - W, CLS vs ANH (FD - $5,200, DK - $3,800)
Foligno is very cheap on DraftKings tonight and can be used as a punt cash play or in a stack since he is on the first power-play unit for the Blue Jackets. He is taking over one shot per game and chipping in with nearly one blocked shot per game, so you are getting a decent floor of points from a player who is under $4K. If the savings on him allows you to get up to a few players on Toronto, then he is worth the roster spot.
DFS Defenders to Consider
Shea Weber - D, MON vs OTT (FD - $5,800, DK - $5,800)
Weber has six points in his eight games this season and in a spot to continue that strong production since he is up against the Senators, who come in with a 68 Corsi Against, which is dead last in the league. He clearly has a smaller sample size but is taking three shots a game, along with blocking one shot per game, which is a nice bit of consistency you should be looking at for cash game lineups.
Dennis Cholowski - D, DET @ NYI (FD - $3,600, DK - $4,700)
Cholowski is now up on the top power-play unit for the Red Wings since Mike Green is out with an injury for a few weeks, so he makes a solid savings play tonight. He is very cheap on FanDuel and should be solid as a punt defender play. I'm not expecting this game to be crazy high-scoring or anything, but he has a chance to fall into a point up against the Islanders who are giving up nearly three goals per game.
DFS Goalies to Consider
Semyon Varlamov - G, COL vs DAL (FD - $8,600, DK - $7,800)
Varlamov has already been confirmed as the starter tonight since the Avalanche are on the second night of a back to back. He comes in as a -165 home favorite against the Stars, who have the lowest Corsi For in the league sitting at 49.38. This means they aren't generating a ton of shots, which should allow Varlamov to have an easier night in net, but he won't be able to rack up a ton of saves. Love his price on DraftKings tonight and should be more of a cash game played compared to tournaments.