RADIO
A busy night on the NHL ice Tuesday makes for great matchups in the Star Shootout on Monkey Knife Fight.
Boston’s Perfection Line – Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak – are appealing in a home game against Florida. San Jose forwards Tomas Hertl and Evander Kane could provide an edge against the defensively-suspect Edmonton Oilers.
There are many angles to consider though, so keep some of these in mind before making your picks for Tuesday night hockey on Monkey Knife Fight.
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STAR SHOOTOUT - MAIN
OVER/UNDERS
David Pastrnak OVER 5.5 FANTASY POINTS – After a 13-game point streak the Bruins sniper has suddenly been held off the scoresheet in back-to-back games. Figure that, as he still generates a lot of shots, he’s due and going against the Panthers ought to be a favorable matchup.
Nathan MacKinnon UNDER 5.5 FANTASY POINTS – This is a big number to cover but especially so when MacKinnon is missing his top two wingers so while MacKinnon has the potential to go off, he’s not as productive on the road and faces a difficult enough matchup against the Winnipeg Jets.
Jaroslav Halak OVER 29.5 SAVES – An over-qualified backup netminder, Halak has stopped an average of 30.6 shots per game and faces a Panthers team that generates 32.8 shots per 60 on the road at all strengths, ranking sixth in the league. The trend then is to move towards the over.
Alexandar Georgiev UNDER 29.5 SAVES – The Rangers backup goaltender has had some good moments but is coming off a game in which he allowed six goals on 30 shots. In three home starts, he has posted 28.3 saves and faces a Penguins team that is generating 33.6 shots per 60 minutes on the road. The glaring issue, however, is that Sidney Crosby is out of the lineup for the Penguins which likely means fewer shots generated for the Penguins, thereby making the under the more reasonable play.
Sergei Bobrovsky UNDER 30.5 SAVES – Florida’s big-ticket free agent signing has been stumbling along with a .884 save percentage this season, including .882 on the road, so there isn’t a lot of reason to suspect that he’s going to come up large against the Bruins.
Matt Murray UNDER 29.5 SAVES – The Penguins goaltender has been a tale of two goaltenders – rocking a .929 save percentage at home and .885 save percentage on the road. Coupled with the Rangers not being a big shot generator, ranking 23rd with 30.3 shots per 60 at home, a big save total doesn’t really fit.
RAPID FIRE
Brad Marchand -0.5 fantasy points vs. Artemi Panarin – As good as Panarin is, and he’s produced 12 points and 32 shots in 10 home games this season, it’s tough to keep pace with Marchand, who has 18 points and 24 shots on goal in nine home games.
Patrice Bergeron -0.5 fantasy points vs. Patrik Laine – If we’re riding with Pastrnak and Marchand, might as well round out the Perfection Line by taking Bergeron, too. He’s not quite as productive offensively, but Bergeron does have eight points and 29 shots on goal in nine home games. Laine has eight points and 33 shots on goal in 10 home games so it’s certainly a competitive matchup but it looks like the Bruins get a more favorable matchup against the Panthers, compared to the Jets hosting the Colorado Avalanche.
STAR SHOOTOUT - NIGHT GAMES
OVER/UNDERS
John Gibson OVER 28.5 SAVES – A contender for the league’s top goaltender, Gibson has a .925 save percentage at home, averaging 30.9 saves per home game. The Red Wings are a middling team in terms of shot generation (29.9 per 60 minutes on the road) but it’s still fair to think that Gibson can put up at least 29 stops.
Connor McDavid UNDER 4.5 FANTASY POINTS – The Oilers superstar is running roughshod over the opposition, but his road production is relatively more modest. Like 12 points and 32 shots on goal in 10 road games is still pretty great, it pales in comparison to his production at home.
Evander Kane OVER 4.5 FANTASY POINTS – You have to give Kane credit – not a line of credit – but credit nonetheless to the Sharks winger who has nine points and 32 shots on goal in eight home games. With the matchup against the defensively- suspect Edmonton Oilers, that’s enough to like Kane’s chances to hit the over, thanks to his ability to generate shots.
Elias Pettersson UNDER 4.5 FANTASY POINTS – Petterson has been great but has one point in the past four games and is not a big shot generator. He’s also facing a strong Nashville team so the under makes the most sense here.
RAPID FIRE
Filip Forsberg -0.5 fantasy points vs. Bo Horvat – Although he has missed some time with injuries, Forsberg has been really productive this season, putting up six points and 25 shots on goal in five road games. Comparatively, Horvat has four assists and 15 shots on goal in seven home games. Forsberg is simply on a higher level offensively.
Tomas Hertl +0.5 fantasy points vs. Brock Boeser – Boeser has nine points and 16 shots on goal in seven home games which is very productive but he faces a quality Nashville team. Hertl is a different player at home, in a good way, putting up 13 points and 26 shots on goal in nine games. He’s also facing the Edmonton Oilers, who aren’t as stout defensively.
