There are 11 games on the NHL slate Thursday, so there’s plenty of action over at SuperDraft. Below you’ll see my top plays at each position with a few others to consider.
Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are in action, so both are in play just like every other time they hit the ice. We saw six goals between the Edmonton Oilers and Winnipeg Jets Tuesday, and the rematch has a game total of 6.5 again, so we could see more offense. I’ll probably never write them up, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like them. They are both good options as the Jets and Oilers have the highest game total on the slate, but I wanted to give you some other suggestions.
Center
Pierre-Luc Dubois, Winnipeg Jets (@ EDM) — 1.8x score multiplier
Dubois already has more goals (9) in 15 games with the Jets this season than he had in 41 games with them last season (8). He has 15 points in 15 games and is averaging 18:45 this year compared to 15:04 last season. He and Kyle Connor (12 goals and 20 points) have been one of the better duos in the league. Dubois is averaging 4.3 shots per game over his last nine contests and the Oilers are allowing the fifth-most shots at 5v5/60, according to Natural Stat Trick. Edmonton has coughed up the 11th-most scoring chance and the fourth-most high danger chances at 5v5/60. Everyone will look at Edmonton Thursday, but don’t ignore the Jets, who have won five straight against the Oilers, including a 5-2 win Tuesday in which PLD and Connor scored.
Others to consider: Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Sebastian Aho, Sidney Crosby
Winger
Sam Bennett, Florida Panthers (vs. NJ) — 2x multiplier
Bennett is interesting because he’s been promoted to the first line with the injury to Aleksander Barkov. He also comes with a 2x multiplier in a game against the Devils that features a six-goal total. Bennett played a season-high 20:03 in the Panthers’ last game as Barkov left early. I expect him to get up to around 20 minutes again with the promotion. He has five goals and 10 points in 12 games, and he has 12 goals and 29 points in 27 games with the Panthers dating back to last season. There were 10 goals scored when New Jersey and Florida played each other last week.
Zach Hyman, Edmonton Oilers (vs. WPG) — 1.65x multiplier
As mentioned, we could see a lot of goals in the Jets/Oilers game in Edmonton. Hyman makes sense with McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins makes sense with Draisaitl. All four are in play as the Oilers have the highest team implied goal total on the slate. Hyman has eight goals and 13 points in 15 games this season, and he’s had at least three shots on goal in nine of his last 12 games. He’s also averaging 20 minutes per game over his last six games.
Others to consider: Kyle Connor, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Nikolaj Ehlers, Andrei Svechnikov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Elias Lindholm, Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust
Defense
Darnell Nurse, Edmonton Oilers (vs. WPG) — 1.15x multiplier
I can’t get away from this game as there have been at least seven goals scored in six of Edmonton’s last eight games. Nurse is in the top 10 in ice time per game and in the top 17 in shot attempts this season. He’s put at least three pucks on net in 10 of his last 12 games. He doesn’t have a goal yet, despite 16 last season, but he has 11 points. The goals will come, especially if he keeps shooting.
Others to consider: Aaron Ekblad, Kris Letang, Josh Morrissey, Toney DeAngelo, Victor Hedman, Dougie Hamilton
Goalie
Frederik Andersen, Carolina Hurricanes (@ ANA) — 1.4x multiplier
The Ducks are hot, riding an eight-game winning streak so the shot attempts for Andersen should be there but the Hurricanes enter with a 12-2-0 record. Andersen is 9-2 with a .938 SV% and 1.77 GAA. His .945 SV% at 5v5 ranks fifth among goalies with 300 minutes of ice time. Overall, he’s allowed one or zero goals in six of his last nine starts (14 total).
Others to consider: Jacob Markstrom, Tristan Jarry, Spencer Knight (contrarian)
This article expresses the personal views of the writer and does not reflect the view(s) of SuperDraft in any way.
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