Fantasy picks: Price due for turnaround

All season long, NHL.com's fantasy staff will provide daily picks for DraftKings NHL contests. This article includes expensive and value plays and can be used as a basis for your roster decision-making.
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CENTERS

Spend up for: Evgeny Kuznetsov, WSH ($6,900)-- Though he's the seventh-most expensive center available, Kuznetsov is well worth it. He shares the NHL lead with 10 points (10 assists) and had two assists in a 5-2 win at the New Jersey Devils on Friday. True, Kuznetsov has all of five SOG in five games, but his exposure to Alex Ovechkin and the first power-play unit make him worth having; he's averaging 4.8 DraftKings points per game and will play the Philadelphia Flyers, who are tied for 29th in the League in killing penalties (70.6).
Value pick: Paul Stastny, STL ($5,100)-- The St. Louis Blues are off to a 4-1-0 start, and Stastny has a point in each game. With two goals and four assists, he is averaging 4.0 DraftKings points per game and 2.0 SOG per game. The Blues play at the Tampa Bay Lightning, and five of his six points this season have come on the road. He also has two power-play points for St. Louis, which is averaging more than three goals per game.

WINGS

Spend up for: Nikita Kucherov, TBL ($7,200) -- Kucherov has picked up where he left off last season with seven points (four goals, three assists) in four games this season. He finished 2016-17 finished tied for fifth in the NHL with 85 points. Kucherov, who is averaging 6.4 DraftKings points per game, has a goal in all four of Tampa Bay's games this season and multipoint games in each of his past three. He also averages almost four SOG per game, and there's no reason to see him slowing down against the Blues.
Value pick: Sonny Milano, CBJ ($4,800) -- The Columbus Blue Jackets' rookie has four goals in four games and scored twice in a 2-1 overtime win at the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. He was scoreless in a 3-1 win against the New York Rangers on Friday, the first game this season he didn't have at least 4.0 DraftKings points. He's developed some chemistry on a line with Nick Foligno and Oliver Bjorkstrand and is in a good spot against the Minnesota Wild.

DEFENSEMEN

Spend up for: P.K. Subban, NSH ($6,300) -- Subban is off to a hot start with the Nashville Predators; he has six points (one goal, five assists) in four games. He had three assists in a 6-5 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday and a goal and an assist in a 4-1 win against the Dallas Stars on Thursday. The first-unit power-play exposure is a big plus, and he's stepped up in the absence of Ryan Ellis on defense. Nashville has 13 goals in four games, and Subban has figured in almost half of them. Take him against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Value pick: Nikita Zaitsev, TOR ($4,500) -- Zaitsev has five points (two goals, three assists) in four games this season for the Toronto Maple Leafs including a three-game point streak. The points are nice, but he's also a great target because of blocked shots; Zaitsev had four in his most recent game and has 13 this season, including eight in one game. Even if he doesn't score against the Montreal Canadiens, he should chip in with a few blocked shots. At 5.3 DraftKings points per game, he's an appealing option at this price.

GOALTENDER

Top pick: Carey Price, MTL ($7,800) -- The Canadiens may be 1-3-0 and Price may have a 3.30 GAA and .899 SV% but he will start Saturday against the Maple Leafs, a team he always plays well against. The Canadiens have defeated the Maple Leafs 14 straight times and Price is 23-13-1 with a .924 SV% and four shutouts in his career against Toronto.
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