Squad Up Daily NHL Fantasy Dose: Take advantage of Carey’s extremely low Price

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Here is a look at the Squad Up daily NHL fantasy picture for Wednesday, Dec. 28 (all advanced stats are at 5-on-5 and courtesy of Corsica.Hockey):

Triple Threat

C Sidney Crosby (71K), LW Conor Sheary (32K) and D Justin Schultz (32K), Penguins (vs. Hurricanes) : On a small slate, selecting Crosby, the NHL's leading goal scorer, isn't a bad place to start. Sheary has managed three goals and seven assists in December, despite not seeing first-unit power play time with Crosby and Schultz, who has been on better than a point-per-game pace filling in for the injured Kris Letang.

C Aleksander Barkov (61K), RW Jaromir Jagr (58K) and D Michael Matheson (29K), Panthers (vs. Maple Leafs): Barkov has been Mr. Consistent, recording a point in all but two December games. Linemate Jagr has five assists in his last three games, and Matheson has three fewer points than Keith Yandle despite far less power play time. The Leafs allow the fourth-most scoring chances and the third-most expected goals against per 60 minutes.

C Robby Fabbri (34K), RW Vladimir Tarasenko (79K) and D Alex Pietrangelo (31K), Blues (vs. Flyers): Any combo involving Tarasenko, the priciest non-goalie on the slate, is bound to get expensive, so LW Alex Steen (53K) is eschewed in favor of Fabbri, who skates with the Russian sniper on the power play. Pietrangelo often sees ample special teams time as well, which should help if the Blues can't take advantage of the Flyers' fourth-worst 5-on-5 save percentage.

Goalie Breakdown

TARGET: Carey Price (76K), Canadiens (at Lightning): Just a shade above the absolute minimum salary, the consensus best goaltender in the world will undoubtedly be a popular option. Price stopped 30 of 31 shots in an early-season victory over the Lightning, and should Tampa Bay remain without the injured Nikita Kucherov (among others), another win looks to be a strong possibility.

BARGAIN: Peter Budaj (75K), Kings (at Canucks): Vancouver is one of the NHL's lowest-scoring teams and ranks sixth-worst in expected goals for per 60 minutes. The defensively-sound Kings don't allow much in the way of scoring chances, helping Budaj to a 15-8-3 record. He has already beaten the Canucks once this season and owns a .919 save percentage and a 2.04 GAA.

FADE: Carter Hutton (96K), Blues (vs. Flyers): The seldom-used Hutton has stumbled to a .893 save percentage and a 2.93 GAA in 11 games (seven starts), recording two wins. It's a mystery why he's priced ahead of far more established names, especially against the potent Flyers.

CONTRARIAN: Roberto Luongo (107K), Panthers (vs. Maple Leafs): Luongo is hard to beat at home, holding an 8-4-1 record and a .926 save percentage through 13 starts. Toronto ranks third in shots for per 60 minutes, so Luongo should have a chance to rack up the save points.

Bargain Plays

RW Bryan Rust (25K), Penguins (vs. Hurricanes): Playing on Pittsburgh's top line with Crosby and Sheary at even strength, Rust hasn't let a lack of time with the man advantage slow him down, scoring seven goals and added three assists over his last 10 games. A hat trick and a separate one-goal, one-assist outing in that stretch showed some explosive upside.

D Jaccob Slavin (25K), Hurricanes (at Penguins): Slavin should see an increased power-play role with Justin Faulk out of action. The 22-year-old has six assists in his last 10 games, with three of them coming on the man advantage.

LW Phillip Danault (25K), Canadiens (at Lightning): Considered a left winger in Squad Up, Danault is centering Montreal's first line with Max Pacioretty and Alexander Radulov, a prime spot for fantasy relevance. Despite a lack of power-play time, he has taken advantage of his new role, recording a goal and five assists over his last eight games.

Top Fades

C Anze Kopitar (60K), Kings (at Canucks): With Tyler Toffoli out of the lineup, Kopitar's wingers on the top line are Dustin Brown and Devin Setoguchi, a duo that has a combined 24 points in 60 games. Kopitar himself has managed just 16 points in 29 contests, so until the Kings' depth improves, he looks unlikely to justify such a hefty price tag.

D Shea Weber (54K), Canadiens (at Lightning): Weber has just one point in December, but his salary is still inflated from his early-season scoring run. Despite his propensity for blocked shots and hits, he's hard-pressed to live up to his price without getting on the score sheet with more regularity. Lightning G Andrei Vasilevskiy has fared well at home, holding a .928 save percentage through eight appearances.

RW Alexander Radulov (59K), Canadiens (at Lightning): Radulov is priced like a goal scorer, but has only found the back of the net six times through 32 games, and hasn't notched a point in six straight outings. The above-mentioned Danault offers some bargain-priced exposure to Montreal's top line without the risk of spending up for Radulov.

Contrarian Options

RW Wayne Simmonds (60K), Flyers (at Blues): In the midst of a four-game scoring drought, interest in Simmonds may be lower than usual, but he has a great shot at a rebound performance against Hutton. Should Simmonds find the score sheet, his hits and penalty minutes will only accentuate his Squad Up output.

C Evgeni Malkin (69K), Penguins (vs. Hurricanes): Malkin, by virtue of sharing a center spot with Crosby, likely gets ignored more than he should in Squad Up. But Malkin has 19 points in December, with multi-point efforts in seven of 13 games.

LW Tanner Pearson (46K), Kings (at Canucks): Despite 23 shots on goal, Pearson hasn't scored in 15 games, though he does have five assists in that stretch. With a prime first-unit power play role alongside Kopitar and Jeff Carter, his goal drought should end before too long.

Canucks World