DFS: Counterattack - Tuesday's Top Contrarian Plays

A medium-sized slate of seven games awaits for Tuesday night, but contrarian options abound for use in GPP daily fantasy games.

G Al Montoya or Roberto Luongo, Panthers (at Hurricanes)

With each team having played between one and three games so far, overreacting to small sample-sizes can be a downfall for inexperienced DFS participants. Case in point: the Carolina Hurricanes rank third in the league in shots per game. Last season, those same Hurricanes were middle-of-the-pack in that category, and finished in the draft lottery as one of the five worst teams in the league.

With no significant additions, it's hard to believe that Carolina has been peppering opposing nets with an average of 36.5 shots per game. Of course, it hasn't resulted in success, as the Hurricanes have opened with two losses.

DFS players shouldn't be scared off by Carolina's high shot totals and the fact that Florida is the road team; whichever Panthers goalie starts has a good shot at a win, and even if the Hurricanes' shot pace fails to regress, the result should be a few more save points than usual. Given that Florida is playing the second of back-to-back games on Tuesday, it's certainly possible that Al Montoya will start, given that Roberto Luongo was in goal Monday.

W Taylor Hall, Oilers (at Stars)

With only one goal in two games, it's fair to say the new-look Oilers haven't gelled yet, so DFS investment in the team's offensive assets may be deterred until Connor McDavid and co. start firing.

Hall, though, has fired 12 shots on goal in his first two games and has been unlucky not to get on the scoresheet. After shutting out Pittsburgh in its opener, Dallas then allowed six goals to Colorado, so the uneven performances from starter Antti Niemi may result in the Oilers getting the chance to face the erratic Kari Lehtonen.

Not shying away from Oilers forwards, in particular Hall, may pay dividends in tournament play formats this evening.

D Alec Martinez, Kings (vs. Canucks)

The Canucks are averaging 37 shots per game (again, very small sample size). The Kings, despite having the reputation of a stout defensive team, have allowed nine goals in two games. Combine these two statistics, and rostering a Los Angeles defencemen this evening may not seem like a worthy proposition, particularly in formats where plus/minus is taken into account.

Martinez, however, leads his team with six blocked shots, so the Canucks' propensity to fire away may help his prospects in that particular category. The well-rounded Martinez has also contributed four shots on goal, and while he has no points, based on his totals in the last two seasons, he can be expected to chip in a goal or assist approximately every third game. Not as pricey as teammate Drew Doughty, Martinez represents a strong DFS option, as he also sees time on the Kings' second power play unit.

C Bryan Little, Jets (at Rangers)

While linemates Andrew Ladd and Blake Wheeler have enjoyed strong starts to the season with three and four points each, respectively, Little has somehow been unable to get in on the action. Having scored an impressive 11 goals in three games, the Jets visit Madison Square Garden to face the undefeated Rangers tonight.

Given that Henrik Lundqvist has started each of New York's three games, it's certainly possible that backup Antti Raanta will make his Rangers debut. Regardless, Little's line has appeared potent enough that further offensive returns can be expected regardless of the opposing goaltender.