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DFS: Counterattack - Wednesday's Top Contrarian Plays

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / USA TODAY Sports

Here are the day's top contrarian options:

C Sidney Crosby, Penguins (at Capitals)

Crosby has looked pedestrian so far this season given the incredibly high standard he is held to. The superstar only has a goal and two assists in eight games - and all three points came against Florida on Oct. 20.

If there was ever a time to consider Crosby a contrarian play, it would be Wednesday night against a team he has historically dominated, even while he's in the midst of an ice-cold streak. In fact, his slump is what makes him likely to be underowned relative to his potential.

Crosby has 18 goals and 33 assists while averaging almost four shots on goal in 33 career games against Washington. Maybe NHL fans were too quick to assume that Crosby would immediately excel with sharpshooting Phil Kessel on his wing. It's absurd to believe a healthy Crosby is on pace for less than half a point per game in the prime of his career.

C/W Tomas Hertl, Sharks (vs Predators)

The Sharks' succession plan from the "Joes Era" appears to include Hertl.

The Czech center only has two goals and two assists in eight games but his shots per game are up from 1.77 last season to 2.63 so far in 2015-16.

Despite being only 22 years old, the rising star has earned his place between mid-30s veterans Patrick Marleau and Joel Ward - the first- and fourth-leading scorers on the Sharks right now. That veteran presence gives Hertl some stability; even if he can't get his own shots past the goalie, Hertl has potent options on either wing to handle the scoring load.

Pekka Rinne is projected to start for the Predators in San Jose. That will scare away some DFS players who will hesitate to invest in a young second-liner against a proven veteran. For his affordable price, potential and the players around him, Hertl is a risk worth taking Wednesday.

D Kris Russell, Flames (at Senators)

There is absolutely nothing hot about the Flames to start the season. They have been a disaster, and Russell bears some responsibility for their 2-7-0 start; the blue-liner is a -12 with zero points in nine games.

Things will even out sooner than later in Calgary. Russell maintained a 35-point pace in each of his last two seasons in Alberta. He's still taking just over a shot per game - close to his career rates - but his real value lies in his willingness to place his body in between the net and incoming slap shots.

Russell leads the league with 35 blocked shots, the equivalent of scoring about five goals in leagues that count blocks. He will continue to present a steady floor and projects to shake his scoring slump soon. Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson is one of the easier netminders to crack on the schedule for Wednesday, so the slump could very well end in Canada's capital.

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