DFS: Counterattack - Thursday's Top Contrarian Plays

Here are the top contrarian options for Saturday's 11 game NHL slate:

G James Reimer, Maple Leafs (at Wild)

All it took was a hot game by Garret Sparks to make the Maple Leafs faithful forget how effective James Reimer was just two weeks ago. In his five starts between Nov. 14 and 23, Reimer allowed just eight goals while giving up more than two just once in that span.

The Leafs are on the second game of a road back-to-back, which is a situation that would scare DFS players away from much better teams; they gave up six goals with Sparks in net on Wednesday.

Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk is no stranger to high-scoring affairs. He's given up three or more goals in three of his last five starts. He also shut out the Predators and allowed just one goal to the Blackhawks.

There is clearly some warranted concern with backing Reimer over Dubnyk but with the latter's frequent blowups and the former's affordable DFS salary, Reimer is worth the risk.

W Alex Ovechkin, Capitals (at Canadiens)

There's a good chance that Ovechkin is the highest-priced player in all of DFS hockey on Thursday across all major sites. Somehow, he has managed to make a point-per-game pace through 22 games seem pedestrian.

While he started the season with a blazing hot stick, part of the reason for his lack of recent hype is because he's only recorded six points in his last 10 games. His recent lukewarm play and high salary will drive DFS players away, especially against a decent Montreal defense.

Ovechkin has done this all before. He's gone into hostile environments throughout his career and put up amazing numbers. Against Montreal (and more often than not against top goalie Carey Price), Alex the Great has put up 38 points in 36 career games.

C Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche (at Rangers)

The easiest way to avoid rostering non-contributors is to fade teams facing elite goaltending. The Rangers, with future Hall of Fame goalie Henrik Lundqvist, is one of those teams.

Colorado has crept up to sixth in the league in scoring with 2.92 goals per game. That scoring surge was fueled by a move to put Matt Duchene on the first line with MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog. As a team, the Rangers have allowed just 2.04 goals per game. Something has to give.

As luck would have it, Lundqvist was the goalie of record for the Rangers' shootout loss to the crosstown Islanders on Wednesay night. It's doubtful that the Rangers would start Lundqvist the day after a tough overtime battle, so there is an opportunity for a contrarian stack of Avalanche forwards.

D Jared Spurgeon, Wild (vs. Maple Leafs)

With so many quality defensemen options available to choose from, expect Spurgeon to have low ownership on Thursday. While he has a goal and five assists in his last 10 games, he only has one point in his last six outings.

The key to Spurgeon's value is his opposition: the Leafs are playing the second game of a road back-to-back having given up six goals to the Jets on Wednesday night.

At an affordable salary and tremendous upside, playing Spurgeon runs contrary to picking players with a higher floor but with the Leafs in town, the Wild might be in line for a buffet of goals.