RotoBallers, welcome back to our daily fantasy hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and FantasyAces. Below you will find our NHL cheat sheet - DFS lineup picks, sleepers and stacks for Saturday, December 17 of the 2016/2017 NHL season.

Split slate on Saturday with two games in the early afternoon followed by a much larger eight game main slate. After a busy week, there are six teams on the main slate(MON, WAS, PIT, BUF, CAR, TB) playing on back to back nights with the Penguins and Lightning also playing a third game in four nights. For the followign picks we will turn our attention to the main slate. Let's dig in.

Editor's Note: New users that sign up on Fantasy Aces, make a $20 deposit, and enter any game will receive our full season NHL Premium Pass (DFS Cheat Sheets) for free, a $99.99 value. Just email [email protected] with your new FantasyAces username - and boom, that's it! We will email you with your Premium pass.

NHL Daily League Lineup Picks for Saturday, December 17 

For those that are new to this, each day we'll be providing you with a few of our top DFS lineup picks for daily league cash games on FanDuel, DraftKings, and FantasyAces. We will also provide you with one of our favorite teams to stack for GPPs. You can grab the rest of our Premium DFS lineup picks and stacks through the NHL Cheat Sheet and DFS Premium Pass below.

Evgeni Malkin (C, PIT)

DraftKings - $7,600, FanDuel - $8,400, FantasyAces - $5,850

Even playing on back to back nights and a third game in four nights, the Penguins enter a great situation against the Leafs poor defense. Crosby is always an elite choice but comes at a cost. Even you are looking to go a little more balanced roll with Malkin who has been equally as hot lately with 16 points in his last 10 games. He is also providing a very high floor outside of the offense with 41 shots on goal in those 10 games.

Jeff Skinner (W, CAR)

DraftKings - $6,500, FanDuel - $6,800, FantasyAces - $5,700

Going into Friday night he had recorded 18 shots in his previous two games which gives him a huge floor. He has also been rewarded scoring two goals last game and currently has one goal through two periods against the Capitals. He is safe in al formats and will most likely come with lower ownership once again due to the team he plays on. Don't get trapped.

Justin Schultz (D, PIT)

DraftKings - $4,700, FanDuel - $4,000, FantasyAces - $4,300

The price continues to hover below $5K on all sites due to his role on the third defensive unit which gives us huge value for DFS. His offensive upside has slotted him into a top powerplay role and he hasn't disappointed with 12 points over his last 10 games placing him in the "safe in all formats" category for Saturday night.

Stacking Option

Pittsburgh Penguins - Sidney Crosby, Connor Sheary, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel

Even playing back to back and a third game in four nights, the Penguins and their top overall offense are great stacking options tonight. It comes down to the Leafs and their 22nd ranked defense that allowing 2.9 goals per game. The Leafs come into this matchup losing three straight allowing nine goals in the process.  Depending on where you find your value all four options listed above can be considered with a ton of projected upside.

Premium Cheat Sheets for Daily Fantasy Hockey

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Premium access to 15 deeply researched lineup picks including stats like Shots Attempted per 60, Points per 60, and more. Come see for yourself:

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Sample NHL Premium DFS Cheat Sheet

Want to know what the Premium NHL DFS Cheat Sheets looks like? Below is a sample. We go above and beyond standard daily fantasy hockey analysis.

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Bonus: General NHL DFS Strategy Notes

For cash games, look at players who can contribute to your score even when they are not providing offense. Some examples are guys who take a ton of shots and defensemen who block a lot of shots. Also, look for guys who get power play time. You can find value in players who join a new line due to an injury, or just get a promotion and more ice time. It is also recommended to spread out your exposure to three or four different lines, and not put all your eggs in one basket.

For large field tournaments (GPPs), find payers who have multi-point upside and can grab double-digit fantasy points. If you want to stack the most upside in your forwards, a common strategy is to punt the defense position. This doesn't mean just grab anyone - try and look for a defenseman who will get power play time, or a playing time boost due to an injury. For a contrarian approach, paying up at the defense position can be a great strategy - but it also comes with more risk. GPPs bring a great opportunity for goaltenders in the value price range - you can look for backups on good teams.