NHL DFS Picks | October 3, 2026: DraftKings Stacks, Values & Goalies
NHL DraftKings DFS picks for October 3, 2026, with our top stack, GPP and value stacks, one-off forwards and defensemen, value plays, goalies and a salary-checked sample lineup.
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Friday gives us a deep 13-game DraftKings NHL slate, and the first decision is whether to spend all the way up for Edmonton or build through the stronger mid-range stacks. Connor McDavid is $9,200, Leon Draisaitl is $8,700 and Evan Bouchard is $7,800, so the Oilers can dominate a lineup quickly. We still want exposure, but there are better ways to build than blindly forcing all three.
- Top Stack: Edmonton Oilers
- GPP Stack: San Jose Sharks
- Value Stack: Buffalo Sabres
- One-Off Forwards
- One-Off Defensemen
- Value Forwards
- Value Defensemen
- Goalies
- Best Goalie: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen · BUF · $8,300
- GPP Goalie: Yaroslav Askarov · SJS · $7,900
- Value Goalie: Logan Thompson · WSH · $7,200
- Sample DraftKings Lineup
- CTS Final NHL DFS Core
CTS Slate Board
Top stack: Edmonton
GPP stack: San Jose
Value stack: Buffalo
Favorite one-off forward: Nathan MacKinnon $8,900
Favorite one-off defenseman: Cale Makar $7,300
Best goalie: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen $8,300
GPP goalie: Yaroslav Askarov $7,900
Value goalie: Logan Thompson $7,200
Top Stack: Edmonton Oilers
Connor McDavid $9,200 + Leon Draisaitl $8,700 + Vasily Podkolzin $5,400
McDavid and Draisaitl are the obvious ceiling anchors. Edmonton just erupted for nine goals against Vancouver, with McDavid posting five points and Draisaitl scoring twice with an assist. The expensive version can add Evan Bouchard at $7,800, whose offensive role gives the stack another way to capture Edmonton scoring.
Podkolzin is the piece that makes the stack easier to build. He skated with McDavid and Draisaitl in Edmonton’s previous projected top line, and his $5,400 salary is far easier to absorb than a third premium piece. Our preferred tournament construction is McDavid plus Draisaitl plus one cheaper Edmonton attachment, not automatically four Oilers.
GPP Stack: San Jose Sharks
Macklin Celebrini $8,300 + Will Smith $5,900 + Mason Marchment $4,000
San Jose gives us a much different roster shape. Smith opened the season with two goals and an assist, while Celebrini remains the centerpiece of the Sharks offense. The stack has legitimate multi-point ceiling without requiring three salaries above $8K.
Marchment at $4,000 is the salary lever. This stack can be used as a full three-man tournament bet or trimmed to Celebrini plus Smith when you want more room for an elite defenseman.
Value Stack: Buffalo Sabres
Tage Thompson $8,000 + Josh Norris $4,100 + Josh Doan $4,900
Buffalo’s top unit has Thompson between Norris and Doan. Thompson supplies the shot and goal ceiling, while Norris and Doan keep the combined salary manageable. That is the appeal here: we can capture a full scoring line without paying Edmonton prices.
Rasmus Dahlin at $6,400 is the natural defenseman add-on when the build can support it. He gives the stack another route to power-play correlation and a strong individual floor through shots and blocks.
One-Off Forwards
Our favorite standalone spend. MacKinnon carries the highest DraftKings scoring average in the supplied file among the premium centers and can reach ceiling without requiring a full Colorado stack.
Elite shot and multi-point ceiling. Tampa’s power-play role keeps Kucherov viable even when we do not want to commit salary to a full Lightning stack.
Robertson is a cleaner mid-premium one-off than forcing a full Dallas stack. He gives us goal-scoring ceiling at a discount from the $8K-plus tier.
Knies immediately produced two goals and an assist in his Columbus debut. At $4,900, he works as a standalone value with real upside rather than a pure salary punt.
One-Off Defensemen
Makar is our preferred premium defenseman. He offers the rare combination of shot volume, assists, power-play involvement and true multi-point ceiling.
Dahlin is a strong middle route when Makar or Bouchard becomes too expensive. He also fits naturally alongside Buffalo exposure.
Harley is one of our favorite price-adjusted defensemen. At $4,200, we do not need a ceiling game for him to keep the lineup moving.
Value Forwards
The salary is the attraction. At nearly the minimum, Protas can open enough room for two elite forwards without forcing a weak defense slot.
Zegras brings actual offensive skill at a sub-$4K salary. That is the kind of value we prefer over a fourth-line punt with little ceiling.
Useful both inside San Jose stacks and as a standalone salary saver. He gives us access to a game we already like for tournaments.
Norris is especially attractive when paired with Thompson, but $4,100 is playable even without the full Buffalo stack.
Value Defensemen
Cheap exposure to a Buffalo team we already want, with a path to peripheral DraftKings scoring.
Matheson gives us a usable offensive defenseman salary without dropping into the true punt tier.
Our favorite value defenseman if $4,200 fits. The price is low enough to preserve ceiling elsewhere while still giving us an offensive path from the blue line.
A little more expensive, but his offensive profile gives him more tournament ceiling than many similarly priced defensemen.
Goalies
Best Goalie: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen · BUF · $8,300
Luukkonen is our preferred combination of win equity and salary among the upper-tier options. Chicago was shut out in its opener, while Buffalo is at home. He is the straightforward goalie when the rest of the lineup does not need the extra savings.
GPP Goalie: Yaroslav Askarov · SJS · $7,900
Askarov is the higher-variance tournament route. We are willing to accept more game volatility because a busy goalie can create a strong DraftKings score through saves even without a perfect defensive environment.
Value Goalie: Logan Thompson · WSH · $7,200
Thompson is the salary play. At $7,200, the savings can turn a mid-range skater into a premium one. This is the type of goalie slot we use when the lineup gains substantially more ceiling from the $1,000-plus saved.
Goalie status can change during the day. The CTS NHL Daily Lineups board is the fastest place on the site to pair tonight’s lines with goalie status.
Sample DraftKings Lineup
C Tage Thompson $8,000
C Ilya Protas $2,700
W Josh Doan $4,900
W Josh Norris $4,100
W Jason Robertson $7,500
D Cale Makar $7,300
D Thomas Harley $4,200
G Logan Thompson $7,200
UTIL Trevor Zegras $3,900
Total: $49,800
The lineup shows the construction we like more than the exact nine names: correlate Thompson with Norris and Doan, use inexpensive forwards with legitimate roles, pay for a defenseman who can actually break the slate, and let goalie savings fund ceiling elsewhere.
CTS Final NHL DFS Core
Stack: Edmonton
GPP stack: San Jose
Value stack: Buffalo
Forward spend: Nathan MacKinnon $8,900
Defense spend: Cale Makar $7,300
Value forward: Trevor Zegras $3,900
Value defense: Thomas Harley $4,200
Goalie: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen $8,300