Daily Fantasy Hockey Playoff Preview: 04/17/18

Each day of the NHL Playoffs, Dylan and Brock will be collaborating on a full preview of that night’s playoff action. Dylan will break down each game from a Daily Fantasy Hockey perspective, giving you some of his favourite targets. Brock will provide his Daily Fantasy Notebook after morning skates, including Projected Lineups, Injury Updates, Goalie Rankings and DFS Value Plays. Enjoy playoff hockey and the best time of the year!

By: Dylan Berthiaume

Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Washington Capitals

After a two-goal performance for Alexander Ovechkin in game 2, things might get even easier for the Caps’ superstar in games 3 and 4. With the last change at his disposal for the first two games of the series, Capitals’ coach Barry Trotz assigned the Ovechkin line with the task of going head to head with Artemi Panarin and the Blue Jackets’ top line at 5v5. Ovechkin was neutralized by the play of Columbus 1 at 5v5, but thankfully was able to convert twice on the powerplay. Blue Jackets’ coach John Tortorella is one of the few coaches left in the league that doesn’t line match at all, so Ovechkin will be up against a mix of all four Columbus lines tonight, certainly a much more enticing matchup than 15 minutes against Panarin and company. The lighter matchup at 5v5 combined with the Blue Jackets’ abysmal penalty kill makes Ovechkin and the rest of Washington 1 a prime stacking target tonight.

The Panarin line should also receive a slight boost at 5v5 assuming they see some time against the Capitals’ bottom-six. You can roll them tonight with confidence and a game stack is certainly in play as the high-octane, yet undisciplined gameplay should continue to warrant an abundance of scoring chances for both teams. Seth Jones has been a quality addition to Columbus 1 stacks all season and he makes for a strong play tonight in GPP and cash tournaments alike.

Minnesota Wild vs. Winnipeg Jets

After dropping the first two games of the series on the road, the Wild responded in a big way with a six-goal effort at home in game 3. Wild coach Bruce Boudreau was able to utilize the last change to find Eric Staal and the rest of Minnesota 1 some favourable matchups at 5v5 against the bottom-six of the Jets. The result was a combined pair of goals and assists for Staal and linemate Mikael Granlund, though Jason Zucker was unfortunately held off the scoresheet. They make for the most appealing line stack on Minnesota again tonight as they should continue to see the lighter matchups at 5v5.

Despite the lopsided victory in favour of the Wild, the Jets out-possessed Minnesota at even strength for the third straight game, posting a 56.41 CF% and 56.25 SCF% for the night. Though they were held off the scoresheet at even strength, Winnipeg’s second line had another admirable performance at 5v5, particularly Nikolaj Ehlers, who was credited with creating 9 scoring chances in just 12 minutes of even-strength ice time. Ehlers and his linemates, Patrik Laine and Paul Stastny, should again spend the majority of their ice time matched up against the bottom-six of the Wild tonight as Mikko Koivu and the rest of Minnesota’s shutdown line remain hard-matched against Winnipeg 1. Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele will likely have to keep relying on the powerplay to contribute offensively in this matchup, making Winnipeg 2 the more reliable and affordable stacking target for the Jets tonight.

Los Angeles Kings vs. Vegas Golden Knights

We touted this one as the lowest-scoring series of the first round and it certainly hasn’t disappointed. Through the first three games of the series, the Golden Knights and Kings have combined for just nine goals in nearly eleven periods of hockey. Things started opening up a bit towards the end of game 3 as the Kings felt the looming pressure of going down 3-0, a trend that will likely continue in game 4. While I would avoid a full Los Angeles 1 stack, I do think Anze Kopitar makes for a strong one-off play tonight. He played over 23 minutes in game 3 and should see high-usage again tonight as desperation mode sets in for the Kings. He can add tremendous value to your lineup at just $6,300 on DraftKings tonight.

Aside from Kopitar, I think you can continue to fade the top line of either team with confidence tonight. The game should be more high-event than the first three given the Golden Knights’ stranglehold on the series, but neither Los Angeles 1 or Vegas 1 warrant consideration over the other high-priced stacks available tonight, specifically Columbus and Washington 1. Jonathan Quick remains a strong option in GPPs tonight and could put up a crooked number if the Kings are finally able to come out on the winning side of these one-goal games.

By: Brock Seguin

Injury Updates

OUT

– Zach Parise will miss 6-to-8 weeks with a broken sternum.

– Tyler Myers (lower-body) will not be in the Jets lineup for Game 4.

– Mathieu Perrault (upper-body) is not expected to be in the lineup for Game 4.

– Alexander Wennberg is expected to miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury.

– Andre Burakovsky (upper-body) will miss games 3 and 4.

– Luca Sbisa (undisclosed) still is not ready to re-join the Golden Knights lineup.

Projected Lineups

Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Washington Capitals

Minnesota Wild vs. Winnipeg Jets

Los Angeles Kings vs. Vegas Golden Knights

Goalie Rankings

✅ – Confirmed
????️ – Probable
????️ – Projected

Value Plays