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Florida Panthers Vs. Washington Capitals
This game has the highest goal total of the night (6.5) and the over will probably hit by the end of the second period. There’s lots to love about the Capitals and the Panthers, so you can't fade this game if you want to have a chance at cashing on this slate.
For Washington, it’s all about the top line of Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Chandler Stephenson. Kuznetsov and Ovi play on the top powerplay unit together, so they are the mini-stack to consider. You can’t ignore Stephenson in cash because he gives you exposure to the top line without breaking the bank. He’s $3300 on FanDuel, so he’s a nice salary relief option. He’s also going to be very chalk, but that’s fine on a short slate like this one.
On the blue line, John Carlson is the obvious choice. He’s too expensive to look at for me, but if you are going with a PP stack, he’s worth the price.
On the flip side, Florida is going to score some goals, but it’s going to be a mess trying to figure out which line to go with. In short: Mike Hoffman is on the fourth line but playing top power play minutes, Jonathan Huberdeau is on the second line but off the top PP unit, Colton Sceviour is centering the second line and Vincent Trocheck has moved to the wing. Yeah, it’s that bad.
So let’s keep it simple here, focus on Aleksander Barkov and Evgeni Dadonov. If WSH1 isn’t your thing, a Barkov/Dadonov mini-stack works. They aren’t exactly cheap, but they play together on the top line and on the power play. Pair them with Keith Yandle and you have a three-man powerplay stack.
If you want to target low ownership, Mike Hoffman is a single bullet option to consider. There’s no way he spends the entire game on the fourth line, right? The problem here is he’s still $5700 on FanDuel and $4900 on DraftKings. He’s a high risk/ high reward play, but on a short slate, you have to be creative.
Minnesota Wild Vs. Dallas Stars
Let’s get this out of the way quick-- Dallas is not the play tonight. They will have a high ownership, but it will all be targeted at Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn and Alex Radulov. Those three are great together, and there’s nothing wrong with throwing them in a GPP, but they aren’t a bash game option, not even in a mini stack. Minnesota isn’t as good as New Jersey, but Devan Dubnyk hasn’t been terrible this season. Maybe this isn’t a popular stance to take, but it’s a logical one.
Minnesota’s second line of Zach Parise, Mikko Koivu and Mikael Granlund is my favourite line in of the two teams. They are super cheap over on DraftKings ($14,900 for the entire line) and you can stack the line in cash games and get exposure to both powerplay units. You can also go with any mini-stack combination and come out a winner. The best one would be a Koivu/Granlund mini-stack, but there’s nothing wrong with the Granlund/Parise stack either.
On the back end, Matt Dumba is $4500 on FanDuel and is seeing time on the second PP unit. Depending on your mini-stack, Dumba works well with Koivu/Parise, as it gives you a three-man powerplay stack. Ryan Suter isn’t a bad play, but he’s more expensive and it’s just not worth paying more to play him.
So far this season, Devan Dubnyk has a .940SV%, but he only has two wins in five games. It’s not a secret that the Wild can’t score goals, especially in this new NHL where every teams seems to score five goals a night. Dubnyk might be considered a contrarian play, but if my theory holds water, all those DAL1 shares will fall sting even more if Dubnyk picks up a 35-save win. This will vault your lineup straight to the top in cash games and GPPs. To make this even easier, Dubnyk is $7300 on DraftKings.
Nashville Predators Vs. Calgary Flames
The Flames have not looked good this season, and Mike Smith is the primary reason. Nashville is in town, and they are a really good team. We know the Flames are a better team at home, but I don’t think they are good enough to beat the Preds.
Once again, everyone is going to flock to Nashville’s top line, but they will be in tough against Mark Giordano, so we want to avoid that matchup as much as possible, which brings us to Nashville’s second line of Kevin Fiala, Kyle Turris and Craig Smith. Of the three, Craig Smith is seeing time on the top power play unit, so if you want to get creative, you can mini-stack Smith/Fiala and get exposure to both power play units without breaking the bank. If you decide to go with Turris/Fiala, Roman Josi joins them on the second unit, so you can get a three-man PP stack and still have money to spend.
On the flip side, Johnny Gaudreau has been red hot since the beginning of the season, and it’s a proven fact that he is better at home than on the road. He’s only $6500 on DraftKings, which is not ok. Even if his matchup isn’t a favourable one, he shouldn’t be below $7000. He’s a nice single bullet option in cash games. His linemate Elias Lindholm is worth a look over on FanDuel, where he’s only $5500. You can play both together as a mini-stack and it would be ok.
Back to Nashville, if you don’t feel like targeting Calgary, Pekka Rinne has been really good this season and he’s the top goalie option on this slate. He’s only $7700 on DK, so that would be the best place to use him. You could play him over on FD, but he’s $9000, so many go with him only in a GPP.
Player News
Jarrett Allen recorded a double-double in Game 4 on Monday with 14 points (5-of-5 FGs), 12 rebounds, two assists and six steals in 25 minutes against the Heat.
After only missing one shot in a Game 3 blowout win, Allen and the Cavs were even better in the series-clinching victory. They went from winning by 37 to winning by 55, and Allen was perfect from the floor and the free throw line. He also tied the franchise record for steals. What made things more impressive was that he did most of that in the first half as he entered the break with 12 points, 11 rebounds and six swipes. If the score wasn’t so lopsided, this could’ve been a truly special performance for him, though his dominance was the reason for the blowout. He’ll look to carry this into the next round.
De’Andre Hunter provided a boost off the bench with 19 points (6-of-11 FGs), one rebound, one assist, one steal and three three-pointers in Game 5 against the Heat on Monday.
Hunter may have posted a dud in Game 1 of this series, but the last three games were all strong performances for him. That was more than enough to help Cleveland advance to the second round. 18 of his 19 points came before halftime, so Hunter certainly could’ve scored more if the game wasn’t over at that point. He’ll continue to play a significant role off the bench as the Cavaliers’ postseason run continues in the conference semifinals.
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 22 points (8-of-15 FGs), five assists, one steal and four three-pointers in a 138-83 win over the Heat in Game 4 on Monday.
Mitchell only needed 25 minutes in this game to lead the Cavs in scoring and help them advance to the second round of the playoffs. Things got out of hand quickly, and they were able to take a 39-point lead into halftime. Mitchell certainly could’ve had a bigger night if this game was remotely close. They’ll take on the winner of the Pacers/Bucks series, and with Indiana leading 3-1 and hosting on Tuesday, Cleveland may not get a ton of time to rest before their second-round series begins.
Stephen Curry, Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green against the Rockets in Game 4 on Monday.
With Butler back, Jonathan Kuminga will be pushed out of the starting lineup and could certainly end up being out of the rotation entirely. Hield will replace Quinten Post in the starting unit after playing well in Game 3.
Diamondbacks optioned RHP Drey Jameson to Triple-A Reno.
Jameson allowed two runs — one earned — over three innings (three appearances) during a brief stint with the Diamondbacks over the past week. The 27-year-old righty heads back to the minors ahead of Tuesday’s series opener against the Mets.
Ryan O’Hearn belted a three-run homer on Monday, powering the Orioles to a 4-3 win over the Yankees.