NHL Showdown Slate: New York Islanders Vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Published: Jun 23, 2021
What a crazy game five we had between the New York Islanders and the Tampa Bay Lightning. No one expected an 8-0 game, and I don’t think we will see a similar result tonight. This game should go back to be a tight defensive game, so let’s look at some players we should be targeting.
In the captain spot, it’s best to pay up for Brayden Point. He’s been a machine in the playoffs, and despite the high cost, he’s worth every dollar. If you want to save some salary at that spot, Alex Killorn is worth considering. Both players will be in my lineup, so just decide who gets the important top spot.
For the rest of my lineup, it’s going to be filled with more Tampa Bay players. Even if this game goes back to being a tight one, the Lightning were dominant in game five, and I can’t see that going away in this game.
The best value player from either team is Anthony Cirelli. He’s less than $5K on DK and is skating on the second line with Killron and Steven Stamkos. I would stack this entire line in a Showdown lineup and be very confident. The top line gets a lot of respect, but this second line has been fire, and they could all hit value in this game.
On the back end, Victor Hedman is the only defenceman I would consider playing. The Islanders don’t have many great options, and there’s no real reason to go down the list and play someone like Mikael Sergachev. Hedman will be popular, but I’ll gladly eat the chalk if it means getting into the money.
Since we can’t only roster Tampa skaters, my Islander single-bullet will be Kyle Palmieri. He is expected to skate on a line with Mathew Barzal and Jordan Eberle and continues to see time on the second power play unit. He’s affordable and has a ton of upside, which is all we are really looking for here. He’s been decent in this series, but we know what type of competitor he is, and it wouldn’t be crazy to see him go off in this must-win game.
As for goalies, I don’t want any part of them. Semyon Varlamov should get the start here, but I refuse to pay a premium for him, and Andrei Vasilevskiy is just too expensive. Goalies in a showdown slate can work, but I don’t see tonight being one of those nights.
Player News
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that Zach Eflin (lat) is likely to return and start Sunday against the Angels
It was assumed that Eflin would be back this weekend, but now we have a concrete date. The 31-year-old may not be at full strength after throwing fewer than 60 pitches in his rehab start, but the Orioles feel confident enough to have the right-hander back on the bump for the series finale against the Angels.
Riley Greene is not in the lineup for the first game of a doubleheader against the Rockies on Thursday.
Greene will get a break and likely return to the lineup for the second game of the twin-billing. Zach McKinstry will get the start in left field while Greene rests.
Panthers released TE Jordan Matthews.
Matthews converted to tight end a few years ago and hasn’t made much noise at the position. The change has, however, likely kept him in the league for a few more seasons. He appeared in four games with the Panthers last year but didn’t record any stats on offense. The Panthers also released or waived WR Dax Milne, C Andrew Raym, and TE Colin Granger.
Yu Darvish (elbow) is facing live hitters on Thursday.
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Adael Amador is starting at second base and batting ninth for the Rockies on Thursday.
Amador has now started three of the last four games at second base for the Rockies. He’s gone just 7-for-43 this season with 15 strikeouts in 16 games. He’s just 22 years old, so there is plenty of time for him to adjust to the MLB level, but he doesn’t need to be on redraft radars right now.
Jackson Holliday is playing second base and batting second for the Orioles on Thursday against the Twins.
With Cedric Mullins sitting out on Thursday, Gunnar Henderson will bat lead off, and Holliday will jump up from sixth in the order to second. Holliday is riding a hot streak right now, and the Orioles are taking advantage. This is likely just a one-game sample with no Mullins or Adley Rutschman in the lineup, but Rutschman has been struggling, so perhaps it could become a more permanent spot in the lineup for Holliday moving forward.