NHL Best Bets & DFS Cheat Sheet, 4/22: Picks, Predictions & Player Props
Published: Apr 22, 2025
Welcome to the NHL Playoffs! Like we did throughout the regular season, the Fantasy Alarm will have you covered in the playoffs. You’ll find our daily NHL Best Bets along with which players you should be targeting in DFS.
We’ve conveniently put it all in one article, just to make life simple. If you have more questions, make sure to hit up the Fantasy Alarm NHL Discord. Let’s dive into the action and build a winning lineup!
NHL Picks, Predictions & Best Bets Today, 4/22
Devils vs. Hurricanes Prediction: Tuesday, April 22nd
If you followed these teams all season then Game 1 was not much of a surprise, it was low scoring and dominated in the trenches. That's just the way these teams play; smart discipled hockey is their gameplan every night. The goaltenders are top notch as well with Jacob Markstrom saving 41 shots and Frederick Andersen allowing just 1 goal on 24 shots he faced.
I look for all of those things to continue especially while Carolina is on home ice as they allowed 2.46 goals per game over the course of the regular season which was the 6th best in the NHL. The Devils offense is also ill-equipped to challenge them without most of their fire power in the lineup, during the final 20 games of the season New Jersey averaged just 2.75 goals per game.
This one may stay close, but goals will be hard to come by tonight so with that I will be taking the under at 5.5 goals.
- Under 5.5 Goals (-130 on DraftKings)
Panthers vs. Lightning Prediction: Tuesday, April 22nd
Well, it's about time this series started! There are teams onto Game 2 while this one has been stuck in the mud, I know it's a scheduling conflict at the arena most likely but come on! I am frustrated because outside of the Dallas/Colorado series this is the one I have had marked on the calendar, The Battle of Florida.
I give the slight edge to Tampa Bay early on as they've been an incredible home team over the years in the playoffs and their roster has been healthy most of the season and will not have rust. The Panthers on the other hand welcome back Matthew Tkachuk tonight from a long layoff and several others like Sam Reinhart only have a few games under their belts heading into the playoffs.
I also prefer Andrei Vasilevskiy to Sergei Bobrovsky in net for the series although both have been awesome since the midseason break. Vasilevskiy has a 1.89 GAA and .927 SV% dating back to late February and Bob has a 1.95 GAA and .914 SV%. Should be a fun one between those two but give me the Lightning to win in Game 1 tonight.
- Lightning Money Line (-120 on DraftKings)
Today's NHL DFS Cheat Sheet & Stacks
Goalie Of The Day: Andrei Vasilevskiy - TB
As I said in the best bets portion, no goaltender has been as good as this guy down the stretch. He's locked in and it feels like 2020 again in Tampa Bay, the league should be afraid! The Panthers also finished the season very mediocre on offense scoring just 44 goals over 20 games, that was dead last in the NHL. Load up some Vasilevskiy, its worth the price of admission every time.
Player Of The Day: Mitch Marner - TOR
Let's give some love to the Maple Leafs in this article at long last, they do have the easiest matchup when it comes to scoring goals at least according to the sportsbooks. Marner posted 3 points against the Senators in Game 1 and will look to stack up some more in his matchup on the wing which is favorable considering the Leafs get the last line change being at home. The Sens don't have a deep roster when it comes to players that can keep up with Marner and will be focused on Auston Matthews anyways so let's get some Marner in here.
Value Play Of The Day: Pavel Dorofeyev - VGK
A big something the Golden Knights were missing last season was the finishing touch around the net and I do believe the have found their solution in this man. Dorofeyev had 36 goals in the regular season and has logged serious minutes playing on the 2nd forward line next to Tomas Hertl in addition to the top powerplay unit as well. He had a goal already in Game 1 against the Wild with 3 shots, if he can do that again then the price tag of sub 6k is well worth the play.
Player Pool
| $ Tier | C | F | G | W | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High |  Auston Matthews  $9,000 |  Nikita Kucherov $8,800 |  Frederik Andersen $8,200 | ||
| Medium |  Jack Eichel $7,700 | Anthony Stolarz $8,000 | Mitch Marner $7,000 | Victor Hedman $6,000 | |
| Tomas Hertl $5,700 | Pavel Dorofeyev $5,600 | Shea Theodore $5,200 | |||
| Matthew Knies $5,500 | |||||
| Low | Anthony Cirelli $4,800 | Andrei Vasilevskiy $7,800 | Jackson Blake $4,600 | Alex Pietrangelo $4,300 | |
| Jack Roslovic $3,100 |  Mackie Samoskevich $3,900 | Oliver Ekman-Larsson $3,500 |
Stacks
| Lightning | Brayden Point | Victor Hedman | Nikita Kucherov |
| DraftKings | 6700 | 6000 | 8800 |
 Fanduel | - | - | - |
| Maple Leafs | Auston Matthews | Mitch Marner | Matthew Knies |
| DraftKings | 9000 | 7000 | 5500 |
| Fanduel | - | - | - |
Player News
Dolphins signed No. 13 overall pick DT Kenneth Grant to a four-year contract.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Grant will sign his contract today. The former Michigan defensive tackle is expected to fill a major void left by Christian Wilkins, who left for the Raiders in the 2024 offseason. Grant totaled 32 tackles, three sacks, and seven TFLs in his final season at Michigan and excelled at stopping the run while also generating 27 pressures in his final season, per PFF.
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.