Monday's four-game NHL slate is loaded with top-tier scorers. We should expect lots of tight games with some great matchups out there, but expect some of the top scorers to shine through still. So, be sure to check in with our NHL DFS Tools, with the daily NHL projections, and our NHL lineup generator when building those lineups today to help you decide which players you should be targeting!

 

NHL DFS Playbook April 17

DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts

Welcome to day one of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs! I expect lineups today to generally be built in one of two ways. Either with the Bruins or with Oilers. So if you're going to play cash games today I would want to be building my lineups either with Connor McDavid/Leon Draisaitl or with David Pastrnak and using Linus Ullmark in goal. However, if you're looking to play in a GPP I wouldn't hesitate to stack the Panthers or the Kings. The Panthers were one of the best teams in the league heading down the stretch and with players like Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov they are certainly capable of winning a game against this historic Bruins team. Tkachuk in particular will be interesting no matter the outcome as he is capable of putting a lot of shots on goal and having big performances even if the Panthers lose. As for the Kings, they are a veteran team with capable scorers, and if there has been one thing that is consistent with the Oilers it is shaky goaltending. Skinner's numbers are good on the season, but in the games, he lost he was generally not good. The other players that will be worth mixing into lineups if you can are going to be Jason Robertson and Kirill Kaprizov. These two both scored over 40 goals this season and are certainly capable of having big games in this series. Best of luck today and enjoy the games!

Recommended DFS Starting Goalies

Top Options for Saves

Linus Ullmark vs Florida Panthers

Ilya Sorokin vs Carolina Hurricanes

Joonas Korpisalo vs Edmonton Oilers

Best Odds for a Win

Linus Ullmark vs Florida Panthers

Stuart Skinner vs Los Angeles Kings

Antti Raanta vs New York Islanders

Jake Oettinger vs Minnesota Wild

See More

Favorite Goalies to Use for DFS Lineups

Linus Ullmark, G, Boston Bruins

The Bruins come into this game as the favourites, but not only that the Panthers led the league in shots per game this season. So you are getting the rare space you have a good chance of getting the win, but it is very possible that Ullmark could make 35-plus saves in this game as well. Just know, the ownership rate on Ullmark is likely to be high.

Joonas Koprisalo, G, Los Angeles Kings

I think a lot of people are going to write the Kings off in this season against the Oilers, but I think the Kings are going to win some games. In three games against the Oilers this season, Korpisalo put up a 0.925 save percentage and won two of those games, and as a whole, he has played very well as a member of the Kings. There is certainly risk in playing him, there is no doubt about that. We all know that McDavid, Draisaitl and company can do, but his price is low, and I know I wouldn't be surprised if the Kings won game one of this series.

Ilya Sorokin, G, New York Islanders

While I don't see Sorokin winning the Vezina, he will certainly be in the conversation. He is a top 4 goalie in the league, and I am not sure many people would disagree with that after his last two seasons. Also, the Islanders are a team built for the playoffs. Now this is a tough matchup against Carolina who is built in a similar fashion, but with the way Sorokin is priced, I am willing to roll the dice that he can steal this game or only give up one or two goals and make enough saves to get to value, and he is certainly much less risking than Korpisalo (which also means he will have more ownership) so if you're looking for some risk but not all the risk Sorokin is a solid choice.

 

Recommended DFS Skaters

Highest Expected Goal Totals 

Boston Bruins vs Alex Lyon

Edmonton Oilers vs Joonas Korpisalo

Carolina Hurricanes vs Ilya Sorokin

Dallas Stars vs Filip Gustavsson

Favorite Skaters to Use for DFS Lineups

Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers

Do you remember how good McDavid was last year? Well, this year he had 30 more points and scored 20 more goals, putting up easily the best individual performance I can remember. McDavid can dominate any game, and we are to the point where less than two points is a disappointment. The Kings will do everything they can to try and slow him down, but in a cash game he is almost a must-play, and in a GPP you might want to build at least one lineup with him in it because we all know what he is capable of at this point.

David Pastrnak, W, Boston Bruins

The Bruins will have what might be the softest goalie matchup of the day. Alex Lyon is far from an established goalie and Pasta is coming off of a career year for the Bruins. Keep an eye on the Bruins lineup though as it sounds like there is some illness running through the dressing room right now so we may not see the usual cast of characters playing alongside him today.

Wyatt Johnston, C, Dallas Stars

Johnson finished the year strong capping off his rookie campaign with three goals in his last two games. He is a solid value play today as he often sees more than 16 minutes of ice time each game and he will see time on the powerplay as well.

Vladislav Gavrikov, D, Los Angeles Kings

With the number of shots the Oilers will put on goal, there should be plenty of room for Gavrikov to block at least three of them. More encouraging though is that he had three points in his last four games and he was shooting the puck as well. At his price, he should be considered in what could be a high-scoring game.

 

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