NHL Showdown Playbook June 13: Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers Stanley Cup Game 5 DFS Picks
The Vegas Golden Knights and the Florida Panthers go head-to-head in Game 5 of the 2023 NHL Stanley Cup Finals. The Golden Knights are one win away from securing their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. We’ve seen the Panthers come back from being down 3-1 before, but it almost feels impossible for them to do it again. The game still needs to be played on the ice, so we can’t say it’s over just yet. You can build daily fantasy hockey lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo Fantasy for Tuesday, June 13th, but before you build those NHL daily fantasy lineups, don’t forget to check out our NHL DFS projections, the NHL Value Finder, and the NHL DFS lineup generator. Let's now take a closer look at the daily fantasy hockey top plays for tonight's NHL DFS Showdown slate.
NHL DFS Picks Stanley Cup Finals Game 5
Highest Expected Goal Totals
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Sergei Bobrovsky: (3.6)
Florida Panthers vs. Adin Hill: (2.6)
Florida Panthers vs. Vegas Golden Knights Stanley Cup Game 5 Preview
Players to target: Carter Verhaeghe, Nick Cousins, Anthony Duclair Adin Hill, Jack Eichel, Jonathan Marchessault, Brett Howden, Brayden McNabb, Zach Whitecloud, Mark Stone, Chandler Stephenson
The total for Game 5 opened at 6.0 and should stay at that number as we approach puck drop. It is surprising to see the total so high considering the fact that Matthew Tkachuk is a game-time decision for this game. Unless he dies before the game, there’s a good chance he plays, but how effective is he going to be and how much can he play? Brandon Montour is also banged up, but he stated that he will play this game. With so many question marks for the Panthers, we have to look at the Vegas side when building our DFS lineup.
Adin Hill is going to be very popular tonight and for good reason. The Panthers have struggled to score goals in this series and a banged-up Tkachuk just makes his matchup that much more appealing. He’s my lock for the CPT spot, but if you’re trying to take down a GPP, you might as well look at Sergei Bobrovsky. If he can stand on his head and steal a win for his team, he’s going to shoot your lineup to the top of the leaderboard. If you want to focus on a forward, Jantah Marchessault is the only name I would consider.
As for the rest of our lineup, there are two ways to look at things. The first is loading up on Vegas skaters, specifically Jack Eichel, Mark Stone and Chandler Stephenson. All three players are playing great hockey and if you believe that the over will hit, then you need exposure to those three. If you don’t want to play all three, you can look at adding Alex Pietrangelo to the mix. I still have a soft spot for Brayden McNabb and Zach Whitecloud, but I just don’t see how Florida will generate enough offense for both players to flirt with three blocked shots.
The second theory is to believe that the Panthers can force a Game 6. I still wouldn’t target Matthew Tkachuk because we know he isn’t healthy and his ice time could be a factor, so I’ll look to players like Anthony Duclair, Nick Cousins and Carter Verhaeghe. Those three need to be a factor tonight if they want to have any chance of sending this series back to South Florida. I’ll also have some shares of Brandon Montour. He’s an offensive defenseman who can jump up in the play, be we’ve also seen him block a fair amount of shots. If Florida is trailing in this game, Paul Maurice isn’t going to wait to shorten his bench, so I expect Montour to see a healthy amount of ice time if his body can allow it.
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.