NHL Showdown Playbook May 14: Top DraftKings & FanDuel NHL DFS Picks
Sunday's one-game NHL DFS slate is loaded with top-tier scorers as the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2023 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs continue. The Edmonton Oilers will look to avoid elimination today at home. Expect them to continue to lean on their top players, with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each playing more than 23 minutes in game five. Vegas continues to use a much more well-rounded approach to counteract Edmonton's stars. This should be an exciting matchup for our NHL DFS Showdown lineups today. As you build daily fantasy hockey lineups for these NHL Playoffs matchups, be sure to check out our NHL daily projections, NHL DFS lineup generator, and other NHL daily fantasy tools. Let's get into our NHL DFS picks and top plays on DraftKings and FanDuel for today's Stanley Cup Playoffs slate!
Expected Goal Totals
Edmonton Oilers: 3.8
Vegas Golden Knights: 2.8
Edmonton Oilers vs Vegas Golden Knights
Players to target: Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard, Mark Stone, Chandler Stephenson, Jack Eichel, Brayden McNabb
Edmonton's stars have been stars in this series, but it hasn't always been enough. We saw McDavid, Zach Hyman, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins all have multi-point games in game five, and Leon Draisaitl is just one point behind McDavid for the playoff scoring lead. All of these players as well as Evander Kane are worth consideration in your lineup today. Vegas has seen their production be much more spread out, however, they have seen Jack Eichel be the stud they envisioned when they traded for him. He has had multi-point games in three of the five games in this series and he has consistently been putting close to five shots on goal each game. Jonathan Marchessault also continues to be a solid DFS performer with five shots or more in four straight games, and he also has five points in his last three games.
For DFS purposes we continue to see a tonne of value from Vegas' defensive group with how they block shots. Alex Pietrangelo will be back for this game if you're looking to buy into a more expensive defenceman. However, you should continue to see value from players like Brayden McNabb, Alec Martinez, and Zach Whitecloud who continue to be stead shot blockers, and each has contributed some points in this series as well. For the Oilers, Evan Bouchard has had a strong series, with points in four out of five games in this series, and he has the most powerplay points of any player in these playoffs.
I think if you're going to look to buy into a goalie today it would be Stuart Skinner. Neither team's goalies have been great as a whole, but the teams continue to not be able to win two games in a row, so if you want to take a chance on a goalie, Skinner would be my choice.
When I’m building lineups today I would give some consideration to using either McDavid or Draisaitl in your captain spot, but ultimately I preferred the flexibility I got from using them both in flex spots and then building a more well-rounded from there. At his price, I think Brayden McNabb is a solid play at his price and he should provide you with solid value allowing you to get some of this game's premium players into your lineup. I prefer to avoid goalies in this matchup as this could be another wild one in Edmonton.
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.