The Montreal Canadiens had a great start to game one, but Vegas was able to bounce back and dominate on their way to an easy 4-1 win. It would be nice to think that the Habs could win game two, but it’s going to be a challenge, even if Carey Price stands on his head.


For this Showdown slate, let’s start with the captain spot. I know it sounds weird, but I’m willing to put Alec Martinez in that spot. All the man does is rack up blocked shots, and occasionally some goals and assists. It’s a risky play, but he could easily exceed value for us in that spot. If you want to go another route, Cole Caufield is another player I’d consider using. He scored his first playoff goal last game, and was easily Montreal’s best offensive player.


As for the rest of my lineup, I love the idea of adding Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore to my lineup. Even with Martinez in the captain spot, using three defencemen isn’t crazy because the Habs had no answer for stopping them. Not to mention, all three can exceed value at their current price point. 

 

As for forwards, Alex Tuch is by far my favourite option. He’s very much affordable and had a few good chances in game one. Montreal’s third line and third pairing struggled in that first game, and if no changes are made, that trend should continue in game two.


If you’re looking to spend up, Mark Stone is affordable and could provide us with some decent value. Vegas’ top line didn’t do much of anything in game one, and I expect Philipp Danault’s line to keep a close eye on them. Despite that, Stone was still able to be productive thanks to his three blocked shots. Am I expecting that result again tonight? No, but can he do it? Yes. 


Goalie are always a tough sell in showdown lineups because I don’t like having skaters play against my goalie. Marc-Andre Fleury was elite in game one, and he could very well put up similar numbers in game two. He’s the most expensive player to roster, so good luck getting him into your lineup. If you can do it, then by all means play him, but I won’t go out of my way to make it happen.