Happy Sunday NHL DFS fans! A short four game slate awaits us tonight, so let’s dive right into each matchup and breakdown who we should be targeting when building our lineups.

 

VAN @ DAL

Dallas comes into this game as the favourites, and it’s not even close. The Canucks haven’t been able to score goals since Brock Boeser went down with a season ending injury. Dallas is a far better team at home, so you’ll want exposure to this matchup in cash games.

Let’s start with the obvious, shall we? Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn is a no brainer. The duo is a costly option, but they are so good together on the ice, it’s hard to say no to them. Brett Ritchie is expected to skate on the top line and on the top power play unit, so his ownership in cash games will be elevated, probably over 50% in most formats. That’s perfectly fine with me. He’s going to get a chance to pick up some points, and at $3300 on FanDuel, this is a high risk/high reward play.

(Ritchie has been moved to L3, but still looks likes he's going to be on the top PP unit. No changes to the OL right now).

On the blueline, John Klingberg is really the only option to consider. To be honest, I probably won’t be paying up for a defenceman tonight, but there’s nothing wrong with adding Klingberg to a power play stack.

In goal, Kari Lehtonen is an option. I don’t even like typing that last sentence, but here we are. As mentioned earlier, the Canucks can’t score goals. They are 30th in goals for on the road (GF/GP). Lehtonen is $8400 on DK, so feel free to pass on him there. On FanDuel, he’s $7800, so fire away! This play could easily backfire, but I’ll trust the numbers are roll with him in cash games.

 

NSH @ WPG

 

This matchup is an absolute nightmare to break down. On one side we have the Jets-- averaging 3.84 GF/GP at home against the Predators, allowing just 2.43 GA/GP on the road. The Jets are an offensive juggernaut at home. They put on an absolute clinic against the Ducks their last time out. The Preds are THE BEST defensive team in the league. This is a classic “offence versus defence” battle, and i’m going with the offence.

If you read my breakdown last week, I went with an unconventional winger/winger stack, and that worked out very nicely. I’ll go back to that stack again today. Patrik Laine and Blake Wheeler are just too good right now. They are matchup proof. They play on seperate lines, but they join forces on the power play. It’s going to be hard to fit them in a cash game lineup, but in a GPP, go right ahead.

I’ll also give some love to Mark Scheifele. He’s been really solid all season long, and his price tag on DK is $6600, which is a crime to be honest. Yes the Jets have a tough matchup tonight, but I do think Winnipeg finds a way to score at a couple of goals.

On the back end, Dustin Byfuglien is an option to consider. As mentioned earlier, i’m not crazy about paying up for defenceman tonight, but Byfuglien would complete the PP stack very nicely. I’ll look elsewhere to start when building my lineups, but he’s a player i’ll try really hard to fit in my cash game lineups.

Connor Hellebuyck is expected to get the start tonight, and I’m not worried about rolling him out there in any format. He’s reasonable priced on FD and even more affordable on DK. This isn’t an ideal matchup for Hellebuyck, but his ownership will not be high. Most people are going to flock to Rinne/Saros, and I don’t blame them. If the Jets can score some goals and pick up the win, Hellebuyck owners will be in the money.

 

BOS @ MIN

Another matchup that is giving me a headache this morning. The Wild have the best GA/GP at home, but the Bruins are 3rd in GF/GP on the road. I want to trust Boston on the road, but I’m not willing to pay the premium to do it (Marchand, Pastrnak, etc.). On the flip side, I don’t want to pay for Eric Staal on Dubnyk. There is some value between the two teams, so I’ll target as much as I can and hope this game finishes 2-1.

Let’s start with Minnesota. Up front, Nino Niederreiter is the best value play available. He’s skating on the third line, but he’s seeing topp PP minutes. At $4300 on DK, I’ll take my chances.

Matt Dumba is another option that has a ton of upside. He’s cheaper than Ryan Suter and is playing on the top PP unit. He’s averaging 3.6 shots on goal in his last five and has three points 91G, 2A) in that same span. It’s nothing to go crazy about, but the value is definitely there.

For Boston, Ryan Donato has become a superstar overnight. In three games, he has four points and ten shots on goal.DraftKings has inflated his price pretty quickly, but over on FD, he’s $4200, so that would be the place to use him. He’s also skating on the top man advantage with the big boys.

If Torey Krug does in fact not dress for tonight’s contest, fire up Matt Grzelcyk! He’s also found a spot on the power play unit with Krug out, and at $3500 on FD, that’s all the bargain I need to get him into my lineup. In his last game against Dallas, Grzelcyk has 6 (!) shots on goal. If he can average just three shots and a blocked shot per game, that’s pretty close to his expected value. It may not win you a GPP, but he won’t lose one for you either.

 

Note: Krug is expected to be back in the lineup along with Patrice Bergeron. This hurts Grzelcyk's value, but he's still a GPP option. 

 

ANA @ EDM

The Oilers are playing back-to-back games and are hosting the Anaheim Ducks, who are still very much in the hunt for a playoff spot. The Ducks were a joke their last time out. If it wasn’t for Gibson, Winnipeg would have mopped the floor with them. I expect the Ducks to come out with a purpose tonight, so I’ll make sure to get a piece of Anaheim in any way possible.

Ryan Getzlaf loves to be a late scratch. Last game he was ruled out because of an illness. Assuming that illness is now gone, He makes the Ducks top line a lot better, including Rickard Rakell. Rakell decided to lay an egg against the Jets, and that egg might scare some people away from him. I’ll go back to the well and give Rakell another shot if Getzlaf is ruled in the lineup. There is an argument to look at Corey Perry, but he isn’t seeing top PP minutes, so I’m not as crazy about him.

In terms of matchup, I expect Todd McLellan to try as hard as he can to get McDavid away from Ryan Kesler. I don’t know how successful he will be, but he does have last change. All this to say, If Getzlaf does have to match up with McDavid, it isn’t the end of the world.

Sticking with find value on the blueline, Brandon Montour is skating on the top man advantage and is only $4400 on DK. that’s the kind of value I can get on board with! Will he win you a GPP? Probably not, but like Matt Grzelcyk, he won’t lose you one. If you do have the salary available, Cam Fowler is an option worth spending a couple of hundred dollars more for.

John Gibson was lights out the last time out. He did everything possible to give him team a chance to win. The Ducks were just flat against Winnipeg, and yet, they managed to escape with one point. Even in a losing effort, he was able  to rack up 19 fantasy points on FD. The Ducks have something to play for, so I expect them to play like a desperate hockey team against an Edmonton team that is tired and has nothing really to prove to anyone. As Long as McDavid doesn’t take over the show, Anaheim should walk away with two points.