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Chris Wassel's top NHL DFS lineup picks on FanDuel, DraftKings for 4/20/19. Expert daily fantasy hockey advice, sleepers & player recommendations.
We receive a three-game slate for Saturday. Getting creative will be vital on a slate like this which features lower-scoring games.
Remember, when picking around for plays, an over/under of 6 dictates offense, but an over/under of 5 or sometimes 5.5 tilts towards the goalies. The expectation of lower-scoring games is elevated on this slate.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy hockey lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 4/20/19. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. Let's get to it, shall we?
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DFS Forwards to Consider
Nicklas Backstrom - C, WSH vs CAR (FD - $6,500, DK - $5,800)
Backstrom definitely was impacted by last line change in Carolina as he was slowed down considerably. He managed a shot and two scoring chances in Game 4 which was encouraging. Also, the center must find open players a fraction of a second faster than he did in Games 3 and 4. That little bit of difference impacted at least a few plays which could have been high-quality chances. Backstrom knows this and expects a different player come Saturday evening. Last line change should help also and Backstrom's price has slid back just a hair which helps on this slate. Mark Scheifele and Tyler Seguin are good center options on Saturday as well.
Vladimir Tarasenko - W, STL vs WPG (FD - $8,300, DK - $6,800)
Alex Ovechkin will be the chalky choice while Tarasenko expects to be lower-owned. The right-wing sniper from St. Louis had an off night in Winnipeg but had three games before that where he totaled 15 shots on net. That includes 12 scoring chances as well and two goals. Tarasenko did not do such a good job of creating space for himself in Game 4. Expect him to do some different things for Game 5. One thing Winnipeg has been vulnerable on is the penalty kill as that is where the right-winger is getting most of his quality scoring chances. Filip Forsberg is another option which could surprise on Saturday.
DFS Defenders to Consider
John Carlson - D, WSH vs CAR (FD - $6,700, DK - $6,400)
The Washington Capitals defenseman is in a great spot Saturday and keeps boosting his floor -- he had five shots and five blocks on Thursday during Game 4. Despite zero real-world points, Carlson still hit value. His chances of an assist are very high given his high power play correlation to Washington's top line. Game 4 was his best performance since Game 1. The hope is that a shift in the scene to Washington gets Carlson back on track offensively. Again, do note that power-play potential because Washington's man advantage is around 25% at home.
Roman Josi - D, NSH vs DAL (FD - $6,500, DK - $6,000)
Josi is the other great floor play on Saturday. Considering he has averaged nearly three shots and three blocks a game over his past ten contests and that case only gets elevated higher. Three of his last four games have either hit or exceeded value even at his price. Josi only played 21 minutes in Game 4 so he should be well rested for what expects to be a war of a Game 5. Josi is another defenseman with excellent power-play correlation. Miro Heiskanen is a nice lower-priced defensive option and may produce as much as some of the top-tiered players on Saturday.
DFS Goalies to Consider
Ben Bishop - G, DAL vs NSH (FD - $8,500, DK - $7,500)
Bishop shut the door in Game 4 stopping all but one shot that came his way. The goalie has a .947 save percentage in his last ten starts. There is not too much more which can be asked of the goaltender at that point. His low DraftKings price combined with his GPP potential makes him an intriguing choice across the board. Nashville could easily pile up 30-35+ shots on the Dallas goaltender as they averaged that number in their first two home games. Dallas features a tendency to hold on late in periods which only adds to shot count. Connor Hellebuyck is the other GPP choice based on price and yes, the fact that no one has won at home yet in that series.
