Chris Durell's DFS advice for 5/5/16. Daily Fantasy Hockey Lineup Picks and sleepers for FanDuel & DraftKings NHL cash games and GPPs

Welcome to the Daily Fantasy Hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks article for May 5th of the 2015/2016 NHL season. Each day we'll be providing you with a handful of forward, defensemen, and goaltender picks for DraftKings and FanDuel GPP and cash games.

There are two games tonight as the Western Conference series shift to a pivotal game four.

The Dallas Stars will need strong effort on the road in St. Louis to even the series but if they do they will regain home ice advantage. The Blues will stick with Brian Elliot who has been terrific in these playoffs while the Stars may have to go back to Kari Lehtonen who finished off game three.

The San Jose Sharks, the best regular season road team, will look to slow down the Predators who fought back hard at home in a 4-1 victory. Both goaltenders in this series are staples for their teams who will ride them either way.

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NHL DFS Picks for Thursday, May 5th

A couple strategy notes. For cash game construction look for players who can contribute to your score when they are not providing offense. Examples are guys who take a ton of shots, defensemen who block a lot of shots(DraftKings). Also, look for guys who get powerplay time and especially Top 6 forwards. You can find value in players who join a new line due to an injury or just get a promotion and more ice time.

For large field tournaments (GPP's) you want to find payers who have multi point upside and can grab double digit fantasy points. To stack the most upside in your forwards a common strategy is to punt the defense position. This doesn't mean just grab anyone. Try and look for a D man who will be playing more PP time or might get a boost in overall playing time due to an injury.

Let's take a look at some solid plays for today's action.

Martin Jones - Goaltender, Sharks (Draftkings - $8,100  FanDuel - $9,000)

After winning games one and two at home the Sharks fell to the Predators in Nashville 4-1. The game was much closer than the score ended up as it was tied or a one goal game for about 80% of the game. The Sharks had the best road record in the league during the regular season and have not lost back to back away from the Shark Tank since mid December. Look for another close game on Thursday with Sharks taking a commanding lead in the series before heading home for game five.

Logan Couture - Center, Sharks (DraftKings - $6,200  FanDuel - $7,000)

He has been fantastic for the Sharks in these playoffs providing secondary scoring outside the top line. He has picked up 10 points in these playoffs with five of them coming on the powerplay where he gets a boost playing with the #1 unit. The Sharks should rebound after a 4-1 loss in game three and come firing on all cylinders. Couture is safe in all formats.

Jamie Benn - Winger, Stars (DraftKings - $8,300  FanDuel - $8,900)

After Dallas took an early 1-0 lead in game three the wheels fell off as the Blues poured it on with six straight goals to take a 2-1 series lead.  It was only the second game in these playoffs that Jamie Benn(points leader with 12) has been held pointless and he was also a poor -2 on the night. Expect a better effort as the Stars have a shot to regain home ice advantage with a win.

David Backes - Winger, Blues (DraftKings - $5,100  FanDuel - $6,200)

The Blues captain has been lead by example in these playoffs with eight points in 10 games including two overtime winners. In fact, the Blues are 4-0 in the playoffs when Backes scores a goal. He is in a good spot to extend his point streak tonight as the Stars goaltenders have been shaky recently and we are yet to get a confirmation who will be starting game four.

Kevin Shattenkirk - Defense, Blues (DraftKings - $6,900  FanDuel - $5,400)

If you are looking for a cash game play and don't want to pay up for Brent Burns(high upside/high salary), then Shattenkirk makes a great pivot. He has been a very consistent option in these playoffs with seven points and two or more shots on goal in all but one game. He is safe in all formats.

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