RADIO
Welcome, RotoBallers. Hockey is one of my favorite sports to watch and play from a DFS perspective and I am thrilled to be covering this sport over at RotoBaller! As always, I will do my best to give you the stats and info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on DraftKings and FanDuel.
If you are new to playing NHL DFS, there are several things to know that will help you get caught up to speed. The first thing to know is that stacking lines is important and correlating your plays can pay off. In hockey, if someone scores a goal, there's a good chance that some on his team will receive an assist on that goal, so you want to build lineups around players skating together. The second thing is to make sure you look at the two sites and see the different ways to obtain points. On DraftKings, you get bonus points for 5+ shots or 3+ blocked shots so someone like Alex Ovechkin who is a volume shooter tends to be a better play there just because he can rack up additional points based on his style of play.
Today I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and Fanduel for Thursday, September 17th, 2020 at 8:00 PM. Be sure to also check out our awesome NHL tools including our Lineup Optimizer, Research Station, Projections, and DFS Cheat Sheets! Feel free to follow me on Twitter @jorgepucks as I am happy to engage with readers and try to answer your questions. Good luck RotoBallers!
NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 9/17
- Tampa Bay Lightning (-155) vs. New York Islanders (+133)
NHL DFS Goalie Analysis Matrix
| Team | Rank GA | Rank SA | Rank GF | Rank SF | Total |
| NY Islanders | 4 | 23 | 22 | 13 | 8.5 |
| Tampa Bay | 11 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 12.25 |
The matrix above takes the averages of four categories and creates a rating scale to help you decide which goalies to use, which goalies to target against and conversely which teams could be viable from a stacking standpoint. It looks at four categories: Goals Allowed (GA), Shots Allowed (SA), Goals For (GF), Shots For (SF). The higher the overall rating in the last column indicates that it is a more dangerous matchup for that team's goalie while it might be beneficial to stack against him. I match and sync this every day to the actual opponents that they are facing every slate so this is always slate specific.
Power Play Matrix
| Matchup | PP% | Opp PK % |
| New York Islanders | 17 | 8 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | 8 | 16 |
The Power Play matrix is to help locate matchups that can be exploited should there be an odd-man advantage during the game. Just like the goalie matrix above, the teams are matched up based on their own power play percentage rank and their opponent's penalty kill percentage. When looking at this matrix, you will want to look for teams that succeed in the power play rank while their opponent has a poor penalty kill rank. The matrix above takes the averages of four categories and creates a rating scale to help you decide which goalies to use, which goalies to target against, and conversely which teams could be viable from a stacking standpoint. It looks at four categories: Goals Allowed (GA), Shots Allowed (SA), Goals For (GF), Shots For (SF). The higher the overall rating in the last column indicates that it is a more dangerous matchup for that team's goalie while it might be beneficial to stack against him. I match and sync this every day to the actual opponents to ensure we get the correct data for each slate! The matrix above takes the averages of four categories and creates a rating scale to help you decide which goalies to use, which goalies to target against, and conversely which teams could be viable from a stacking standpoint. It looks at four categories: Goals Allowed (GA), Shots Allowed (SA), Goals For (GF), Shots For (SF). The higher the overall rating in the last column indicates that it is a more dangerous matchup for that team's goalie while it might be beneficial to stack against him. I match and sync this every day to the actual opponents that they are facing every slate so this is always slate specific.
NHL DFS Core Plays- Showdown Edition
Captain Picks
- Nikita Kucherov ($16,800 DK/ $15,500) - The skater that has shown the most consistency while having the best upside has been Nikita Kucherov. He has scored double-digit DK points in all five games against the Islanders and has recorded nine total points so far in the series. On the season, Kuch has registered 11 total points in just eight games played against the Islanders with three of those points coming on the powerplay. Even though Kucherov carries a high price tag, he will carry heavy ownership in both cash games and tournament contests which makes him a lock.
- Andrei Vasilevskiy ($16,200 DK) - Vasilevskiy could be an intriguing option at the captain spot on this slate. He is seeing a solid number of shots per game and has produced double-digit DK points in four of the five games so far this series. On the season, Vasilevskiy has averaged just two goals allowed per game against New York while accruing a record of 4-2-1 in seven total games this season.
- Ondrej Palat ($12,000 DK/ $11,000) - If you are wanting to get an upside player for a lower price point, look no further than Palat. With Stamkos still out, Palat has inserted himself onto the top line for Tampa all throughout the playoffs and has been doing a great job complimenting Kucherov on the other wing of the top line. He has taken 12 shots over his last three games and has recorded a goal in two of his last three games as well. While he might not be as consistent as Kucherov, he does have a high-ceiling that would be great in tournament builds.
Value Picks
- Josh Bailey ($6,600 DK/ $8,000 FD) - Bailey has been a little inconsistent throughout the series but that shouldn't deter you from rostering him on this showdown slate. In eight games on the season against the Lightning, Bailey has produced eight total points (2 goals, 6 assists) against them. He is priced at $6,600 which seems a little too cheap for someone who has averaged a point per game against an opponent throughout the season.
- Cal Clutterbuck ($2,000 DK/ $6,500 FD) - The Islanders look to have switched up their lines and Cal Clutterbuck has seen time on the top line with Barzal and Lee. This is a major upgrade for Clutterbuck as he is skating with the two most talented players on the team. He saw 20 minutes of ice-time which is a tremendous bump up from what he was used to earlier in the series while he was skating on a lowe line. At just $2,000, his price point is too good to pass up on since he will be getting your dfs lineups exposure to the top line of the Islanders.
- Anthony Cirelli ($6,000 DK/ $7,500 FD) - Anthony Cirelli was bumped up to the top Lightning line with Brayden Point being unable to play in this past Tuesday's game. Point's status is still up in the air and this is a situation worth monitoring as we get close to puck drop. Cirelli saw a heavy workload as he saw 31 minutes of ice-time on Tuesday's game and we all know that more ice-time leads to more fantasy opportunities. If Cirelli draws the start on the top line for the Lightning, he will be viable in all formats.
Stacks
- TB1- Palat, Cirelli, Kucherov
- NYI3- Martin, Pageau, Eberle
- TB3- Goodrow, Gourde, Coleman
Player Pool
C- Barzal, Pageau, Cirelli, Gourde
W- Kucherov, Lee, Palat, Bailey, Coleman, Beauvillier, Eberle, Clutterbuck
D- Hedman, Pulock, Shattenkirk, Sergachev, Toews
G- Vasilevskiy
