RADIO
Welcome, RotoBallers! If you do not know me, my name is Brandon and I write both The First-Serve and The Kick-Off for tennis and soccer, respectively. If you have not checked those out, make sure you do! It is the return of the NHL season, which means it's time to sharpen our skills and partake in NHL DFS! As always, I'll give you the best tools to succeed and the info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on both DraftKings and FanDuel.
Today, I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and FanDuel on Saturday, June, 3rd, 2023, at 8:00 PM EST. Be sure to also check out our awesome NHL tools, including our Lineup Optimizer, Research Station, Projections, and DFS Cheat Sheets!
If you have any questions on today's slate, bankroll management, GPP strategy, cash game strategy, or anything else, don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected], via Twitter @df_solutions, or in our premium Slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
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NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 6/3/23
The National Hockey League playoffs have yet to disappoint this season -- depending on who your team is -- as it flaunts its competitive parity with multiple upsets in the first round, notably Presidents’ Trophy winner Boston Bruins and reigning champions Colorado Avalanche.
During the playoffs, it is much more common to find low-scoring and heavy-hitting games. Keep in mind that teams who showcase a high aptitude to score goals will play much tighter and be a bit pickier with their shots. I will do my best to guide you through this showdown slate on DraftKings and FanDuel starting at 8:00 p.m. EST.
DISCLOSURE: Make sure to monitor the news feed and play at your own risk.
Playoff Series Standings
Florida Panthers at Vegas Golden Knights
NHL DFS Core Plays- Showdown Edition For 6/3/2023
Captain
Sam Bennett - DK $11.7K || FD $10K
Bennett will remain a top-tier option heading into the Stanley Cup Finals. The center has been a big reason for the resurgence in Florida and it has helped that he has teammate Matthew Tkachuk on his line. To include the recent lineup changes for Vegas, the TOI has been reduced to 10 when analyzing lines throughout the playoffs. Out of all lines with a minimum 10 TOI, Tkachuk-Bennett-Verhaeghe is the second-best line in playoffs with an Expected Goals Percentage of 80 Percent! It is very apparent that this line is the main focus for Florida and it will be again against an inconsistent second line for the Golden Knights. In the four-game series sweep of the Eastern Conference Finals, Bennett had 3 assists, 19 shots and 4 blocked shots.
Carter Verhaeghe - DK $11.7K || FD $13K
Another piece of the aforementioned trio is Carter Verhaeghe. He primarily plays on the first line with Alex Barkov and Anthony Duclair, however, he occasionally finds his way to some TOI with Bennett and Tkachuk. Verhaeghe was silent for most of the Conference Finals, generating 1 goal, 2 assists, 12 shots and 2 blocked shots, albeit that not being the case through the entire postseason with 6 goals, 9 assists and 43 shots through 16 appearances. The top line for Florida has been quiet though and more than normal. Although it remains to be seen how they will perform against Eichel and company during the Finals. Nevertheless, Verhaeghe carries the top line production and he occasionally sees some top power-play time but plays the majority with the second unit.
Jonathan Marchessault - DK $13.5K || FD $12.5K
Marchessault carried Vegas through the Western Conference Finals with 4 goals, 3 assists and 16 shots in 6 games. Heading into the postseason, it was a growing understanding that Jack Eichel and Marchessault were forming an unbreakable chemistry and it proved its worth the deeper the Knights have gone in the playoffs. Florida’s defense will be much harder to penetrate than the last two opponents Vegas has faced, however, if they are to be successful, Marchessault will be at the heart of it.
Value Plays
Anton Lundell - DK $3.4K || FD $7.5K
An interesting player to watch in the Finals is Anton Lundell who centers the third line and second power-play unit for the Panthers. Lundell has had an interesting season seeing plenty of ups and downs. In 16 appearances in the postseason, he has 1 goal, 6 assists and 30 shots. Vegas has moved center William Karlsson down to the third line after struggling to produce on both ends of the ice as the second line center in the playoffs. This could play in Lundell’s favor as the line of Smith-Karlsson-Amadio has a 48.8 Percent Expected Goals Percentage compared to the 52 Percent that Luostarinen-Lundell-Reinhart has.
Alec Martinez - DK $5.4K || FD $7.5K
Martinez is a boom-or-bust option at defense. With teammate Shea Theodore back, Martinez has dropped into a more defensive defenseman role as he carries the defense on the top pairing and top penalty kill. Due to the more defensive responsibility. Martinez is relied upon to rack up blocked shots and in his last two games he has reached the blocked shot bonus on DraftKings – 3 or more –. Against a potent offense like Florida, he could be a busy defender in the Finals as he will be tasked with shutting down the top players, namely Matthew Tkachuk.
Nick Cousins - DK $2.8K || FD $6.5K
Cousins is the ultimate punt play as he has provided little in terms of points throughout the playoffs, despite playing on a line featuring Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk. Although, his 6 points in 16 games in the postseason is not entirely surprising, as Cousins has always played the grinder role. His job is to create the space, dig for pucks and block shots while on the ice and he does a good job at that. In the Conference Finals alone, he had 4 shots and 9 blocked shots. With his ability to just miss the block shots bonus as a forward and his untapped high-ceiling potential, it makes him the top punt option in the Finals.
Brandon's Stacks
- FLA PP1: Verhaeghe-Bennett-Tkachuk
- VGK1: Barbashev-Eichel-Marchessault
