Daily Fantasy Hockey Playoff Preview: 04/18/18

Each day of the NHL Playoffs, Dylan and Brock will be collaborating on a full preview of that night’s playoff action. Dylan will break down each game from a Daily Fantasy Hockey perspective, giving you some of his favourite targets. Brock will provide his Daily Fantasy Notebook after morning skates, including Projected Lineups, Injury Updates, Goalie Rankings and DFS Value Plays. Enjoy playoff hockey and the best time of the year!

By: Dylan Berthiaume

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

For the first time in the 2018 NHL Playoffs we have a game-time decision that could drastically alter the outlook of the slate. Sean Couturier will be a game-time decision tonight after colliding with teammate Radko Gudas in practice on Tuesday. Couturier’s absence would immediately call for a fade of Philly’s top line (and potentially their top-six entirely depending on how the lines shake out), and it puts a full stack of Pittsburgh 1 back on the table.

Aside from game 1, Couturier has done an adequate job of maintaining Sidney Crosby at 5v5, forcing DFS players to resort to an expensive powerplay stack if they wanted to build around Crosby. If Couturier is unable to go Crosby would be in for a drastic uptick in scoring chances at 5v5. Claude Giroux posted a dreadful 32.43 CF% and averaged 44 scoring chances against per 60 in 112 minutes without Couturier this season, compared to a 55.14 CF% and just 25 scoring chances against per 60 when playing with him. Couturier has unquestionably become the driving force behind Philadelphia 1’s success, and if he does suit up they could become a sneaky good play at home tonight. It goes without saying that you’ll need to monitor his status come time for warmups at 6:30 pm EST. Make sure you’re prepared to pivot to a powerplay stack if you are on Pittsburgh 1.

New Jersey Devils vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

The Devils second line has held Tampa Bay 1 in check at 5v5 all series long, but Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov were each able to net a pair of points with the man advantage in game 3. As talented as the two of them are it’s become unreasonable to expect production from them at 5v5 in this matchup. If you are paying up to play them tonight it would be wise to stack them with Alex Killorn, who has experienced a wealth of success in this series as the net-front presence on Tampa’s top powerplay unit. Killorn only provides slightly more value than Kucherov and Stamkos’ linemate, J.T. Miller, on DraftKings but is priced a full $2200 lower than him on FanDuel.

Taylor Hall continued his dominant play in game 3 notching another goal and two assists on route to Devils’ first win of the series. Hall has paid huge dividends as a one-off play all series long but the production of his linemates has lagged behind. They’ve struggled at 5v5 in this matchup and their prices haven’t really dropped enough to reflect this, so I would advise staying away from a New Jersey 1 stack again tonight. Hall himself remains a strong one-off play in both cash and GPP tournaments alike.

Colorado Avalanche vs. Nashville Predators

Just as they have all season long, Colorado 1 dominated on home ice in game 3. Rocking some of the most severe home and away splits in the league, the top line of the Avalanche played true to form on Monday night, combining for three goals and four assists in Colorado’s first win of the series. In case you were unaware, Nathan Mackinnon put up a ridiculous 67 points in 39 home games this season; there’s no reason not have him in your lineup every time these teams meet in Denver. Despite his price jumping up to $7,700 on DraftKings ahead of tonight’s game, his linemates Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog still sit at just $5,300 and $5,200 respectively. With a scoring chance rate of 39 per 60 at home, they easily have the most upside of any single line on the slate tonight, making them a prime stacking target in GPPs.

As I said before Monday’s game, it would be best to fade Nashville 1 in Denver as they attempt to maintain the beast that is Colorado 1 at 5v5. They needed a powerplay tally from Ryan Johansen to avoid being skunked in game 3, and there’s no reason to expect anything different from them tonight. You should instead be considering Nashville’s second line, who produce scoring chances at an elite rate and have been a much more reliable, and affordable, build all series long. They continue to see extremely lopsided matchups against the depth of the Avs at 5v5, and it’s only a matter of time before they go off.

San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks

In what was supposed to be one of the more even-matched series of the first round, the San Jose Sharks have surprisingly jumped out to a 3-0 lead against the Ducks, giving them the opportunity tonight to sweep Anaheim and join Vegas as the only teams to secure their spot in the second round. The Sharks’ top line has done most of the heavy lifting in this series, combining for 12 points through the first three games. After battling it out with the Ryan Kesler line at 5v5 for the first two games, San Jose 1 took full-advantage of some lighter matchups on home ice in game 3, and you should expect more of the same from them tonight. At just $16,900 for the full build on DraftKings, you should have no problem complementing a San Jose 1 stack with Brent Burns tonight.

The Ducks’ top line has been nearly invisible through the first three games of the series, and there’s no reason to invest in them in the same matchup tonight with so many other quality high-priced options available. I am on a near-total fade of the Ducks tonight, with Brandon Montour being the lone exception. Montour makes for another strong play tonight after registering an assist and seven shots in 24 minutes of ice time in game 3. He’s played over 24 minutes in all three playoff games and remains drastically underpriced at just $3,700 on DraftKings.

By: Brock Seguin

Injury Updates

GAMETIME DECISION

– Sean Couturier (lower-body) will be a game-time decision for Game 4.

– Tyler Johnson (undisclosed) will be a game-time decision for Game 4.

– Ryan Callahan (upper-body) will be a game-time decision for Game 4.

– Calle Jarnkrok (upper-body) will be a game-time decision for Game 4.

– Yannick Weber (upper-body) took part in the gameday skate and could return for Game 4.

OUT

– Patric Hornqvist (upper-body) will not play Game 4 in Philadelphia.

Projected Lineups

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

New Jersey Devils vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Colorado Avalanche vs. Nashville Predators

San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks

Goalie Rankings

✅ – Confirmed
????️ – Probable
????️ – Projected

Value Plays