Montreal Canadiens Vs. Boston Bruins

 

The Montreal Canadiens are back in action for the first time since January 1st as they visit the Boston Bruins. They are expected to get some players back, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be stacking against them.

For Boston, everyone will likely target their first line, and they should. Patrice Bergeron is $7500 on DraftKings, and while that price does feel like a discount, the centerman I would be targeting is Erik Haula. He’s centering the second line with Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak, and is only $3500. At that price tag, it’s hard to ignore him.

If you don’t feel the need to spend for Haul, a winger-winger mini-stack works out pretty well. We know what Pastrnak can do, and Hall at $4800 is just too cheap. If you want exposure to the top line, Craig Smith is worth considering.

On the back end, Charlie McAvoy is back in the lineup and would complete your power play stack. Matt Grzelcyk is a name that is going to be thrown out there a lot tonight, but I won’t let one big game cloud my judgment. He hasn’t done much offensively this season, and he’s not known for blocking many shots on goal. It’s McAvoy or nothing for me.

In goal, Linus Ullmark is confirmed to get the start for the Bruins. The Habs are (slowly) getting healthy, but they couldn’t score when they were a full team, and they tend to struggle at TD Garden. They will get some shots on goal, but they won’t score anywhere near three goals. Ullmark is the top cash game goalie.

For the Habs, there’s nothing I like up front. Even with more NHL bodies in the lineup, the Bruins are an excellent team, and there is better value elsewhere that we can target.

We can’t ignore David Savard tonight. We know he once had a Discord group named after team, and while those days are long gone, the veteran defenceman has been putting in the work by blocking 31 shots in the last ten games, and adding five points. Jeff Petry is expected to return to the lineup, but I don’t see that slowing him down.

The Canadiens are going to get outshot in this game, and it’s not going to be close. Jake Allen has been good this season, and if he can not get destroyed in this game, we could see him hit the save bonus, and hit value without registering a win. It’s a very risky play, but one that could work out nicely in a GPP.


Seattle Kraken  Vs. Dallas Stars


Here is a matchup with a ton of value on one side. The Seattle Kraken are basically an AHL team, and Dallas *should* be able to get past them relatively easily. 

As always, we start with Dallas’ top line of Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson and Joe Pavelski. I’m not going to sugarcoat this: all three players are too expensive for my liking, but I need exposure to them, so I’ll take Robertson as my single-bullet and roll with him.

If we are looking for some value, Jacob Peterson is where I’m focusing most of my attention. He’s skating on the second line with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, but is on the top power play unit with Hintz and Robertson. At $2700 on DK, the sky's the limit for Peterson. He has the potential to hit value, while providing us with some roster flexibility to spend up elsewhere.

On the blue line, Miro Heiskanen’s price tag is up there, so we’ll save some salary and go with John Klingberg. He has ten points in the last ten games, but has hit value three times in that same timespan. He’s a good option on this slate, but I wouldn’t go crazy trying to fit him in.

In goal, Jake Oettinger is confirmed to get the start. The kid is the future of the franchise, and he’s been lights out this season. He may not get enough shots to hit value, but there aren’t a ton of great GPP goalies available. You can use him in either format with confidence.

For Seattle, Marcus Johansson is skating on the top line and top power play unit. He has nine shots on goal and two points in the last ten games, but he is $2800. He’s clearly a risky play, but you can pair him with Jordan Eberle in a GPP and feel confident that if Eberle scores, Johansson will be the one with the assist. 

On defence, Mark Giordano would complete the three-man stack. His $5700 DK price tag isn’t appealing, but we could see him hit the blocked shots bonus, and register a few shots on goal. He would need at least one point to help him hit value, and that’s not entirely impossible. I wouldn’t consider him outside of a GPP.


Toronto Maple Leafs Vs. Arizona Coyotes


The Maple Leafs travel to the desert to take on the Coyotes, and we already know what side we are going to stack.

He’s the most expensive center on the slate, but we can’t not play Auston Matthews. He’s an Arizona native, and you better believe he’s going to want to put on a show for the 12 people in attendance. 

We need to offset the cost of playing him, and we can do that by rostering Ondej Kase, who is also skating on the top line and top power play unit. The Leafs winger is $4200 on DK despite racking up 11-points in the last ten games. This is a great spot for him to produce.

If you need more Toronto exposure, William Nylander joins the other two on the top power play unit and could be used as a single-bullet in all formats. He’s been quiet of late, but I won’t let that scare me away from playing him.

On defence, Morgan Reilly is too expensive for his production, so we’ll go all the way to the bottom of the player pool and target Rasmus Sandin. He finished with a zero against Vegas, but he did have ten hits. They don’t count for fantasy points, but it means that he spent most of the game chasing the opponent, which won’t happen tonight. He’s another bargain bin player to consider if you want to keep loading up on elite skaters. 

In goal, Petr Mrazek is confirmed to get the start. He’s the most expensive goalie on both sites, and to be honest, I don’t like the idea of having to roster him. He’s given up three or more goals in all three of his starts this season, and hasn’t hit value once. The Coyotes put up 40-shots on goal against the Predators, and if they were to do the same tonight, Mrazek wouldn’t finish the game. I know it’s appealing to use him in cash games, but I would consider Ullmark, Oettinger or even Allen before him.

On the flip side, the Coyotes look like a team that has some life, and I’m ok with taking a stab at them on a short-slate.

Clayton Keller is $5K on DK and has finished with seven shots on goal in three of the last five games. When he’s on his game, you can’t slow him down, and with how poor Mrazek has been this season, I’ll gladly roster him as a single-bullet in cash games.

If you want to get extra bold, Alex Galchenyk is facing his former team for the first time, and is pretty affordable on both sites. He’s centering the fourth line and seeing time on the second power play unit, so don’t be shocked if he does nothing. This fits the revenge game narrative, and nothing else. 

On the back end, Shayne Gostisbeher is a great option that provides a ton of upside. Despite the Coyotes strong performance last game, he didn’t register a shot on goal and finished with one blocked shot. I expect things to be different in this game and have no problem paying up for him. We should be able to get him at low ownership too.

In the blue paint, we don’t know who’s starting for Arizona as of this moment, and to be honest, we shouldn’t really care. If Karel Vejmelka does get the nod, that shouldn’t inspire any confidence. He’s been miserable over his last five starts, and Ivan Prosvetov was just as bad in his one start this season. There’s no reason you should be considering a goalie from this team, at least not tonight.


 

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