Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 4/28/17

Welcome back daily fantasy and hockey fans! I am not sure we could have asked for a better opening round to the playoffs. We got a see a record 18 overtime games without one game seven in any series and there were just two sweeps. Anaheim swept Calgary but credit the  Flames as they were in every game and three of the four games were one-goal games. The Predators swept the Blackhawks but that wasn't the biggest shock as they also held the Blackhawks to three total goals and shut them out twice.

The second round brings us four of the Top 10 offenses(goals per 60 min) in Pittsburgh(1st), Washington(3rd), New York Rangers(4th) and Nashville(10th). Conversely, we get three of the Top 10 defenses including Washington(1st), Anaheim(7th), and Ottawa(9th).

We are going to switch things up a little bit for the second round as there are going to be a bunch of two-game slates. I will start by previewing the series that start tonight and Ryan will follow up with a preview of the series' that start on Thursday night. We will highlight our top plays from each team and our predictions. Let's dive right in.

 

Hockey is back and with it comes our NHL projections which help inform these picks every night. When you purchase a DFSR NHL subscription to our base hockey projections you also get access to our brand new MLB DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal MLB lineups, and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create MLB lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings for any format. It’s a set of tools well beyond anything we’ve ever had, and something we feel will help our users crush the MLB season.

If you want to see the numbers behind our projections, create lineups with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.

NASHVILLE PREDATORS vs. ST. LOUIS BLUES

NSH Offense (10th) vs. STL Defense (18th)

STL Offense (14th) vs. NSH Defense (17th)

The Predators entered the playoffs as the bottom seed and a big underdog to the Chicago Blackhawks. That was until the puck was dropped in game one. The Preds shut the Hawks out in games one and two in Chicago, beat them in overtime at home in game three, and closed the deal at home with a 4-1 last Thursday night. They were led by their elite top line of Ryan Johansen, Viktor Arvidsson, and Filip Forsberg who accounted for 15 points in those four games. On a two-game slate they are going to be highly owned but that just means you will have to differentiate with one or two other plays to take down a tournament. If you decide to fade the top line, I love the idea of stacking the third line of James Neal, Kevin Fiala, and  Calle Jarnkrok. They were quiet in round one with just four points between them but will be low owned and come with upside on the road if the Blues decide to put their top defensive line on Nashville's JOFA line. Neal also plays up on the top powerplay unit for added value. The Preds also have one of the strongest defensive units but for safety, you are going to want to target one of Roman Josi or Ryan Ellis. Josi had three points, 11 blocks, and 13 shots in round one while Ellis picked up four points, 10 blocks, and 10 shots.

The Blues had a bit of a tougher road to get through the first round despite winning fours games to one. It started in game one when they were doubled in shots 52-26 but came away with the 2-1 win in overtime on the back of their goalie Jake Allen. He continued his elite play throughout the series as the Blues were eventually outshot 182-134 and Allen ended up making 174 saves for a .956 save percentage. After leading the team with 75 points in the regular season, Vladimir Tarasenko was held to just two points in the first round but led the team with 21 shots on goal. Of all the high-priced players on this small slate, he may be the lowest owned and has close to the most upside. Great GPP play. For safety, his linemate Jaden Schwartz makes a nice play as he led the team with five points vs. the Wild with 15 shots on goal. On the defensive end, I like taking the discount on Colton Parayko who was safe in round one with two, 12 shots, and 12 blocks.

My Prediction - Predators in 5

 

Update - After both teams relied heavily on their goaltending in their opening series, it was an offensive explosion of sorts in game one. The Predators ended up picking up the win on the road 4-3 with P.K. Subban leading the way with three points. I am expecting a much tighter, low scoring game on Friday night and once again favor the Nashville Predators. For the Blues to get back in the series and have a chance, Vladimir Tarasenko will have to step up his game.

 

 

EDMONTON OILERS vs. ANAHEIM DUCKS

EDM Offense (12th) vs. ANH Defense (7th)

ANH Offense (20th) vs. EDM Defense (11th)

No matter what happens from here on out, the Oilers have already won the hearts of their fans. After coming so close to winning the Cup back in 2006(lost in Game 7 to Carolina), they missed the playoffs in 10 consecutive years leading up to this season. It has been a painful run that saw nine different head coaches. The excitement is back in Edmonton with a new superstar(Connor McDavid), the return of a legend in Wayne Gretzky, a new arena, and another trip to the NHL playoffs. It wasn't easy as the Sharks took game one in overtime putting the young Oilers in an early hole. They showed great resilience winning each of the next two games by shutout but ran into a buzzsaw in game four, losing 7-0 in San Jose. Once again, they rebounded winning the next two games to advance to round two. Offensively, they were very balanced vs. the Sharks as McDavid led the way with four points with three players(Oscar Klefbom, Leon Draisaitl, Mark Letestu) tied with three points and six other players with two each. In this round, I look for the top line to separate a bit offensively as they somewhat dominated the Ducks in the regular season. They only won the season series 3-2 but McDavid had seven points, Draisaitl had eight, and Maroon even had five points in those five games. Defensively, I will be targeting Andrej Sekera who comes at a low price and provides a nice floor as he recorded three blocks in four straight games to end round one.

The playoffs, for the Ducks, haven't been something new at all. This is their fifth straight season in the playoffs and 10th time in the last 12 years including a Stanley Cup Championship in 2007. They swept the Flames in the first round but it didn't come as easy as it appeared if you didn't watch the games. Only one of the games(Game 4) hit the Vegas Over with a 5-4 overtime win and three of the four games were one-goal games. The top line led the way for the Ducks headed by captain Ryan Getzlaf who tallied three goals and five points in the opening round while averaging over 22 minutes per game(led team). Right behind him was linemate Rickard Rakell who also recorded five points but saw just over 15 minutes of ice time. The biggest surprise for the Ducks was the offensive outburst of Kevin Bieksa and Shea Theodore who took on bigger roles with Sami Vatanen and Cam Fowler out with injury. Theodore recorded five points and Bieksa had four while both tallied six blocks and both come at value price. The secondary scorers for the Ducks were held in check vs. the Flames but you can definitely look to them for possible lower ownership and upside. Jakob Silfverberg led the team with 18 shots on goal on over 18 minutes of ice time per game and stack him with Ryan Kesler and Andrew Cogliano.

My Prediction - Oilers in 7

 

Update - The Ducks opening the scoring in the second period which was followed by the teams trading punches in a very exciting third period. There were six goals scored in total with Oilers coming out on top and taking a 1-0 series lead. Look for the oilers to push the pace and get Anaheim into a track meet once again. This will be the top game to stack from a fantasy perspective.

 

 

Hockey is back and with it comes our NHL projections which help inform these picks every night. When you purchase a DFSR NHL subscription to our base hockey projections you also get access to our brand new MLB DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal MLB lineups, and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create MLB lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings for any format. It’s a set of tools well beyond anything we’ve ever had, and something we feel will help our users crush the MLB season.

If you want to see the numbers behind our projections, create lineups with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.