Hello everyone! My name is Matt and I’m a content writer for the DFS Army. If you are on Twitter, give me a follow “mdellagnese14“. As we head into the full swing of the final two rounds of the NHL playoffs, I will be giving you a brief overview of the teams in each series and write down my predictions! The NHL playoffs have been a good one. If you are not currently a DFS Army member, what are you waiting for?! Use the promo code “MDELL” to save 20% off your membership for life! Check out some of our wins from the past!
As you can see, we have tons of winners across all different sports! Check out our Wall of Wins for more winners and exclusive interviews from the winners themselves!
Every slate, we have a wonderful Research Station that gives you key stats for lines, players, goalies, and more! Give it a look and dominate these last two rounds!
Along with the Research Station and Domination Station, I will be providing showdown slates for the Stanley Cup Finals
Without further ado, here is the breakdown of the Stanley Cup Finals!
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Dallas Stars
Well, the conference finals didn’t go as my predictions stated, but Tampa Bay still won. Dallas played a very hard-fought series against the Vegas Golden Knights and came out with the series win. In this article, I will break down the key players in the two teams who I believe have the best fantasy outlook!
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning showed just how good they are in the last series with the Islanders, but they also showed us how much they struggle without their main Center man Brayden Point. He needs to stay healthy in this series if they want to win here.
Nikita Kucherov: The main guy for the bolts in the playoffs so far. He has 26 points, (6 goals and 20 assists). He’s a beast shooting the puck with 67 SOG in 19 games. Kucherov will be a top play in captain spots during showdown slates in this series.
Brayden Point: Point, when healthy runs this team. Now, I know that Kucherov is the leading point man, but Point runs the offense starting in the top line. He makes guys around him play so much better. Through 17 games in the playoffs, he has 9 goals, 16 assists on 54 SOG. He had 2 game-winning goals so far and has been a beast on the PP.
Victor Hedman: Without Point last series, Hedman stepped up. He has 15 points in the playoffs with 9 goals and 6 assists. He shoots the puck a ton (62) and gets some blocked shots. These three guys will be my main focus of CAPT spots for showdowns in the series.
Ondrej Palat: The 3rd man on the top line here is Palat. I love him and what he’s been able to do in the playoffs. He’s been a SOG machine with 63 over 19 games, adding 8 goals and 5 assists. Palat is a sneaky option for CAPT spots because his price will likely allow you to play Point and Kucherov with him, potentially for all the TB points.
Yanni Gourde: Gourde stepped up the last series with Point out. He has 12 points in the playoffs to go with 43 SOG. He has great chemistry with Blake Coleman on the 3rd line for TB and will always be low owned in this series.
Blake Coleman: Coleman stepped it up to the last series against the Islanders. He has 10 points in the playoffs and makes for a nice mini-stack in DFS with Gourde. They will be low owned considering they play on the 3rd line for TB, but still, play a ton of minutes and get some powerplay time.
Value guys who could make DFS impacts: Kevin Shattenkirk, Mikhail Sergachev, Erik Cernak
Dallas Stars
Dallas played amazing against the Knights in the conference finals. They were led by amazing goaltending from Anton Khudobin and he will need to keep it up in the finals if Dallas wants to win. Dallas got their top line back together in Seguin, Benn, and Radulov and wreaked havoc against the Knights. They are a solid defensive team and goaltending hasn’t been an issue.
Jaime Benn: Dallas’ captain showed up in the last series against Vegas. He was a beast in all the games and is gritty and plays hard. Benn has 18 points in the playoffs, scoring 8 goals and grabbing 10 helpers. He is the leading SOG man for them with 57.
Miro Heiskanen: Leading point scorer for Dallas in the playoffs with 22 (5 goals, 17 assists). He shoots the puck a ton and plays physical. His price likely will be up there for Dallas in the series but will be a good DFS play in showdowns.
Denis Gurianov: 3rd in points for Dallas in the postseason with 17 (9 goals, 8 assists). Gurianov has 2 game-winning goals for them too and had a nice series last time out against the Knights. He will be key for them on the 2nd line (assuming lines don’t change).
John Klingberg: Klingberg has good games, then goes silent. He still has 13 assists in the playoffs but is not a trustworthy DFS player. He can have those blow-up games but needs to be used with caution.
Alexander Radulov: Oh Radulov. You crushed my dreams with Vegas going to the finals and scored a nice game-winning goal in OT. Radulov has been great in the playoffs with 8 goals and 6 assists, the best thing is he has added 4 game-winning goals in 21 games this postseason.
Value guys who can make DFS impacts: Joe Pavelski (9 G, 5 A, 49 SOG), Tyler Seguin (53 SOG), Radek Faksa (key points, but missed time last series), Esa Lindell (block machine), Corey Perry
Goalie Comparison
Goalies are going to win this series as both teams have shown they can put up points, but both goalies have been amazing in the playoffs. I don’t see the teams going to anyone else but their #1 netminders.
Andrei Vasilevskiy: Has minded the net in all 19 games for the Bolts in the playoffs, going 14-5-0 with a 1.83 GAA and a .931 save %. He has been an absolute beast for them and will start every game in this series unless he gets injured. Vasil will make for a great cash game option in showdowns too, especially in games they win.
Anton Khudobin: Khudobin absolutely shut down Vegas in the Conference Finals and looked outstanding all season. He lead the league in save percentage with a .930% in the regular season and has looked even better in the playoffs. In 19 games, he is 12-6-0 with a 2.62 GAA and a .920 SV%. He will need to stand on his head in this series if they want to come away with the Cup. Khudobin makes for a fine play in DFS for showdowns too as he should see a ton of shots his way.
Series Prediction:
I think the Lightning are going to be too much for the Stars and come away with the win and the Stanley Cup. They have so much firepower and can really put the puck on net. Dallas can play some hard hockey, but I think their offense isn’t going to be enough against Vasilevskiy. I think this will be a hard-fought series and could go 6 games. Dallas will need strong games from all of their players as TB has 3 lines that have made impacts in the playoffs.
FINAL PREDICTION: Lightning wins in 6.
Thank you all that have made it this far in the article! Join me at the DFS Army for exclusive showdown cheat sheets during this round of the playoffs! If you are not a member, sign up using the discount code “MDELL” to save 20%. We have NFL just around the corner and you are not going to want to miss our amazing NFL content!
GOOD LUCK!