DFS NHL is a volatile sport centering around correlation, stacking and game theory. Learning how to win cash games and tournaments requires nailing those great upside plays/stacks, grabbing obvious value, and making the proper fades that sink everyone else’s ships. Let’s look through today’s slate and identify those winning picks in “Snipes, Grinders, and Hard Passes!”
All of my plays make sense for the entire DFS industry; however, if there is an egregious discrepancy in player salary between sites, I will mention it in my briefing.
Snipe = Good Play
Grinder = Value Plays (Grinders are Valuable)
Hard-Pass = I’m fading in tournaments
DFS NHL Slate Overview:
Medium sized slate tonight, trade deadline looming, a few superstar stacks to choose from; who doesn’t love hockey? There are some smash spots tonight, as well as some sneaky ones, and I will be going over how to make a chalky stack sneaky, as well as why one of the sneakier stacks has high upside.
Snipes and Hard Passes for Tonight
wJan 15, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov (86) passes the puck as Dallas Stars center Jacob Peterson (40) defends during the third period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Correlated Snipe #1
Brayden Point – Nikita Kucherov – Viktor Hedman
This is the primary smash spot I was referring to, because Tampa Bay is at home against the Red Wings who have played in some wild games this season already. These divisional rivals are not friendly, and with Tampa coming off a big loss to Pittsburgh just last night, they are going to want to respond in a big way in front of their home fans. My stack includes Hedman, instead of the 3rd forward on the Point line (Palat), because I am gambling on this game being a wild one tonight, and Hedman is a point per game defenseman that plays a ton of important minutes in all situations of the game. If this game remains a nail-biter, the Lightning will play their 3 best players, which are these guys. The Atlantic division is crazy with 3 of the top teams in the entire NHL at the top of it, and with the way the broken NHL playoff structure is, one of those teams is going to not have home ice; so my point is, each of the 3 teams will be fighting for it till the end, because home ice in the playoffs is a monumental deal in the NHL compared to other sports.
Correlated Snipe #2
Anze Kopitar – Alex Iafallo – Adrian Kempe
Here is my sneakier stack of the night compared to the Lightning, Hurricanes, Rangers, and Wild. The Kings and Anze Kopitar in particular have destroyed my Blue Jackets in their lifetime; or it really feels like it. Kopitar has been around forever, and back in the day, Gary Bettman thought it was a good idea for my expansion Blue Jackets to play in the western conference, where we regularly got smoked by Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown. So, Kopitar kills Columbus, Iafallo I believe does well against Columbus, and Kempe is just damn good at hockey and has scored a pile of goals this season. Columbus is also one of the worst teams in the league in regards to goals against this season, although they haven’t been as astronomically bad as of late; but, they still can give them up. I’m not saying my Jackets will just get smacked, I’m saying this could certainly be like a 5-5 game heading into overtime. Just keep in mind that this game is going to be super fast, and the Columbus crowd will be wild with Rick Nash’s number getting hung up tomorrow (first Columbus player ever).
If you want to freshen up your 2021-22 cash and tourney strategy skills, read “How to Win DFS NHL in 2022.”
Hard Pass #1
The Penguins/Hurricanes game
Sean, you always fade the Penguins games. Wrong, I often tout them with confidence; however, they are old on the second game of a back to back where they just handed it to the Lightning, and now have another Stanley Cup contending team in the Hurricanes. On the flip side, I like the talent the Hurricanes have, but I typically don’t stack against Pittsburgh. With all of the talent in this game, the players are going to be expensive; and it just feels like this is one of those games in the Metropolitan division that is just super grindy at like 2-3 with random role players scoring. I just feel like there are better spots; fight me.
Save research time with our easy-to-read NHL Cheatsheets! Core plays, tourney leverage, correlated stacks, and extreme goalie plays set up your night differently than your competition.
NHL Grinder Value Plays
Grinder #1
Alexis Lafreniere – Not much to say here; he is on the Rangers top line who are in a good spot against the Devils, and Lafreniere has scored in 3 of his last 4 games. The Rangers really want to get this lottery pick going.
Grinder#2
Jamie Benn – The Stars captain is still too cheap and gets thrown into all situations to the game. He loves throwing pucks on net, and the Jets have been not great defensively all year.
Good luck, I hope you all come in 2nd. 😉
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