RADIO
Welcome, RotoBallers! If you do not know me, my name is Brandon and I write both The First-Serve and The Kick-Off for tennis and soccer, respectively. If you have not checked those out, make sure you do! It is the return of the NHL season, which means it's time to sharpen our skills and partake in NHL DFS! As always, I'll give you the best tools to succeed and the info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on both DraftKings and FanDuel.
Today, I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and FanDuel on Thursday, June, 8th, 2023, at 8:00 PM EST. Be sure to also check out our awesome NHL tools, including our Lineup Optimizer, Research Station, Projections, and DFS Cheat Sheets!
If you have any questions on today's slate, bankroll management, GPP strategy, cash game strategy, or anything else, don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected], via Twitter @df_solutions, or in our premium Slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
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NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 6/8/23
The National Hockey League playoffs have yet to disappoint this season -- depending on who your team is -- as it flaunts its competitive parity with multiple upsets in the first round, notably Presidents’ Trophy winner Boston Bruins and reigning champions Colorado Avalanche.
During the playoffs, it is much more common to find low-scoring and heavy-hitting games. Keep in mind that teams who showcase a high aptitude to score goals will play much tighter and be a bit pickier with their shots. I will do my best to guide you through this showdown slate on DraftKings and FanDuel starting at 8:00 p.m. EST.
DISCLOSURE: Make sure to monitor the news feed and play at your own risk.
Playoff Series Standings
Florida Panthers 0 vs Vegas Golden Knights 2
NHL DFS Core Plays- Showdown Edition For 6/8/2023
Captain
Sam Bennett - DK $12K || FD $11.5K
Despite a 2-0 series lead for the Golden Knights and the Panthers struggling to score, Bennett still remains a high priority at captain. He still has winger Matthew Tkachuk on his line and in the first two games of the Finals, Bennett has 1 assist, 7 shots and 1 blocked shot. It is only a matter of time until this duo can finally start clicking again. After all, they have been mentioned in this article multiple times for just how good of a duo they are and sometimes a trio when Carter Verhaeghe is involved. In a monumental Game 3, Florida needs to respond here and it will not be surprising to see Bennett involved in the mix.
Jonathan Marchessault - DK $13.8K || FD $14K
Marchessault has catapulted himself into the race for the Conn Smythe Trophy – MVP of the Finals – and for very good reasons. In the first two games, the winger has 3 goals, 1 assist and 7 shots. Dating it back to the start of playoffs – 19 games –, he has 12 goals, 9 assists and 69 shots. As mentioned in the article for Game 1, Eichel and Marchessault have ironed out their chemistry and they are clicking on all fronts and the production proves it. It also helps that expected starter Sergei Bobrovsky of the Florida Panthers has been less than ideal with a 0.879 and 0.692 Save Percentage in the first two games. Whether you fully stack the Knights or do a one-off, Marchessault should be one of the first names you come across.
Shea Theodore - DK $11.1K || FD $8.5K
Many would have never foreseen Theodore being a key piece to a consistent playoff contender and making 2 appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals in such a young career after debuting in the league with the Ducks. However, he always had the talent but was never fully utilized. Playing in a similar style but with much more consistency, Theodore has been able to flourish. He possesses the highest-potential ceiling out of all defensemen in the Finals due to his offensive abilities combined with his solid two-way play. In two games in the Finals, he has 1 goal, 1 assist, 3 shots and 2 blocked shots. What makes him the most appealing though is his price tag. At captain, Theodore is $1.5K less expensive than teammate Alex Pietrangelo. No matter the scenario or narrative, Theodore is worth rostering.
Value Plays
Anton Lundell - DK $4.2K || FD $7.5K
After being highlighted in Game 1's article, Lundell has yet to disappoint. In the first two games of the Finals, he has 1 goal, 1 assist and 7 shots. The line of Lomberg-Lundell-Reinhart still possesses a 52 Percent Expected Goals Percentage, however, their counterpart line, Smith-Karlsson-Amadio is starting to trend upwards. Nevertheless, Lundell will remain a solid option at the FLEX position and there could even be lineup changes on the horizon with teammate Alex Barkov performing underwhelmingly. These changes could bump Lundell to the top line at wing – where he scored on Monday –.
Alec Martinez - DK $5.8K || FD $8.5K
In Game 1, Martinez was not needed as much due to the lethargic Panthers putting no pressure on the Knights. However, in Game 2 he did some damage, scoring 1 goal, taking 2 shots and blocking 3 shots. A similar peripheral line could be in store tonight with a dire situation for the Panthers who will come out of the gates blazing in front of their home crowd. To be clear though, Martinez remains a boom-or-bust option and value is reliant on him hitting the 3 or more blocked shots bonus on DraftKings.
Nicolas Roy - DK $4.4K || FD $7K
Third line center William Karlsson missed practice yesterday due to an illness and it remains to be seen if he will make it into the lineup for Game 2 in Florida. If he does not, Roy is the candidate to see a bump in his role with teammate Teddy Blueger filling in his spot. During the first two games of the Finals, Roy has 1 goal and 1 shot, leaving him as a boom-or-bust option. However, if he gets the increased role, he will have more TOI to do damage against a struggling Panthers defense and goaltending.
Brandon's Stacks
- FLA PP1: Verhaeghe-Bennett-Tkachuk
- VGK1: Barbashev-Eichel-Marchessault
