April 1, 2016

Barry Leonard's DFS advice for 4/1/16. Daily Fantasy Hockey Lineup Picks and sleepers for FanDuel & DraftKings NHL cash games and GPPs.

Welcome to the Daily Fantasy Hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks article for April 1st of the 2015/2016 NHL season. Each day we'll be providing you with a handful of forward, defensemen, and goaltender picks for DraftKings and FanDuel GPP and cash games.

It may be April Fool's Day, but don't be fooled, there is plenty of NHL action going on Friday night. With five games scheduled, several good options will be available to form your DFS lineup. With the season winding down, teams will continue to fight for playoff position.

Tonight's action features the Washington Capitals - a team that's already clinched everything possible. Still, with so much talent on the team, several Washington players make for good fantasy targets, even if some of the stars end up sitting out for rest.

Chicago, St. Louis, Boston, and Anaheim are also all in action tonight, meaning that several popular fantasy targets will be available.

The key tonight is figuring out a way to throw in one or two of the highest-priced players while mixing in some under-the-radar players.

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NHL DFS Picks for Friday, April 1st

A couple strategy notes. For cash game construction look for players who can contribute to your score when they are not providing offense. Examples are guys who take a ton of shots, defensemen who block a lot of shots(DraftKings). Also, look for guys who get powerplay time and especially Top 6 forwards. You can find value in players who join a new line due to an injury or just get a promotion and more ice time.

For large field tournaments (GPP's) you want to find payers who have multi-point upside and can grab double-digit fantasy points. To stack the most upside in your forwards, a common strategy is to punt the defenseman position. This doesn't mean just grab anyone. Try and look for a D-man who will be playing more PP time or might get a boost in overall playing time due to an injury.

Let's take a look at some solid plays for today's action.

Scott Darling - Goaltender, Blackhawks  (DraftKings - $7,800  FanDuel - $7,900)

Picking a goalie to start in DFS lineups is always tricky, especially as the season comes to a close, as coaches start to experiment with some different starters at times. However, Scott Darling has become the clear starter in Chicago with Corey Crawford still sidelined with an upper-body injury. Despite losing his last start, Darling gets Winnipeg tonight, a team that's dropped three straight games and struggles to score the puck. Throw in the fact that he shut out the Jets on March 18, and Darling looks like a top choice in net for tonight.

Pavel Datsyuk - Center, Red Wings  (DraftKings - $6,300  FanDuel - $6,400)

Datsyuk has stepped up his game lately with nine points over the last eight games. He's coming off a game Tuesday in which he picked up two power-play assists. 18 of his 47 points this year have come on the power play, giving him extra value when used on FanDuel. On a night that doesn't have a ton of options, Datsyuk is playing well and can provide good scoring at a decent price.

Paul Stastny - Center, Blues  (DraftKings - $4,800 FanDuel - $5,900)

Stastny continues to be a smart play in daily leagues, especially when the matchup is good. Tonight he gets a Boston team that hasn't been good against opposing centers. The 30-year-old has been centering a good third line in St. Louis and is locked into his role center on the second power-play unit. Stastny enters tonight with a three-game point streak and seven assists in his last five games. He won't produce much in the way of goals, though he did score two on March 14. The veteran center carries a reasonable price tag and is a solid pick for your lineup tonight.

Mark Scheifele - Center, Jets  (DraftKings - $6,200 FanDuel - $7,500)

Scheifele picked up his 26th goal of the year Wednesday and extended his point streak to five games. He's started a new streak after going pointless for the games. Prior to that stretch, he scored a point in eight straight games. The bottom line is that Scheifele is extremely hot right now, racking up 19 points in his last 16 games. He's even got four penalty minutes in the last three games, making him an excellent play for either DFS site.

Justin Williams - Winger, Capitals  (DraftKings - $5,500 FanDuel - $5,100)

Williams gets the luxury of skating on a line with very talented people around him. Lately, he's been paired with Nicklas Backstrom and Andre Burakovsky on the second line. He has also spent time on the top power-play unit. The 34-year-old has been a bit streaky this year, but he's up to 51 points. He enters tonight with a goal and an assist in his last two games, and gets an extremely favorable matchup with Colorado. On a night when some top wingers are available, go away from the pack a bit and take Williams.

Vladimir Tarasenko - Winger, Blues  (DraftKings - $7,400 FanDuel - $8,100)

If you are looking to spend some big money on a top winger tonight, Tarasenko should be the target. He'll save you some money over guys like Ovechkin and Kane, but the production has been on the same level. The talented Russian is riding a three-game point streak with goals in each of his last two games. With 11 points in the last 10 games, Tarasenko is definitely worth a look on both DFS sites.

Jamie McGinn - Winger, Ducks  (DraftKings - $4,500 FanDuel - $5,400)

McGinn has seen a major uptick in production since coming over from Buffalo in early March. He's got 12 points in the last 15 games, including a four-game point streak that he brings into tonight. With nine points in the last eight games, McGinn deserves a start in fantasy lineups each night he's on the ice. Tonight's matchup against Vancouver looks very good on paper, making McGinn one of the top targets at winger. Just be aware that he could carry a high ownership based on the combination of his production and very affordable price tag.

John Carlson - Defenseman, Capitals  (DraftKings - $5,700 FanDuel - $5,100)

Carlson got healthy at just the right time for the Capitals. He's tuning up for the playoffs after missing a month with an injury. He's registered two points in the four games he's been back, and can be very useful to fantasy owners even when he's not landing on the scoresheet. He didn't pick up any points Wednesday, but got credit for six blocked shots and three shots on goal. Carlson is playing well with a price tag lower than what he'd usually have. He's a great option at defenseman tonight.

Zdeno Chara - Defenseman, Bruins  (DraftKings - $4,800 FanDuel - $4,200)

The veteran blueliner has flown under the radar this season, but has put up 35 points thus far, his highest total over the past two seasons. He no longer shoots the puck at a high rate, but his 69 penalty minutes makes him valuable in fantasy hockey. He enters tonight's game with three points and eight penalty minutes in his last four games. Chara is no longer the star he once was, but he's still a very solid daily fantasy play.

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