RADIO
It is Friday and yes, the other two second-round series opens up. Can San Jose and Colorado become that "it" series when it comes to the offense this round?
Remember, when picking around for plays, an over/under of 6 dictates offense, but an over/under of 5 or sometimes 5.5 tilts towards the goalies. The expectation of trying to gauge the Islanders-Hurricanes game on this slate is a challenging one. San Jose and Colorado again expect to be the higher scoring contest.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy hockey lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 4/26/19. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. Let's get to it, shall we?
Editor's Note: Our industry-leading NHL DFS Lineup Optimizer/Generator tool helps you build winning DFS lineups in seconds. Generate optimal DFS lineups using advanced stats and player projections, and get an edge on daily fantasy hockey contests for FanDuel, DraftKings and Yahoo. Power users can create hundreds of lineups in seconds. Sign Up Now!
DFS Forwards to Consider
Nathan MacKinnon - C, COL vs SJS (FD - $9,000, DK - $7,300)
It is amazing to see the growth of MacKinnon from the 2013 NHL Draft until now. He plays downhill hockey as few forwards anyone has ever seen. MacKinnon has eight points in his last four games and is averaging nearly five shots a game over his past ten contests. The center will get his points in this series as San Jose could barely stop Vegas and got torched a good bit by the Vegas top-six. Some will argue that top line from Colorado will do much the same and they could produce a few games with crooked numbers (say 8-10+ points from one line).
Timo Meier - W, SJS vs COL (FD - $5,800, DK - $5,600)
Friday night features this slightly risky play considering Meier has not scored a goal in four games. However, the winger does have assists in three straight games and comes off a tour-de-force contest where he attempted 16 shots and got ten on the net. Colorado's defense is a bit more porous than Vegas' and their depth pairings are in the bottom third in scoring chances allowed per 60. Meier's speed and power on the wings will be on full display in this series.
DFS Defenders to Consider
Dougie Hamilton - D, CAR vs NYI (FD - $5,700, DK - $5,600)
Hamilton keeps rolling along despite not getting that full top power-play unit bump. He has five goals and ten points in the last ten games combined with 33 shots on goal. Add in his 15 blocks during that span and that is a floor of nearly five (SABS -- shots and blocked shots). The Islanders were pretty vulnerable against Pittsburgh but most every opportunity the Penguins had was thwarted by Robin Lehner. Carolina is younger and a bit more tenacious than Pittsburgh. Also, New York has not played in over a week. There is going to be some rust.
Tyson Barrie - D, COL vs SJS (FD - $6,600, DK - $6,000)
Barrie does have the floor of tonight's top defenseman. However, he does not quite have the goal scoring potential of a Brent Burns or Dougie Hamilton. Also, he is deployed more like Hamilton sometimes and Burns light the other occasions. This is partially to maximize his talents. San Jose gave up so many goals in the last series yet somehow advanced. Martin Jones gave up 20 alone in seven games and he was pulled early twice. The key matchups DFS wise will be special teams and whether Colorado can continue what they did to Calgary. The expectation is that Barrie will have even more chances in this round than in the last.
DFS Goalies to Consider
Petr Mrazek - G, CAR vs NYI (FD - $7,800, DK - $7,300)
Mrazek comes in as almost a must play in some lineups because he is the lowest priced starting goaltender and is at home. The Carolina goalie found a way to steal one as he outplayed Braden Holtby in a Game 7. That is not easy to do. There is the concern that the Islanders may be so rusty that their shot projections get knocked down by 20-25% or more. Philipp Grubauer would be the other option against San Jose because of the chances he sees 30-35+ shots may be higher than Mrazek's. However, Mrazek has a slightly better chance at a win. The goaltender has a .938 save percentage and top-five goals saved above average since the All-Star Break.
