Welcome to the Daily Fantasy Hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks article for 4/2/16 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.

If you've been leaning on Steven Stamkos down the stretch, you were in for a surprise Saturday. The Lightning announced that he wasn't going to be in the lineup during Saturday's game.

That made some sense though. If he's banged up at all, rest him, the playoffs are just a few games away.

Then, after the game, it was revealed that Stamkos will be sidelined for one to three months with a blood clot (Effort Thrombosis), which will require surgery.

This is a huge blow to the team's playoff chances and to a player who has had some terrible luck, missing big moments of seasons due to injury.

It's also a big loss in fantasy, but it will also create an interesting opportunity for someone on the team. That gets extra interesting if that person is Jonathan Drouin. He's been playing very well in the AHL and could be an interesting late-season or playoff addition to the roster. He could come cheap and have high upside.
 

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NHL DFS Picks for 4/2/16

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 defense 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.

Sidney Crosby - Center, Penguins ($8,100 - DraftKings)
He's on a five-game point streak and since his slow start to the season he has had separate 11-game and 12-game point streaks. Outside of Joe Thornton, there might not be anyone else in the league that you've been able to set your clock to as much as Crosby.

Kris Letang - Defense, Penguins ($7,200 - DraftKings)
Like Crosby, he's not coming cheap, but if you're going to spend big money, spend it on someone who is producing consistently. He has 48 points sin the 43 games since he came back from injury. That's more than Erik Karlsson in that time (41 points in 44 games).

Zach Parise - Wing, Wild ($7,200 - DraftKings)
In the last six games, Parise has six goals and and 10 points. He also has 20 shots, a plus-5 rating, four power play points, 10 hits and 10 blocked shots. He's delivering a lot of value across categories, no matter what his price is.

Jacob Trouba - Defense, Jets ($4,300 - DraftKings)
You should be a little surprised to Trouba here. He's been struggling to score, but he's putting up consistent value in other categories that can provide value at a cheap cost in a depth position on your roster. He has 21 hits in the last seven games, as well as 17 blocked shots. If you can glean value from those numbers in the format you're playing, he can be a sneaky play.

Scott Darling - Goaltender, Blackhawks ($7,800 - DraftKings)
This is for a very particular kind of play. In a limited slate Sunday, no goaltender has an easy start. There's no sure thing. Darling has been playing very well and, despite the loss of Duncan Keith, he has the potential to be a good play. He doesn't come at a huge discount, but you can save a little by starting him, moving that money into another position.

Brian Elliott - Goaltender, Blues ($8,600 - DraftKings)
On the other hand, maybe you want to grab the hottest hand in the league. It'll cost you. His .931 save percentage is the best in the league and his .943 save percentage over his last 20 games is even more impressive. He's also got three shutouts in his last five starts. He's a good gamble.

 

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