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 MLB 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 Thursday, 23rd, 2023Â at 7:00 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] or via Twitter @df_solutions or in our premium slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 3/23/23
The trade market has officially come and gone and teams are gearing up for a tough stretch of very meaningful games and playoffs in hopes of a date with Lord Stanley. Tonight we have an 11-game slate with one team playing on a back-to-back, Pittsburgh. The currently live top-3 highest implied team totals are: Boston with 4.6, Vancouver with 4, and Washington with 3.8. I will do my best in guiding you through this eleven-game slate on DraftKings and FanDuel starting at 7:00 p.m. EST.
DISCLOSURE: Make sure to monitor the news feed and play at your own risk
Goalies
Thatcher Demko- DK $8K || FD $7K
Opponent - San Jose Sharks
Demko is by far the furthest thing from a trustable keeper right now, however, he is the biggest reason for the resurgence of the Vancouver Canucks. In his last five games, he has 3 wins and only 2 games below a 0.900 Save Percentage. The goalie options on tonight’s slate are ugly and we ultimately need to pick on teams not performing to ensure as close to a win as possible. In the Sharks’ last five away games, they are being outscored 10 to 19 and over the last 10 games, they are the third-worst in Goals For Per 60 – 2.02 –. It is a safe bet here for Demko to reach double-digit fantasy points.                                                                   Â
Others To Consider (Cash/GPP): Lindgren (DK $8.3K || FD $8K), Bobrovsky (DK $7.2K || FD $7.7K)
Centers
Elias Pettersson-DK $8.8K || FD $9.7K
Opponent - San Jose Sharks
Sticking with the Canucks, we have their top-line center, Elias Pettersson. In his last five appearances, he has 3 goals, 4 assists and 14 shots. Over the last ten games for the Sharks, they are in the bottom ten of the league in both Scoring Chances Against Per 60 – 31.24 – and High Danger Chances Against Per 60 – 14.29 –, while also being the third-worst in Goals Against Per 60 – 4.17 –. Furthermore, in their last five away games, they have been outscored 10 to 19 and expected starter Kaapo Kahkonen has conceded a slate-high 28 goals in his previous five games. Albeit Pettersson started the season in terrible form, he has managed to have the best season of his short career this year, and expect him to keep that going tonight against the Sharks.                                                                          Â
Dylan Strome- DK $4.9K || FD $5.8K
Opponent - Chicago Blackhawks
Strome makes it into the article again this week with another solid matchup, against the Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago is similar to Montreal now. They are terrible defensively, however, their goaltending is keeping them alive. Over the last 10 games, the Blackhawks are the third-worst in Shots Against Per 60 – 34.38 –, the fifth-wost in Scoring Chances Against Per 60 – 32.88 – and the eighth-worst in High Danger Chances Against Per 60 – 13.75 –. Through two games since Strome was brought back to the top line, he has 1 goal, 2 assists, 5 shots, and 1 blocked shot. As long as he remains with Ovechkin, he will be viable.                                                          Â
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Scheifele (DK $6.2K || FD $6.8K), Bennett (DK $5.8K || FD $5.8K)
Wings
Anthony Beauvillier- DK $4.3K || FD $4.7K
Opponent - San Jose Sharks
Continuing the ongoing Canucks theme of the article, Beauvillier has been recently placed on the top power-play unit and surprisingly his point production has not gone up. However, he is still shooting with 13 shots in his last five games. In that same time frame, he has 1 goal and 2 assists as well. The Sharks’ defense has been mentioned once or twice already. Beauvillier will have every chance to produce tonight. He may have some pressure on him as well, with this possibly being his last shot on the top line for the Canucks.                                            Â
Carter Verhaeghe- DK $6.9K || FD $7.9K
Opponent - Toronto Maple Leafs
Florida may be one of the most under-owned teams on the slate tonight because of their matchup against Toronto. What most don’t know is that Toronto is reeling currently and expected starter Matt Murray is averaging 4 Goals Against Per 60. Verhaeghe in his last five games, has 4 goals, 4 assists and 29 shots. With linemate Matthew Tkachuk much more expensive, Verhaeghe comes in as the cheaper option with just as much upside and the same floor. Florida could be a key to shipping the slate.                              Â
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Ovechkin (DK $8.4K || FD $8.6K), Vrana (DK $5.1K || FD $5.5K)
Defense
Quinn Hughes- DK $5.2K || FD $7.2K
Opponent - San Jose Sharks
Value defensemen are once again hard to find tonight so we will be paying up for a prime matchup. In Hughes’s last five appearances, he has 6 assists, 18 shots, and 3 blocked shots. The Sharks’ defensive woes have been mentioned numerous times tonight and with the Canucks averaging 4 Goals For Per 60 in their last five, Hughes should see plenty of chances to produce here.               Â
Rasmus Sandin- DK $4.6K || FD $4.8K
Opponent - Chicago Blackhawks
Sandin makes the article for the second time this week after not disappointing in the surprising 7-6 loss to the Blue Jackets. Despite him only assisting one goal out of six possible goals, Sandin did take a shot and blocked three shots. Through the last five games for the defenseman, he has 4 assists, 8 shots, and 4 blocked shots. His peripherals have dipped since his arrival in Washington, however, he has another prime matchup, this time against the Blackhawks, to extend his point streak to four games.Â
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Lindholm (DK 5.2K || FD $6K), Parayko (DK $4K || FD $4.8K)
NHL DFS Top Power Plays and Stacks
- VAN1
- BOS1
- WAS1
- FLA1
- WPG1
Brandon's Stack of the Day
- BOS: Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak
Chalk Stack
- VAN: Miller-Pettersson-Beauvillier
Sneaky Stack
- FLA: Verhaeghe-Barkov-Tkachuk
