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Mark Kieffer's top DraftKings and FanDuel NHL DFS value plays and research for April 20th, 2022 including DFS analysis for goalies, power plays, and stacks.
Welcome, RotoBallers! If you do not know me, my name is Mark and I write NFL, MLB, and NHL on Rotoballer. I play NHL DFS almost daily, and am excited to bring you my thoughts on today's slate!
Today I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and FanDuel on Wednesday, April 20th, 2022 at 8:30 PM EST. Be sure to also check out our awesome suite of NHL DFS lineup tools including our Lineup Optimizer, Research Station, DFS 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 hit me up on Twitter @Mark_Kieffer or in our premium slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
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NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 4/20/22
We have a four-game slate tonight. We one game starting at 8:30 pm Eastern and three games starting at to 10:00 pm Eastern. Be aware of when the games start for your stacks, one-offs, and goalie. The best thing you can do is check 20-30 minutes before the puck drops for each game to ensure everyone in your lineup is playing! Nothing is more frustrating than having a great lineup and getting a zero from any position but especially goalie!
NHL DFS Goalies
Pavel Francouz- DK $8.3K|| FD $8.4K
Opponent - Seattle Kraken
The Avalanche are the biggest favorite on the slate and there is some value at other positions that I think you can spend up at Goalie in cash games and be alright. Francouz is 15-3-1 on the season with a 2.49 GAA, two shutouts, and a .919 SV%. He should get the win, 25 saves or so against a Seattle team that is not very offensive.
Others To Consider (Cash/GPP): Smith (DK $8.1K || FD $8.0K), Vanecek (DK $7.6K || FD $7.8K). It's a small slate, you can probably talk yourself into any goalie depending on what kind of contest you are playing, but these are the three I am the most comfortable with playing on this slate.
NHL DFS Centers
When rostering a Center you have to decide if you are going to pair or stack with a winger. If pairing or stacking, you can go for a pass-first center that will be a little less expensive in hopes of them getting an assist to the winger(s) you have. If you are looking for a Center as a stand-alone player, I recommend rostering Centers that are expected to take a lot of shots on goal. Below you will find recommendations that fall into both camps.
Nathan MacKinnon - DK $9.3K || FD $10.0K
Opponent - Seattle Kraken
The Avs have been doing so well this year that I wondered what they were playing for this late in the season. They are tied with Florida for the Presidents' Trophy. Winning this would be important for the Avs because they would secure home ice throughout the playoffs. With MacKinnon, there is not need to rehash all of his stats. He averages more fantasy points than any other center on the slate, Seattle is a weak opponent, and the Avs want to win.
Evgeny Kuznetsov- DK $5.9K || FD $7.4K
Opponent - Vegas Golden Knights
Evgeny Kuznetsov is a solid play on this slate. He averages 1.03 points per game and 2.65 shots on goal per game. You cannot find many point-per-game players in this price range, especially on DraftKings.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): McDavid (DK $9.1K || FD $9.9K), Draisaitl (DK $8.2K || FD $9.7K), Eichel (DK $7.3K || FD $7.8K), Seguin (DK $4.6K || FD $5.2K), Strome (DK $3.9K || FD $5.6K - Winger on FD), Stephenson (DK $3.5K || FD $5.4K)
NHL DFS Wings
Generally, with wingers, I want players that are likely to take many shots on goal at a reduced price. I play tournaments and generally stack, but if I am playing a winger as a one-off I want a guy that is going to shoot a lot and hopefully scores.
Patrick Kane- DK $7.6K|| FD $8.7K
Opponent - Arizona Coyotes
Arizona allows the most shots on goal per game (36.63), which will give a big boost to Chicago. Patrick Kane averages 1.22 points per game and 3.68 shots on goal per game. Going against such a bad defense, Kane is in a great spot as are the rest of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Jason Robertson - DK $5.6K || FD $7.6K
Opponent - Edmonton Oilers
Jason Robertson averages 1.03 points per game and 2.91 shots on goal per game. Edmonton is middle of the pack in the league in shots on goal allowed. Robertson is mainly a play here because he is one of the least expensive players that average a point per game on the slate.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Ovechkin (DK $8.3K || FD $9.6K - GPP), Rantanen (DK $7.8K || FD $8.0K), DeBrincat (DK $6.7K || FD $7.7K), E. Kane (DK $5.5K || FD $7.0K), Nichushkin (DK $5.2K|| FD $6.8K), Hyman (DK $4.6K || FD $6.1K), Gurianov (DK $2.6K || FD $3.7K)
NHL DFS Defensemen
My general rule of thumb with Defensemen is if I am spending up at the position, I want that player to be on the Powerplay with a chance to score a goal. This is also a position I will punt quite a bit at. If I am punting, I want a player that is projected to get a good amount of ice time and has a chance to get a blocked shot bonus on DraftKings. I also try to find defensemen on a power play (might be the 2nd one) if I can.
This slate does not have a lot of great defenseman value at the top of the salary and I would advise to either punt here or add a power-play defenseman to a stack if playing a GPP.
Seth Jones - DK $6.2K || FD $6.2K
Opponent - Arizona Coyotes
As I have written up pretty much every time Chicago is on the slate: Seth Jones is a great cash game player because he is so balanced. He averages 0.68 points per game 2.49 shots on goal per game, and 2.07 blocked shots per game. He scores fantasy points in a variety of ways, has point-scoring upside, and blocked shots bonus upside on DraftKings.
Shayne Gostisbehere - DK $4.4K || FD $5.0K
Opponent - Calgary Flames
Shayne Gostisbehere averages 0.58 points per game, 1.86 shots on goal per game, and 1.37 blocked shots per game. He is on the first power-play unit and wouldn't take much for him to reach value when he is priced $5K or below.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Makar (DK $8.0K || FD $7.3K - GPP on DK, cash viable on FD), Pietrangelo (DK $6.4K || FD $6.6K - Better on FD), Carlson (DK $6.3K || FD $6.9K - Better on FD), Nurse (DK $5.7K || FD $5.7K), Theodore (DK $5.1K || FD $5.9K), Klingberg (DK $4.5K || FD $5.2K), Larsson (DK $3.1K || FD $4.3K)
NHL DFS GPP Strategy
This will come as no surprise, I am a single entry and 3 max DFS player, but I will look to fade all of those lowest implied total teams and try to target stacks in the high implied total games.
I will continue to emphasize this but your strategy for GPPs depends on what kind of contest you are playing in. If playing in a single entry or smaller contest on a slate this size, if you fade the top couple of stacks and find one that is still viable, that's probably enough leverage you need on the field. If playing in a large entry tournament with thousands of lineups, you are probably going to need to roster a goalie against the most popular stack and try to get leverage there if you want the best chance at winning.
On a small slate like this one, I think you have to play it differently. Colorado (4.4 implied goals) and Edmonton (3.7 implied goals) are likely to be popular. How popular will Chicago (3.7 implied goals) and Vegas (3.5 implied goals) be? In a single entry format, I take the least talked about stack of those four (likely Chicago or Vegas) and then roll with chalk the rest of the way. In a large tournament, I take Grubauer (leverage on Colorado) and take any stack outside of Colorado (If Colorado isn't the most popular team replace Colorado with Edmonton, Chicago or Vegas)
