Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8), from Russia, pauses on the ice in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Dallas Stars, Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Week two of the NHL playoffs starts tonight with another four-game slate. All four series will be switching cities with the Nashville gaining the biggest advantage so far, winning both games in Chicago. The Ducks took both games at home vs. the Flames while the Capitals/Leafs and Bruins/Senators split their first two games.
After a low scoring start to almost every series, we have seen a shift with a ton more scoring the past few nights so buckle and lock in those line stacks, specifically the powerplay lines. Let's dig in and take a look at a game by game breakdown and some of the top plays for Monday.
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Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 15.52 DK - 3.53
Hard not to like a guy who has made all 58 saves in the first two games. Not just against anyone either. The Blackhawks are one of the top offensive teams in the league and also have one of the most experienced playoff resumes of all 16 teams. Bad news for the Blackhawks the Preds have been a better team at home this season and so has Rinne. He had a .43 GAA advantage vs. the road and recorded his only three regular season shutouts on home ice. He has also been sub 10% owned both nights in the $4 Forecheck.
BOS Offense (16th) vs. OTT Defense (9th)
OTT Offense (19th) vs. BOS Defense (10th)
Series Update - Tied 1-1
In what started to be a close checking game in game two, turned out to be a high scoring affair. The teams traded goals halfway through the second period before the Bruins would take control with a 3-1 lead heading into the third period. They were unable to close, however, as Ottawa would grab a goal early in the third and follow it up, two minutes later with the game-tying goal. It didn't take long for the Sens to close it out in OT as Phaneuf's point shot tied the series two minutes in. The series now shifts to Boston where the Sens beat the Bruins twice this season. The playoffs are a completely different animal and this series appears to have the legs for a high scoring seven game series.
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 13.44 DK - 4.02
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 7.52 DK - 2.33
I am sticking with the same Bruin combo in game three of the series. Neither let us down in game two as Bergeron picked up a goal on three shots and once again skated over 20 minutes. Spooner skated just over 15 minutes but did what he does best, contribute on the top powerplay.
Opponent - BOS
Proj Pts FD - 8.68 DK - 2.51
Opponent - BOS
Proj Pts FD - 8.78 DK - 2.62
A couple of value guys from the Senators who are playing fantastic right now. After scoring a goal on six shots in game one, Ryan saw his ice-time increase by almost four minutes in game two and he responded with an assist on two shots. Ceci has yet to pick up a point through two games but makes a great punt play as he has tallied 11 blocks.
TOR Offense (7th) vs. WSH Defense (1st)
WSH Offense (3rd) vs. TOR Defense (19th)
Series Update - Tied 1-1
One of the most exciting and entertaining series thus far was at it again on Saturday. The teams traded the lead three times before ending regulation in a 3-3 tie as we got to see our first double OT game of the playoffs. After teams traded punches it was rookie Kaspari Kapanen, who was called up late in the season from the Marlies, who ended the game with his second goal of the night. Home ice advantage has now switched hands as three of the next four games will be in Toronto.
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 13.2 DK - 3.8
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 11.04 DK - 3.17
The second line continues to produce with all the attention put on Auston Matthews. After recording an assist on shots in game one, JVR scored in game two on four shots and added two blocks. Marner recorded an assist on the Morgan Rielly powerplay goal and now has two points in the series as well. Looking at their ownership on the DraftKings $4 Forecheck, they remained a top GPP value in the 10% range.
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 11.16 DK - 3.21
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 10.04 DK - 2.91
The value plays for the Capitals keep paying off and I will continue to ride that train all series. Williams was the hero in game one with two goals on six shots and Orlov has been extremely consistent and getting a ton of ice time. He had four shots and three blocks in game one and picked up an assist in game two with three shots and two blocks.
NSH Offense (10th) vs. CHI Defense (8th)
CHI Offense (6th) vs. NSH Defense (17th)
Series Update - NSH 2-0
The Nashville Predators were successful once again in quieting down one of the loudest barns in hockey. The Blackhawks outshot the Preds once again(30-29) but Pekka Rinne shed his shutout streak to six periods to start the series. The difference this game was that the Predators didn't just sit back and play defense. They turned the offense up and tallied five goals and while Johansen led the way with three points, they got contributions from nearly the entire lineup. The series now shifts to Nashville where the Preds have played much better this season but never count out the Blackhawks and their playoff pedigree.
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 12.91 DK - 3.65
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 12.25 DK - 3.56
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 13.09 DK - 3.76
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 10.5 DK - 3.09
Keep riding the JOFA line for the Preds until Chicago proves they can stop them. The Preds are now at home and get last change which will make it harder for the Hawks to line match, not that it was working in Chicago anyway. They are very affordable and easy to stack together without punting other spots in your lineup. All but Johansen were 10% or less in the $4 Forecheck onSaturday night. On defense, you won't find a higher PTS/$ value than Ryan Ellis right now. He duplicated his three shot/three block line from game one but also showed his upside in game two with a goal.
Opponent - NAS
Proj Pts FD - 10.9 DK - 3.17
The Blackhawks have been high owned on both night's so far and have shown zero upside. If you are going back to the well in hopes of a big effort to get back in the series, I suggest rolling with Hossa who has been one of the lowest owned. He skates on the third line but top powerplay unit and has recorded four shots on goal in each game.
CGY Offense (18th) vs. ANH Defense (7th)
ANH Offense (20th) vs. CGY Defense (13th)
Series Update - ANH 2-0
After the Ducks jumped to an early 2-0 lead in game two, the Flames battled back with special teams to tie the game before the halfway point of the second period. The got a short-handed goal from Backlund and a powerplay marker from Sean Monahan. After some huge stops and called back Flames goal it was a lucky bounce for Getzlaf off a Flames player's skate that ended up being the game-winning goal. It gives the Ducks the 2-0 lead as the series shifts to Calgary. Could we see a huge Flames outburst in game three in front of the sea of red?
Opponent - CGY
Proj Pts FD - 14.7 DK - 4.2
Opponent - CGY
Proj Pts FD - 12.24 DK - 3.53
Getzlaf continues to carry his team offensively with back to back multi-point games to start the series. He now has 10 points in seven games vs. the Flames this season and until the Flames show they can contain the top line we should be stacking them. From a PTS/$ perspective, Rakell beats out Eaves if you are looking to stack just two of them but both have a point in each game so far.
Opponent - ANA
Proj Pts FD - 11.97 DK - 3.42
Opponent - ANA
Proj Pts FD - 11.54 DK - 3.3
For the Flames to get back in this series they are going to need a solid effort from the top line. Monahan has scored a powerplay goal in game so far with five total shots but Johnny Hockey has been somewhat neutralized with just one assist and four shots. On a small playoff slate, they will most likely be lower owned once again making them a nice contrarian GPP option.
Hockey is back and with it comes our NHL projections which help inform these picks every night. When you purchase a DFSR NHL subscription to our base hockey projections you also get access to our brand new NFL DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal NFL lineups and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create NFL lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings for any format. It’s a set of tools well beyond anything we’ve ever had, and something we feel will help our users *ahem* tackle the NFL season.
If you want to see the numbers behind our projections, create lineups with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.
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