Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 4/20/17

Hello my fellow hockey fans and welcome to another exciting day of NHL playoff action here at DFSR. We have a four-game slate on tap for today with two teams (Chicago and Columbus) on the brink of elimination. I have a strong feeling that we don't want to miss out on all of the action in-store for us today. Let's get started shall we?

Hockey is back and with it come 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 MLB DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal MLB lineu, s and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create MLB 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 crush the MLB 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.

TOP GOALIE OF THE DAY

Marc-Andre Fleury FD - $8500 DK - $8200
Opponent - CBJ
Proj Pts FD - 16.12 DK - 4.03

You can argue that Carey Price is a good choice here and he is a solid GPP play. The reason I like Fleury better, though, is the fact that the odds are more in his favor to come away with the victory. The Penguins are currently listed as -195 favorites and they outscored the Jackets 7-2 in the first two games of the series in Pittsburgh. Fleury has been money this year on home ice with a record of 14-3-2 and a save % of .928. Look for Pittsburgh to send the Blue Jackets to the golf course and roster the veteran tender with confidence today in all formats.

 

NEW YORK RANGERS VS. MONTREAL CANADIENS

NYR Offense (4th) vs. MTL Defense (5th)

MTL Offense (15th) vs. NYR Defense (12th)

Series Update - TIED 2-2

This has turned into an awesome back and forth series and Montreal has home-ice advantage in which will now be a best of three race of the finish. The Rangers held off the Canadiens in the exciting closing minutes of game four and won by a score of 2-1. Shea Weber fired one his blistering slapshots past Henrik Lundqvist which would have tied the game, but it rattled off of the post and out with around a minute left in the game. In the four games played so far, there have been 16 goals scored with each team scoring eight. Look for another very close and intense game this evening.

 

Alexander Radulov FD - $6200 DK - $5600
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 10.16 DK - 2.97
Tomas Plekanec FD - $4400 DK - $3800
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 9.37 DK - 2.76
Shea Weber FD - $5600 DK - $6100
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 12.76 DK - 3.91

Like I said above, the Rangers have scored as many goals as the Habs overall in this series, but they are very unpredictable. For example, Jesper Fast and Tanner Glass have both scored goals this series and they both rarely score. The Canadiens, on the other hand, are more predictable when it comes to who contributes on offense. They are -155 favorites to win this game and they should score more than one goal on home ice today.

Radulov had an assist last game and now has two goals and four assists in his last three games. Plekanec didn't record a point last game, but he had a goal, two assists, seven shots and four blocks in the two games before that and he is way too cheap to ignore here. Weber has a PP goal, two assists, six shots and 10 blocks in his last three games and plays in almost every possible situation for Montreal.

 

 

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS VS. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS

CLB Offense (5th) vs. PIT Defense (15th)

PIT Offense (1st) vs. CLB Defense (3rd)

Series Update - PIT 3-1

Wow, what an exciting two games in Columbus that we were treated to. Pittsburgh won game three by a score of 5-4 in OT and then Columbus beat the Pens last game on the brink of elimination by another score of 5-4. That's 18 total goals in two games. Well, that was in Columbus. Now the two teams travel back to Pennsylvania where the Penguins manhandled the Blue Jackets in the first two games of the series. I can't see the Blue Jackets having much of a chance here and Pittsburgh should put them out of their misery and advance to the second round.

 

Evgeni Malkin FD - $8900 DK - $8100
Opponent - CBJ
Proj Pts FD - 15.68 DK - 4.57

Jake Guentzel FD - $6800 DK - $6400
Opponent - CBJ
Proj Pts FD - 9.68 DK - 2.75
Ian Cole FD - $4100 DK - $3900
Opponent - CBJ
Proj Pts FD - 7.52 DK - 2.19

I recommended both Malkin and Guentzel last game and they came through in fashion. Guentzel followed up his hat-trick from game three with a goal on five shots last game. Malkin has points in all four games this series and he added two helpers to his total last game. I love getting a piece of Pittsburgh's both top lines again today. Cole has three assists, five shots and nine blocks in just under 20 minutes of ice-time in his last three games and he gives us some salary relief on both sites at the defense position.

 

 

NASHVILLE PREDATORS VS. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS

NSH Offense (6th) vs. CHI Defense (17th)

CHI Offense (10th) vs. NSH Defense (8th)

Series Update - NSH 3-0

I don't think anyone on Planet Earth expected that the Predators would be on the verge of sweeping the Blackhawks. The Hawks were up 2-0 last game before the Preds scored two unanswered goals to tie the game and then Kevin Fiala (I don't know who he is either) scored the game-winner in overtime. Don't count your chickens before they hatch though as Chicago is not ready to go down without a fight. This should be another exciting game to watch with both goalies being tested early and often.

 

Patrick Kane FD - $8500 DK - $8000
Opponent - NAS
Proj Pts FD - 18.33 DK - 5.26

Trust me, we need to pay up for two star forwards in this game, but there is a lot of value elsewhere to be had, so we will be able to fit one and maybe even both of these guys into our lineups. Kane and the Hawks are in a must-win situation and the superstar winger fired nine shots on net and finally scored a goal last game. He has a whopping 18 shots so far in this series and is one of the toughest fades today in all formats.

Filip Forsberg FD - $7600 DK - $6300
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 13.09 DK - 3.76

The other star forward in this game that we need to pay a great deal of attention to has been on fire so far this series. He has two goals , two assists and 11 shots on goal and he plays on the already famous "JOFA" line for Nashville.

Ryan Ellis FD - $5000 DK - $5000
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 9.78 DK - 2.65

This guy is too cheap on both sites considering his recent production and he is very tough to ignore today, at least from a safety perspective. Ellis has a goal, an assist, nine shots and nine blocks in his last three games. He's about as consistent as it comes at any position.

 

 

SAN JOSE SHARKS VS.  EDMONTON OILERS

SJ Offense (13th) vs. EDM Defense (11th)

EDM Offense (12th) vs. SJ Defense (2nd)

Series Update - TIED 2-2

I had a hunch that San Jose would tear the Oilers apart last game and they did just that as they destroyed them by a score of 7-0. That was quite the feat for the Sharks as the Oilers won the previous two games by scores of 2-0 and 1-0. I don't even have the foggiest clue what to predict will happen in game five in Edmonton, but that's what makes playoff hockey so exciting.

 

Logan Couture FD - $6400 DK - $5700
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 13.1 DK - 3.83

This young man is one tough dude. His mouth was messed up pretty badly and he wore a full cage in the first three games of this series. He didn't quite look right, but last game he came out with his normal half visor and guess what? He came out flying and he scored two goals (1 on the PP) on three shots. I think it's safe to say that he's back to himself again.

Patrick Maroon FD - $4900 DK - $4700
Opponent - SJ
Proj Pts FD - 9.8 DK - 2.77

The Oilers have found very little offensive success in this series so far and they still find themselves tied with the Sharks. They didn't score a goal last game, but this guy plays on the top line with Connor McDavid, so if they score a few goals then he should be involved in some way. Maroon has fired 10 shots on goal in his last three games and one of these days, one should find the twine.

Brent Burns FD - $7300 DK - $8100
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 12.89 DK - 3.93

It took a couple of games for this guy to get going, but last game he had three powerplay assists for the Sharks and has 18 shots and 8 blocks so far in this series. He can take over a game at any time. I like him in all formats on FanDuel and stacked with a couple other of his power-play line-mates in GPP lineups on Draftkings.

 

 

 

Hockey is back and with it come 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 MLB DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal MLB lineu, s and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create MLB 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 crush the MLB 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.