NHL

3 Daily Fantasy Hockey Stacks for 3/9/20

Thomas Vecchio  —  @DFS_Tom Mar 9th, 2020
The Capitals are one of the best offenses in the league and face a weak Sabres defense tonight. Which other teams can you stack in NHL DFS?

When playing NHL DFS -- much like MLB DFS -- stacking is key. Having multiple players from the same team, who correlate together, can give your lineup upside and help you maximize potential points.

You can roster up to four players from the same team in NHL, and you should look to have players from the same forward line or power-play unit together. Shared ice time is the key, as it will maximize their ability to contribute to real-life goals with each other, ultimately leading to more fantasy points for us.

Generally, we don't see late scratches in the NHL, and the team's lines are confirmed at practice or before the game. Two of the best resources for that are LeftWingLock.com or DailyFaceOff.com. That is where you can find updated forward and power-play lines for each team.

Washington Capitals

It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone to see the Washington Capitals as a top option on the slate.

Even though they are on the road versus the Buffalo Sabres, the Capitals have a slate-high 3.58 implied goal total, and we want to target them in tournaments tonight. The Sabres are in a downward spiral right now -- losing seven in a row -- and they've allowed three goals or more in each game. The Capitals come into this game with the fifth-highest Expected Goals For per 60 minutes this season. The Sabres are a mess on defense, and the Capitals are elite when it comes to goal-scoring -- an easy answer here.

We all know that the Capitals top power-play is very expensive but also brings plenty of upside -- slate-winning upside. Alex Ovechkin ($8,700) is on the first forward line and is double-shifting on both power-play units. He might be the only player in the league who is doing this, and you want that scoring upside. Alongside him, we have T.J. Oshie ($6,700), Nicklas Backstrom ($6,200), Ilya Kovalchuk ($4,400), and John Carlson ($6,600). Love them as a stack, but you need to find the savings in order to roster them.

Edmonton Oilers

Can we go back to the Edmonton Oilers tonight?

I've been big on the Oilers recently, and we should be looking at them as a viable stacking option tonight. They are at home with a 3.13 implied goal and facing the Vegas Golden Knights, who are on the second night of a back-to-back. The over/under is set at 6.0, and this could be a spot for a game stack. Both offenses are scoring over 3.00 goals per game this season, and both have viable options for stacking.

For the Oilers, the first power-play is head and shoulders better than the second unit, so there is a clear option here. Connor McDavid ($8,700), Leon Draisaitl ($8,800), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins ($7,400), and Oscar Klefbom ($5,300) are the four players on the first power-play, and they are another high-priced stack to consider.

Buffalo Sabres

Here's the thing with the Sabres -- they're not a great team.

I know, a truly compelling way to open up a section about a team on tonight's slate. Given the teams available tonight, it doesn't appear the Sabres will be highly owned in tournaments, and that is a good thing.

They are hosting the Capitals but come in as +140 home underdogs, carrying a 2.92 implied goal total. I don't expect the Sabres to win this game, but that doesn't mean they don't have fantasy value. Braden Holtby will be in the crease for the Capitals tonight, and he comes in allowing three goals or more in six of his last seven games. His fantasy numbers don't look awful since he has won four of those seven games, but he has a save percentage sitting under .900.

OK. So what are we looking at here? The Capitals should win this game, but their goalie hasn't been good and is letting up too many goals. The Sabres shouldn't be highly owned and offer some leverage in tournaments. If you told me the Capitals win this game 5-3, I'd believe you. But that means we are still getting some scoring from the Sabres, and thus, a spot to attack.

The second forward line for Buffalo has been more productive as of late, so that is where you want to target. Victor Olofsson ($6,000), Marcus Johansson ($4,200), and Dominik Kahun ($3,600) are very affordable tonight.