3 Daily Fantasy NHL Stacks for Monday 5/3/21
In daily fantasy hockey, stacking is a key strategy in tournaments. We want to correlate our lineups with up to four players to maximize our upside, as if one player on a line is scoring goals, it's likely that his linemates are getting assists as well. Ideally, we'll want players that will get a lot of ice time together on an even strength line and a power play line. Two good resources for line combinations are LeftWingLock.com and DailyFaceoff.com, so be sure to check those sites for up-to-date line information.
We've got a massive slate with 14 games on it, something we haven't seen too often this season. That means we'll need some good stacks that stand out above the rest that could help us win a tournament on Monday.
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are on the verge of clinching a playoff spot. This would be only their third time to make the playoffs in the salary cap era if we don't count making the play-in round last season. They actually appear to be in good shape as probably the second-best team in the North Division. We shouldn't look too far ahead, though, as the Oilers and some of their star players have unfinished business in the regular season, beginning on Monday night.
The main storyline around the league regarding Edmonton is whether or not Connor McDavid ($9,300) will hit 100 points this season. He needs 13 points in the final seven games to hit this impressive feat in this 56-game season. His 87 points are 16 more than anyone else in the league.
The player with the second most is his teammate and current linemate Leon Draisaitl ($8,200). These two guys are clearly more dangerous when playing together, so having them line up at even strength and on the power play is very good for fantasy.
They get a cheap third wheel in Kailer Yamamoto ($3,900) who will help save salary when playing this stack. Tyson Barrie ($6,200) is a good piece to add on defense, too, as he is tied for third in scoring for defensemen this season.
The Oilers will take on the Vancouver Canucks, which is a good matchup. Vancouver has struggled defensively all season. They allow the most shot attempts and the most expected goals per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick. McDavid has already burned them for five goals and eight points in their five meetings this season, including a hat trick.
If he does hit 100 points, it will take the best points-per-game ratio of the century. It would be nice to roster him in fantasy if he reaches that mark, and this is the perfect spot to play him and his linemates.
Colorado Avalanche
It's hard to imagine a team as good as the Colorado Avalanche finishing second in their division. They average the most goals per game in the league and also have the second-best goal differential. They are 7-3 in their last 10 games, but that hasn't been good enough to keep pace with the Vegas Golden Knights, who have won 10 of 11. First place is still attainable, as the Avalanche are just four points behind Vegas with a game in hand. They'll have a great chance of at least keeping pace with Vegas in their game tonight.
Colorado will take on the San Jose Sharks for the third game in a row. The Avalanche dominated the two meetings over the weekend. They won both games and created 34 high danger chances compared to just 11 for the Sharks.
Nathan MacKinnon ($9,000) was held off the scoresheet in Friday's game but made up for it on Saturday with a goal, an assist, and nine shots on goal. The returning Mikko Rantanen ($8,400) didn't miss a beat when rejoining the lineup, as he had five points in these two games.
Saturday's game, unfortunately, saw Gabriel Landeskog ($7,000) as the player who wasn't on the scoresheet when his linemates were, but he did rack up eight shots on goal that got him a respectable 12.8 FanDuel Points. Cale Makar ($5,700) scored three points in the two games and maintained his points-per-game average to be the only defenseman in the league to average more than a point per contest.
We have more data suggesting the matchup against the Sharks is a great one for Colorado, and not just the previous two games. San Jose has struggled defensively, allowing the fourth-most goals in the league. The Sharks also will start either Martin Jones or Josef Korenar in goal, and they both have save percentages under .900 this season. All of this adds up to the Avalanche having an implied team total of 3.93 goals tonight, the second-highest on the slate.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins keep chugging along, even after people may have written them off. They had a rough performance in last year's postseason and started off with their general manager resigning at the beginning of the season, but since then, it's been fairly smooth sailing. They currently lead the East Division despite it being maybe the toughest division in the NHL. Tonight, they'll have a chance to extend their lead at the top of the division and punish a rival along the way.
It's hard to believe that Sidney Crosby ($8,200) has become a guy that perhaps hasn't gotten talked about enough this season. Although the likes of McDavid and Auston Matthews have dominated the headlines, Crosby tied a Wayne Gretzky record for most seasons averaging at least a point per game. He's 11th in the NHL in points.
His linemates Jake Guentzel ($7,400) and Bryan Rust ($6,100) each have 22 goals, tied for the 13th-most goals in the league. With them correlating on even strength and on the power play, they easily have the upside you need in a stack on a big slate like this. Add in defenseman Kris Letang ($6,100), who's tied for fifth in points for blueliners, and you get a very dangerous four-man stack.
The Penguins will face their Pennsylvania rivals in the Philadelphia Flyers. This has been a lost season for the Flyers, as they have fallen out of playoff contention with a 3-6-1 record in their last 10 games.
While their defense was a strength last season, it certainly isn't the case this season. The Flyers have allowed the most goals per game in the league, recently overtaking the Ottawa Senators, who had that dubious honor for most of the season. The Penguins love to beat up on their state rivals when given the chance, so they could rack up the goals tonight and be the stack needed to win a tournament on this slate.
Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
