3 Daily Fantasy NHL Stacks for Wednesday 5/11/22
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 -- if one player on a line is scoring goals, it's likely that his linemates are getting assists, as well.
Ideally, we want players who 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 updated line information.
This is the first playoff night with just three games, but there are still some teams we can stack on tonight's slate.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins were written off by many people after they failed to impress at the end of the season. They were not considered serious contenders for the Stanley Cup, and many had them going out in the first round. They have proved the doubters wrong with a 3-1 series lead and have averaged five goals per game in the playoffs.
Sidney Crosby ($8,800) has certainly reminded people that he's still an elite player in the league. He has nine points in four games -- tied for second-most in the playoffs. Jake Guentzel ($8,400) has been the beneficiary of Crosby's play, scoring five goals which were all assisted by Crosby. Bryan Rust ($7,400) has been good as well with five points in four games. Kris Letang ($6,500) is a great defenseman to put in this stack; he will correlate with all three guys on the power play.
The Penguins have gotten to the New York Rangers a lot easier than most people expected. They've exploited a soft underbelly of the Rangers' lineup that's more noticeable with some players missing. Pittsburgh has dominated them in expected goals in the series, as 62% of them have gone in their favor this series.
Pittsburgh is actually an underdog in this game still, but with the way this series has played out, no one would be surprised if they won and this line had a big game.
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers were on the brink of going down 3-1 in the series but got some late dramatics to win Game 4 in overtime. Now, going back home, they'll look to take the lead in the series for the first time.
The Panthers have gone back to the lines that we were familiar with during the regular season. Aleksander Barkov ($9,500) is playing with Carter Verhaeghe ($4,700) and Anthony Duclair ($5,600) once again. Verhaeghe was the star of Game 4, and he leads the team with five points in four playoff games. Barkov and Duclair will play on the top power-play unit that features all forwards, and while they haven't gotten going yet, it wouldn't be a shock to see them have a big game tonight.
Florida's second line has their leading scorer in Jonathan Huberdeau ($9,200) playing with Claude Giroux ($6,100) and Sam Bennett ($6,100). Huberdeau has been fairly quiet in this series with just three points in four games, but he may feel more comfortable back on this line. Giroux will play on the first power play with him, giving this line the same amount of correlation as the first line. Aaron Ekblad ($6,500) is second on the team in points with four in the playoffs, and he can be used with either stack.
Florida hasn't been the offensive juggernaut we saw in the regular season, but they still have been able to record 54% of the expected goals at five-on-five during this series. The Washington Capitals have done a good job of containing them, but Florida has yet to score a power-play goal in this series. They are too talented for that to continue, and tonight could be the night it changes.
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames were a bit in their own heads after losing Game 3 and going down 2-1 in the series. They righted the ship in Game 4 with a dominant performance in a 4-1 win that saw them record over 100 shot attempts. It looks like they've found their groove a bit going back home for Game 5.
The Flames' top line had their best game of the series on Monday. Johnny Gaudreau ($8,700) had a goal, an assist, and six shots on goal in that game. Elias Lindholm ($7,500) had a goal for the second-straight game. Matthew Tkachuk ($8,300) had an assist to give him three for this series. This line combined for 20 shot attempts in Game 4 and could have done even more damage in that game -- if not for the heroics of Jake Oettinger. If he's not playing his best game tonight, this line could go nuts.
We knew that the Flames were heavy favorites going into this series, and despite a few poor performances, we should still feel confident that they will close this series out. The Dallas Stars have been relying on their goaltending for much of the series; the expected goals in the series have gone in the Flames' favor at a 61% clip.
Calgary is the biggest favorite on tonight's slate and has the third-highest implied team total. This top line will be fully correlated on the power play and they could click for a few goals, which will send your lineups a long way on this small 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.
