I generally do not pick two players playing against each other in the same game for a daily fantasy hockey lineup. The same applies for a goalie and a player from opposite teams. You might see two players among the “value picks” from opposite teams, but that doesn’t mean you should take them both. No matter the value, you’re also likely cannibalizing points, so any gains made below a certain price point – the point where production and cost intersect – can be lost if production declines overall as well.
There are many things that determine value: The player’s history (both short and long-term), the price, recent production, opponent, line matching at even-strength, power play time and injuries are just some of the factors to consider. The “Top Value” doesn’t necessarily mean the cheapest player, either.
Finally, as far as goalies go, it’s the one position I’ll pay through the nose for if I really like the match-up. The same applies for back-ups with good match-ups. In a given night, with a full slate of games, I won’t have more than three different goalies across all my lineups, usually two. I’ll name the goalies I like specifically in the match-ups they appear in.
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Here is today’s slate of games (and DraftStreet values). Reminder: check Left Wing Lock for up-to-the-minute information on starting goalies.
Games are color-coded as follows:
Green means stack for GPPs. Yellow means targets for cash games. Red means value plays only.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Montreal Canadiens
The Lightning are in trouble as they are down 3-0 in the series and their starting goaltender, Anders Lindback, is sporting a cool .888 through the first three games of this round.
Things just aren’t going in Tampa’s direction so far this series. Montreal has had the better possession time, they’ve had the better goaltending, they’ve had the healthier players and they’re even getting a break from the officials, notably a crucial goal being called back when Tampa thought they had scored in Game 3. The Lightning also have just seven goals in three games with six total power plays to go along with it.
The Canadiens are playing well all through their forward lines and Carey Price has been solid enough to win them the three games. I don’t see any reason to go against them tonight.
For the fourth straight game, I will be stacking the Canadiens against the Lightning. Maybe Tampa Bay comes back in this series, but with Lindback floundering and Steven Stamkos likely concussed (but playing), I don’t see any reason to do anything different.
| Top RW Value | Top LW Value | Top C Value | Top D Value | Bargain Bin |
| Brendan Gallagher(MON)
$7906 |
Mac Pacioretty(MON)
$11,247 |
David Desharnais(MON)
$7391 |
Andrei Markov(MON)
$6815 |
Daniel Briere(MON)
$5130 |
