NHL DFS Slate Summary: Thursday, April 18th
Welcome to the RotoGrinders NHL DFS Slate Summary. In this article, we’ll concentrate on the key elements of DFS success while delivering analysis on the upcoming slate of NHL games for DraftKings and FanDuel. We’ll discuss today’s NHL DFS player projections, player correlations and NHL stacking, NHL starting lineups, differentiation tactics using NHL projected ownership, and recommendations on ways to create lineup diversity if entering multiple lineups using LineupHQ.
NHL DFS Picks: Slate Summary for Thursday, April 18th
Slate Overview
I tried to do my usual routine and start this article the night before, but that was a futile effort these days with how quickly the slate can change based on player news. The article is going to be a lit different than usual, with a focus on game-by-game and team-by-team breakdowns and motivations (or lack thereof) for each.
Here’s what we do know. The Eastern Conference is already 100% locked in. All the games tonight feature Western Conference teams, and there are still a few things to be settled. The two certainties are that the Jets/Avalanche and Predators/Canucks will be facing off in the First Round.
The final two matchups in the West are still TBD and will feature a combination of the Stars, Oilers, Golden Knights, and Kings. The Golden Knights and Kings both have favorable matchups and can win easily if they choose to do so, but there’s a debate as to whether they care or not. Here are the scenarios (from Moneyball16):
-If VGK wins OR loses in OT and LAK loses, then VGK plays EDM.
-If VGK loses in regulation and LAK wins or loses in OT, then VGK plays DAL.
Here’s what I said in the Discord last night:
I think there are teams that would definitely prefer the Oilers over Stars but not sure Vegas is one of them. They’re one of the few teams that has the depth to match up (and potentially exceed) the top 9 for Dallas, whereas Edmonton has the ability to bury you with one line, and I don’t know which one Dallas would task with doing that.
I think Vegas tries to win tonight, but we’ll hopefully get more information throughout the day.
Let’s go game by game and discuss the specific situations for each team.