NHL DFS Slate Summary: Saturday March 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 slate of games for DraftKings and FanDuel. We’ll discuss today’s NHL DFS player projections, player correlations and NHL stacking, injuries to monitor, NHL starting lineups, differentiation tactics using NHL projected ownership, and recommendations on ways to create lineup diversity if entering multiple lineups using LineupHQ.

Today’s Games

Slate Overview

Happy Saturday Grinders! We are getting down to the end of the regular season, but we still have some meaningful hockey to be played before we get to the postseason. Today we have a seven game slate to break down, so let’s not waste any more time. I have some college basketball games to watch!

The first order of business is to discuss the Tampa Bay Lightning. They have the highest implied total on the slate with a 4.25 team total, but the unfortunate part for our purposes are their price tags. They are priced much too low for the matchup they are in. The Lightning get a home matchup against the Canadians, which is about as good as it gets on any slate, but on this slate it’s the best spot on the board. With it only being a seven game slate I expect ownership to be very high even in large field tournaments. I fully expect them to have a strong outing and can only recommend that if you play the primary pieces from Tampa Bay, you try and get different elsewhere with your value pieces. Make sure to be paying attention to ownership in LineupHQ. If you are a cash game player, I would recommend having at least two Lightning and wouldn’t fault you if you wanted to get up to four. Below I want to discuss some skaters and stacks that aren’t Tampa Bay as pivots for large field GPPs.

Top Skaters

Tim Stutzle

The Maple Leafs had a really nice win last night at home against the Hurricanes and now have to take the short trip to Ottawa to face the young but talented Senators team. Stutzle has had a really strong season coming into this game with 76 points in 64 games played. He also has at least one point in nine of his last ten games. He now finds his price all the up to $7,400. That is more expensive than Brayden Point and Steven Stamkos. At this time of year, sometimes you see teams taper back some minutes. Not this top line of Ottawa- they are regularly playing over twenty minutes, which is really nice to see. It’s certainly true that the Senators have had a hard time finishing this season, but I think that playing on home ice against a team on the second night of a back to back can help their cause. I love getting to this full stack with Stutzle, Tkachuk, and Batherson, who also correlate on the power play.

Jason Robertson

If you want to take a shot at some really low ownership and a really high ceiling, then Jason Robertson is the play for you. This is the final game of the Stars ‘road trip where they have lost their last two games in pretty bad fashion. Now they get to face the Flames, who have been a huge disappointment all season and have thrown their lines in a blender. The Flames had some pretty decent shutdown lines, but now I am not as convinced. Robertson is an elite offensive player who can beat any matchup, he will likely come in around 5% owned, and he can break this slate. He has been held off the scoresheet the last two games, and I think the Stars come in focused and ready roll the Flames. He also correlates with my favorite tournament goalie, Jake Oettinger, assuming he gets the start.

Other Options: Auston Matthews, Sidney Crosby, John Tavares, Roope Hintz

Top Skater Values (Pts/$)

Barrett Hayton

So much for the Coyotes tanking. They have been one of the better teams in the NHL since the All-Star break and have won five of their last six games. Now they get a home matchup against the Blackhawks, who are the third worst team in the NHL, but in my opinion they are the worst since they traded all their talent at the deadline. Hayton has been quite the story this season and has gradually become a very strong fantasy producer. Optimizers haven’t quite caught up with his production, so he doesn’t necessarily pop when running your builds. I am assuming Nick Schmaltz is out once again, which may hurt Hayton’s point floor, but it will help his shot floor, and that is what we ultimately want with cheap plays.

Other Options: Alex Iafallo, Andreas Athanasiou, Travis Boyd, Brett Ritchie

Starting Goalies

Goalie is really bad tonight. I think there is a strong case to be made to spread out at goalie this evening if you are making multiple teams. There are eight goalies that are projecting 8-15% ownership and are within a couple of projected points. He isn’t confirmed as the starter yet, but Jake Oettinger is my favorite tournament goalie of the night. The Flames surprised a lot of people a couple of days ago when they crushed a chalky Jonathan Quick, but I don’t think that will happen tonight. The Flames are dead last in shooting percentage on the season and rank second in shots on goal, the volume will be there, and the Stars are currently even money to get the win.

Other Options: Ilya Sorokin, Brian Elliot, Thatcher Demko

Top Stack Projections

Projected Ownership is posted after morning skate daily.

Top Stacks

The Tampa Bay Lightning top six and power play are the top stacks on the slate. They will also come with the most ownership. Since I play heavier single entries and smaller field contests I am going to force myself to have exposure. For larger field tournaments I love pivoting to Ottawa and Dallas. Dallas should come with very small ownership and I expect a convincing win from them today. If Tampa Bay busts and Dallas1 hits, you will smash the field, so I think they are worth strong consideration if you are looking for some really nice leverage.

Other Options: DAL1, OTT1, OTTPP1,

Image Credit: Getty Images