NHL Grind Down: Friday, March 31st
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The RotoGrinders NHL Grind Down article will give you an in-depth analysis into the NHL schedule. This article will break down the numbers for every single game and give you analysis on which trends you can exploit. While matchups are a major factor in daily fantasy hockey there are plenty of other factors to consider such as injuries, salaries, and more.
The analysis should point you in the right direction, but it is still up to you to decipher the information and make your own selections. Hockey is an extremely high variance sport. The best choice is not always the right choice but following the trends will win you money over time.
Remember, these writeups are done prior to lineups being released, so make sure to check our Starting Lineups page to ensure the recommended options are playing.
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Pittsburgh Penguins at New York Rangers
| Pittsburgh Penguins | New York Rangers | ||||||||
 | Matt Murray |  | Henrik Lundqvist | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 46-19-11 | 46-26-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.37 | 2.78 | 22.30% | 80.70% | Team Stats | 3.14 | 2.64 | 19.60% | 79.10% |
Pittsburgh seems to sacrificing games now for a chance to have a healthier team when the playoffs start in about two weeks. Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang continue to be sidelined and there’s no doubt they need them as they have dropped their last four games. Sidney Crosby and Conor Sheary will try to get the team going from the top line as they also anchor the penguins top power play unit. Crosby leads the team with 82 points while Sheary had notched 50 points in 56 games this season. Patric Hornqvist and Chris Kunitz are joined by Nick Bonino on the second line as this is where they miss Malkin as he normally skates in Bonino’s place. Phil Kessel makes for a decent one-off from the third line as he leads the team with 28 power points while seeing the majority of time with the man advantage. He has also snared 65 points while playing in every game so far this season. With defenseman Kris Letang still on the shelf, Justin Schultz is the play on the back line as he is just two points away from finding the score sheet 50 times this season. Pittsburgh is a high powered offensive team who may need to get a bit healthier before they start putting the puck in the back of the net with a little more frequency.
The Rangers come into this one just six points behind the Penguins for the third spot in the Metropolitan Division. They do play them one more time this season so maybe with a win here they will be able to wrestle that spot away from them although they have already qualified for the playoffs. New York has shuffled their lineup a bit but will keep their most consistent line of Mats Zuccarello, Derek Stepan and Chris Kreider together for tonight’s match up. Zuccarello’s eight points in the last seven games has kept him two points ahead of J.T. Miller for the team lead in points with 15 goals and 45 assists. Miller has been dropped to the fourth line as the rangers have opted to have Jesper Fast skate with Kevin Hayes and Michael Grabner on the team’s third line. Grabner leads the team with 27 goals but has only scored once this month. Pavel Buchnevich is back up in the top six as he skates with Rick Nash and Mika Zibanejad on the team’s second line. Zibanejad is the one-off here as he skates with the top line when the Rangers draw a penalty. Zibanejad has notched two of his last six points with the man advantage which makes him perfect to play him solo tonight. Defenseman Ryan McDonagh is the safer play from the blue line but you can look to Brady Skjei as an alternative as he has grabbed six points in the last seven games.
Elite Plays
PIT: Sidney Crosby
NYR: Mats Zuccarello
Secondary Plays
PIT: Conor Sheary, Phil Kessel, Justin Schultz, Patric Hornqvist
NYR: Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, Michael Grabner, Ryan McDonagh
New Jersey Devils at New York Islanders
| New Jersey Devils | New York Islanders | ||||||||
 | Keith Kinkaid |  | Jaroslav Halak | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 27-35-14 | 35-29-12 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.25 | 2.91 | 18.30% | 80.10% | Team Stats | 2.86 | 2.97 | 15.00% | 81.00% |
The Devils can put another nail in the Islanders hopes to make the playoffs with a win here tonight. The problem is that the Devils aren’t a very good team and basically have one line that can do any damage. Of course I am talking about Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac as they are 1-2-3 on the teams scoring chart with hall leading the way with 19 goals and 32 assists. New Jersey has lost their last eight road games which makes sense when you consider the opposing teams have to stop just one line. Joseph Blandisi centers Adam Henrique and Beau Bennett on the team’s second line. If Henrique wasn’t the only one on this line with a shred of offensive ability I’d say go ahead and throw them into a GPP. Bennett couldn’t even do well next to Sidney Crosby so it’s tough to see him doing any better elsewhere. Defensemen Damon Severson, Andy Greene and John Moore on the choices on the back line in which we could make a case for rostering all of them in tonight’s contests. Severson has the most points, Greene gets the top power play minutes and Moore leads the group with four points over the last eight games. Maybe it’s best just to move on from these guys.
The Islanders blew a golden opportunity as they lost to the Flyers by a 6-3 score in Philadelphia last night. The loss combined with a Carolina win now has the New Yorkers six points away from the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. With only six games to play the islanders can only get a total of 12 points so a win is imperative here to keep their playoff hopes alive. John Tavares, Anders Lee and Josh Bailey look to be the chalk plays here tonight as they not only serve as the team’s top line but grab the double duties of being the top power play unit as well. This line has paced the team by scoring six of their last 10 goals which has come over the last five games. After that there isn’t much to look at as Josh Ho-Sang skates with Anthony Beauvillier on the second line while underachievers Andrew Ladd and Brock Nelson skate on the team’s third line. Nick Leddy makes for a solid play on the back line as 13 of his 41 points have come with the man advantage. The Islanders will do everything they can tonight to stay in the chase for the last playoff spot.
Elite Plays
NJ: Taylor Hall
NYI: John Tavares
Secondary Plays
NJ: Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac , Adam Henrique
NYI: Anders Lee, Josh Bailey, Nick Leddy
Columbus Blue Jackets at Chicago Blackhawks
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Chicago Blackhawks | ||||||||
 | Joonas Korpisalo |  | Corey Crawford | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 49-19-8 | 49-21-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.11 | 2.27 | 20.50% | 82.90% | Team Stats | 2.97 | 2.57 | 18.30% | 77.70% |
This should be one of the better games of the night as both teams had won seven of their last 10 games going into last night’s action. The Blue Jackets will be coming in fresh off of a game in Carolina last night as they continue to chase the Washington Capitals for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno and Brandon Saad have been the team’s top line this year and will be relied on to take the team deep in the playoffs. Cam Atkinson joined them last night and is always a decent one-off play as he leads the team with 34 goals and 61 points but will return to the second line tonight to skate with Boone Jenner and Brandon Dubinsky. These lines are a little different than the ones they have run out there recently as head coach John Tortorella has seemingly gone back to what worked the best earlier in the season. Zachary Werenski is the choice from the back line as the rookie has posted 47 points so far this season. It helps that he has been entrusted with quarterbacking the top power play which obviously puts him a position to generate more scoring chances than the other defensemen on the team. Columbus is just four points away from Washington who is the best team in the league.
Chicago is coming off a big 5-1 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins and will need to stay focused tonight to beat another Metropolitan Division foe in the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Blackhawks are securely locked in to first place it would seem as they were nine points up on Minnesota going into last night’s action. Tanner Kero did a decent job centering Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin against Pittsburgh and will no doubt stay there as long as he produces. It’s actually tough not to play well between the team’s top two scoring leaders as Kane has racked up 84 points so far this season while Panarin is one shy of the magical 79 point mark. Jonathan Toews centers Nick Schmaltz and Richard Panik on the team’s second line and could be used for tournament play tonight. This line has combined for seven goals and 13 assists in the last eight games. Defenseman Duncan Keith mans the point on the team’s top power play unit and has notched 51 points so far this season. Keith has been a mainstay on the Hawks back line and provides excellent leadership as the team heads into the playoffs. Chicago should be able to improve on their 25-9-5 home record against a Columbus team that played in Carolina last night.
Elite Plays
CBJ: Cam Atkinson
CHI: Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno, Zachary Werenski, Brandon Saad
CHI: Jonathan Toews, Richard Panik, Duncan Keith, Tanner Kero
San Jose Sharks at Calgary Flames
| San Jose Sharks | Calgary Flames | ||||||||
 | Aaron Dell |  | Brian Elliott | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 43-27-7 | 43-30-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.66 | 2.47 | 17.10% | 80.80% | Team Stats | 2.70 | 2.68 | 19.80% | 81.20% |
The Sharks broke their six-game losing streak with a win against the New York Rangers on Tuesday night and then went right back to their losing ways last night as they fell to the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 3-2. San Jose is lucky to have already qualified for the playoffs but could find themselves as a lower seed if the losing continues. Logan Couture will be out again tonight which doesn’t help matters much as he leads the team with 11 power play goals while the 52 points he has accumulated is good enough for third on the team. Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton will continue to skate with Jannik Hansen while Patrick Marleau centers the second line along with Melker Karlsson and Mikkel Boedker as his wingmen. Neither line is very lucrative here especially when you consider that the Sharks have scored just 14 goals in their last eight games. The injury to Couture only compacts the problem as there aren’t any other players on the team that can step up and fill his shoes. Defenseman Brent Burns leads the team with 45 assists and 73 points but has only registered seven points over the last 15 games. His salary has come down slightly which may be tempting here tonight as he is sure to break out of his mini-slump any day now. You could say that for the whole team as they take on the Calgary Flames who are just three points below them in the Pacific Division.
After winning 15 of their last 18 games the Calgary Flames let their emotions get the best of them as the Los Angeles Kings were able to stay alive by beating them by a score of 4-1 on Wednesday night. The Flames will try again tonight to qualify for the playoffs as a win here will certainly do the trick. The question that’s on everyone’s mind is has the team peaked too early? Only time will tell on this one as we head into the last 10 days of the season. Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan skate on the top line and look to be cash game worthy tonight. They both play on the top power play unit that has notched four goals over the last three games with Gaudreau leading the team with 59 points. Monahan’s 26 goals has helped him register 57 points on the season of which 17 of those points have come since the beginning of the month. Michael Ferland skates on the top line with the two budding superstars and could be used here for a little salary relief. Matthew Tkachuk, Mikael Backlund and Michael Frolik skate on the team’s second line and looks to be a tournament play only on home ice tonight. Troy Brouwer and Kris Versteeg step up from the third line to join Monahan and Gaudreau when the Flames have the extra attacker. Either could be used as a tournament punt play option here based on the fact that they get exposure to the team’s best two players. T.J. Brodie sees the top minutes on the power play but as always, Dougie Hamilton is the safer bet here from the Calgary back line. Hamilton has registered 10 of his 49 points over the last month and continues to put pucks on net. The Flames can clinch a playoff spot here in front of the home crowd which seems to be a likely scenario tonight.
Elite Plays
SJ: Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski
CGY: Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan
Secondary Plays
SJ: Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton
CGY: Dougie Hamilton, Mikael Backlund, Matthew Tkachuk
St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche
| St. Louis Blues | Colorado Avalanche | ||||||||
 | Jake Allen |  | Calvin Pickard | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 42-28-6 | 20-53-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.80 | 2.63 | 21.90% | 84.50% | Team Stats | 1.95 | 3.39 | 12.50% | 76.40% |
The Blues almost get a free pass tonight as they visit the league’s worst team in the Colorado Avalanche. Colorado has won just one game in the last 10 while the Blues are 8-1-1 over their last 10 games. This is clearly a game that sees both teams going in different directions. Vladimir Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz and Alexander Steen should be safe enough to play in cash games here although they will try to be bottled up by the by the top defensive line of Colorado. Both Schwartz and Tarasenko have each tallied four goals and four assists over the last eight games which should give you enough confidence to use them in cash game contests tonight. It looks like Zach Sanford jumps up from the third line to skate with the top line when the Blues have the extra attacker. If this is the case the he would make for a decent punt play here just based on his exposure to Tarasenko alone. Patrik Berglund, David Perron and Magnus Paajarvi skate on the team’s second line which should see their share of scoring chances tonight. This line has combined for eight goals and five assists over the last seven games and should be able to find the score sheet tonight against a team that has given up 258 goals this season. Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has lit the lamp three times and assisted on three other goals over the past seven games as he mans the point on the team’s top power play unit. Look for the Blues to clinch a playoff spot here tonight.
Colorado continues to struggle as they have lost their last seven games they have played. The good news is that they have scored at least three or more goals in three of their last six games and may be able to light the lamp a few times tonight. If that is going to happen they will need the top line of Sven Andrighetto, Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon to do most of the damage. This is the team’s top line which has compiled a cumulative nine goals and 10 assists over the last seven games. This is almost a deluge of goals for a team that has mustered just 150 goals so far this season. Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog skate on the second line with Matt Nieto that has seen Nieto tally the only point over the last seven games. Now you see why the top line is the choice especially on home ice tonight. Tyson Barrie is the choice on the blue line as he has notched four of his 35 points over the last seven games. Barrie also soaks up the most time from the back line when the team has the extra attacker. While on paper this looks like a blowout but that doesn’t mean that the Avalanche can’t score a goal or two.
Elite Plays
STL: Vladimir Tarasenko
COL: None
Secondary Plays
STL: Alexander Steen, Jaden Schwartz, Alex Pietrangelo, Patrik Berglund
COL: Nathan MacKinnon, Sven Andrighetto, Tyson Barrie, Mikko Rantanen, Matt Duchene