NHL Grind Down: Saturday, April 1st

by Tom Woollam (elctrceye) Last Updated 2017-04-02 02:17:26

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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.

Note: As always, if you want to try a new DFS site, be sure to click through a RotoGrinders link and use our DraftKings promo code and FanDuel promo code to receive the best perks in the industry.

Florida Panthers at Boston Bruins

Florida Panthers					Boston Bruins
			Reto Berra					Tuukka Rask
			Record					Record
			33-33-11					41-30-6
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.46	2.82	16.70%	85.70%	Team Stats	2.83	2.61	20.90%	85.30%

Florida was one of those teams that looked so good about a month ago but has since dropped out of playoff contention. They have only won one game out of their last eight road games and without Aleksander Barkov tonight, it would appear that the Panthers chances of winning this one are slim to none. It looks like Dennis Malgin was tapped to skate with Jonathan Huberdeau and Jaromir Jagr which was an easy fix to keep the other two lines together. Vincent Trocheck leads the team with 53 points while skating on the second line with Jussi Jokinen and Reilly Smith. Meanwhile Jonathan Marchessault leads the team with 29 goals while skating with Thomas Vanek and Nick Bjugstad. Both Marchessault and vanek make for decent one-offs here as they always have an upside which is a bit higher than their team mates because when the start scoring they are hard to stop. Vanek has always been one of the streakiest players in the league who could always win someone a GPP. Aaron Ekblad has not returned from his injury so Keith Yandle continues to have the best chance of scoring from the Panthers back line. Yandle leads the team with 35 assists who has recorded 40 points so far this season.

The Bruins have won their last three games which has helped them stay ahead of the surging Tampa Bay Lightning. Both teams are vying for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference which has Tampa behind by just three points with a game in hand. Boston should be able to take care of business at home against a Florida team that has lost their last three games. The top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Backes should do just fine tonight as they will have every opportunity to match up against the weaker Florida lines. Marchand leads the team with 38 goals and 45 points while and could also make for a decent one-off here. Speaking of one-offs David Pastrnak could surely be categorized as that today as he skates on the team’s second line but is afforded the extra ice time when the team draws a penalty. His 10 power play goals leads the team while the 66 points he has to his credit is second on the team. David Krejci and Drew Stafford skate with him in the second line at even strength and could be used as a deeper tournament play this afternoon. Torey Krug is an optimal defensive play today as he quarterbacks the team’s top power play unit that has notched six goals in the last seven games. Krug’s 24 power play points is responsible for almost half of the 50 points he has registered this season. The Bruins can ill afford to lose this game tonight in front of the home crowd.

Elite Plays

FLA: None
BOS: Brad Marchand

Secondary Plays

FLA: Jonathan Marchessault, Jonathan Huberdeau, Keith Yandle, Vincent Trocheck
BOS: David Pastrnak, Torey Krug, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci

Minnesota Wild at Nashville Predators

Minnesota Wild					Nashville Predators
			Devan Dubnyk					Pekka Rinne
			Record					Record
			45-24-8					39-27-11
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	3.21	2.50	20.40%	82.40%	Team Stats	2.92	2.71	19.60%	80.10%

With the eye injury to Zach Parise it is tough to tell what the lines will be if he doesn’t draw into the line up this afternoon. If he were to return he would probably rejoin Eric Staal and Charlie Coyle on the team’s top line while Mikael Granlund, Jason Zucker and Mikko Koivu will skate on the team’s second line. The Wild currently have the second best record in the Western Conference and look to improve on that tonight. After winning just one game in their last 10 the Wild put together a strong game and defeated the Ottawa Senators by a score of 5-1 on Thursday night. Tonight they will travel to Nashville tonight to take on a Predators team that is 23-9-7 on home ice. Staal leads the team with seven points in the last eight games and has taken over the team lead in goals with 27 of them. He is probably the best candidate to be a one-off if you are looking to get some exposure to Minnesota tonight. Granlund continues to lead the team with 67 points but to be honest this whole line has gone into a funk. They have combined for just one goal and five assists over the last eight games. Hopefully getting back on track against Ottawa will jump start the team’s offense. Ryan Suter, Mathew Dumba and Jared Spurgeon are the choices on the back line with the latter having the hot hands of late. Spurgeon has registered six of his 36 points over the last two weeks while Dumba has lit the lamp three times over the last eight games. Nino Niederreiter can be used as a one-off here as the forward who should see a lot of scoring opportunities while skating on the third line.

There’s not a stronger line in the league than the one that Nashville puts out on the ice on a nightly basis. Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg and Viktor Arvidsson all have registered more than 55 points each this season as they also serve as the team’s top line when the Predators have the extra attacker. Nashville can clinch a playoff spot with a win here and should be able to do that tonight in front of the home crowd. James Neal is you one-off play here as the ex-Penguin sniper skates on the team’s second line but jumps up with the top line on the power play. He has a new line mate in P.A. Parenteau so it will be interesting to see if they can get anything going at even strength. There were a few line changes last game that saw Pareanteau move up to the top line and Arvidsson down to the third line but one can only assume that was because the Predators were losing and needed to shake things up. Defenseman Ryan Ellis has the hot hand as he has grabbed seven of his 37 points over the last eight games from the back line. Roman Josi is still the safer pick here however as he has found the score sheet 47 times so far this season while logging over 25 minutes of ice time on a nightly basis. Look for the Predators to clinch a playoff spot here tonight.

Elite Plays

MIN: Eric Staal
NSH: Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg

Secondary Plays

MIN: Mikael Granlund, Mikko Koivu, Jason Zucker, Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter
NSH: Viktor Arvidsson, Roman Josi, James Neal

Toronto Maple Leafs at Detroit Red Wings

Toronto Maple Leafs					Detroit Red Wings
			Frederik Andersen					Jimmy Howard
			Record					Record
			37-24-15					31-34-12
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	3.08	2.77	23.90%	82.80%	Team Stats	2.39	2.97	14.40%	81.30%

What we have here is a tale of two teams going in different directions. On the one hand we have a young Maple Leaf team that is on the verge of clinching a playoff spot while the Red Wings will not have a home playoff game for the first time in 25 years. Auston Matthews and William Nylander have taken the reigns over the last eight games as they lead the team with eight points each over that time frame. Both skate on the same even strength line and power play lines so keeping them together tonight may be one of the wiser choices you could make. James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Mitchell Marner have been together for most of the season and have each collected 50 or more points this season. This is one of the reasons that Toronto has had a little success, they can score goals. Even Nazem Kadri on the team’s third line can be used as a one-off here as he has 30 goals and 27 assists so far this season. Jake Gardiner is the play from the back line as he gets the first shot at quarterbacking the team’s top power play unit. Gardiner has tallied 38 points so far this season while Nikita Zaitsev and his 34 points could be a cheaper option here.

Although Detroit has been bumped from the playoffs they still have a few home games left at Joe Louis Arena with this being one of them. Henrik Zetterberg, Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist is the line to look at if you want to grab some fantasy points from the Detroit side. They have each found the score sheet seven times over the last two weeks and are the only Detroit players to tally 40 or more points this season. Zetterberg leads the team with 48 assists and 68 points while Tatar has taken over the team lead with 23 goals while playing in all 77 games. Frans Nielsen centers the second line while the third line of Dylan Larkin, Andreas Athanasiou and Justin Abdelkader has been newly minted thanks to an injury to Anthony Mantha. Niklas Kronwall gets the most time on the team’s top power play unit from the back line but you are much safer taking Mike Green in this spot. Green is more offensive oriented and has grabbed four of his 34 points over the last eight games which puts him at just about a point for every two games he plays in. The Red Wings will try to even their home record at 16-16-6 while also trying to make things tougher for the Maple Leafs and their playoff chances.

Elite Plays

TOR: Auston Matthews
DET: Henrik Zetterberg

Secondary Plays

TOR: William Nylander, Mitchell Marner, James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak, Jake Gardiner
DET: Tomas tatar, Gustav Nyquist, Mike Green, Dylan Larkin

New Jersey Devils at Philadelphia Flyers

New Jersey Devils					Philadelphia Flyers
			Cory Schneider					Steve Mason
			Record					Record
			27-36-14					37-32-8
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.25	2.91	18.40%	80.50%	Team Stats	2.58	2.87	19.50%	79.50%

It looks as though the New Jersey Devils have officially checked out for the season. They have lost 18 of their last 20 games which includes a 2-1 loss last night to the Islanders in Brooklyn last night. Tonight they travel down I-95 for a stop in Philadelphia to play a Flyers team that still has a slim chance to make the playoffs this season. As mentioned in yesterday’s Grind Down if you can stop the top line of Kyle Palmieri, Taylor Hall and Travis Zajac you probably have a good chance of winning the game. The Devils really have no second line to speak of as Adam Henrique skates with Joseph Blandisi and Beau Bennett. New Jersey has been able to get some of their younger players like Miles Wood and Pavel Zacha plenty of ice time on the secondary lines but they haven’t produced exactly the way the Devils brass would have liked them to. Zacha has 24 points in 65 games while Wood is floundering at 16 points in 56 games games. All of this means nothing of course in the DFS world so sticking with the top line here is more than likely your only tournament option from the New Jersey side of things tonight. Both Hall and Palmieri have reached the 50 point plateau and should be the only threat the Flyers will have to deal with as the game progresses. Damon Severson, John Moore and Andy Greene are the choices from the back line. None of them make a great play as Greene skates on the top power play unit, Severson leads the defensive corps with 31 points and Moore’s 3 points over the last seven games are the most points by any defensemen over the last seven games. Use your dart board if you are looking to roster a Devils defenseman tonight.

The Flyers have looked like one of the better teams in the league over the last few weeks as they have won five of their last seven games while still holding on to the last gasp of playoff hope. Their 82 points trails Boston by just six points with five games left in the season but would have to jump over three other teams to get there. Matt Read has been lost for the season so it’s anyone’s guess as to who will jump up and join Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek on the team’s top line. The thought process should be to leave the second line of Jordan Weal, Wayne Simmonds and Valtteri Filppula alone while Sean Couturier and Brayden Schenn should stay on the third line. This could mean that Travis Konecny may get his chance to get back into the top six as he is currently skating on the fourth line. Giroux leads the team with 42 assists while Voracek’s 58 points leads the team. Wayne Simmonds notched his 30th goal of the season the other night as this is the second season in a row he has turned that trick. Shayne Gostisbehere and Ivan Provorov are the choices from the back line. Gostisbehere has been playing better of late and should be considered as the better play of the two. The Flyers playoff hopes aren’t dead yet but you can bet your bottom dollar that the devils would love to put another nail in the coffin tonight.

Elite Plays

NJ: Taylor Hall
PHL: Wayne Simmonds

Secondary Plays

NJ: Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac
PHL: Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek, Shayne Gostisbehere, Jordan Weal

Dallas Stars at Carolina Hurricanes

Dallas Stars					Carolina Hurricanes
			Kari Lehtonen					Cam Ward
			Record					Record
			31-35-11					35-27-14
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.69	3.07	17.90%	73.90%	Team Stats	2.63	2.75	17.80%	85.30%

It’s going to be tough to figure out what exactly the Stars lines will look like tonight as Curtis Mackenzie will be out for a while as he received a stick to the eye the other night while Ales Hemsky is listed as day-to-day with a hip injury. The only thing that is for sure is that Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza should be skating in the top six and should see plenty of extra ice time on the team’s top power play unit. Spezza has been skating with MacKenzie and Adam Cracknell on the fourth line but it’s more than likely he will be moved up tonight. Cody Eakin is in the mix as well but sticking with Benn or Seguin would seem to be the smart move here. Seguin leads the team with 70 points while Benn’s 67 points in 72 games is second on the team. John Klingberg is the choice on the back line as he has seen 16 of his 45 points come with the man advantage. Dallas has been eliminated from this year’s playoffs and have only been able to win 11 games on the road this season. Something tells me that the hurricanes may give them a run for their money tonight.

Carolina has been just as resilient as the Tampa bay Lightning as both teams are chasing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Hurricane’s 84 points are just four points away from Boston and have an extra game to play so a win here could pull them even closer, especially if the Bruins were to lose this afternoon. Jeff Skinner is the biggest offensive threat that Carolina has as he leads the team with 32 goals and 57 points so far this season. Skinner skates with Derek Ryan and Lee Stempniak at even strength while the top line looks to be Jordan Staal, Elias Lindholm and Sebastian Aho. Meanwhile Victor Rask has more talent around him as he centers Teuvo Teravainen and Joakim Nordstrom. Stick with Skinner here however as he has racked up nine goals and two assists in his last eight games. Defenseman Justin Faulk is back to being the go-to guy from the back line as he has grabbed five of his 35 points over the last two weeks. Jaccob Slavin and Noah Hanifin can be had at lower prices but as with everything in life, you get what you pay for. Carolina has hung in there for most of the season and I would be very surprised if the decided to roll over now.

Elite Plays

DAL: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn
CAR: Jeff Skinner

Secondary Plays

DAL: Jason Spezza, John Klingberg
CAR: Sebastian Aho, Elias Lindholm, Victor Rask, Justin Faulk

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