NHL Grind Down: Saturday, March 25th - Page Two

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Toronto Maple Leafs at Buffalo Sabres

Toronto Maple Leafs Buffalo Sabres
Article Image Frederick Andersen Article Image Robin Lehner
Record Record
35-23-15 30-32-12
Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK% Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK%
Team Stats 3.10 2.77 24.10% 83.30% Team Stats 2.46 2.76 23.90% 76.80%

Toronto has started to peak at the right time as their 7-2-1 record over the last 10 games has not only started to solidify the team it also has the team in third place in the Atlantic Division with 85 points. William Nylander has been on fire as he has grabbed eight points in the last eight games so pairing him with Auston Matthews may be a good idea for your cash games tonight. Matthews leads the team with 60 points while both play on both even strength and top power play lines. Tyler Bozak, James van Riemsdyk and Mitchell Marner have been solid this season as all three players land inside the top six in terms of where Toronto’s scoring is concerned. Bozak’s 50 points is the least of the bunch which will give you an indicator of how good this line has been. Nazem Kadri feels like a one-off here as his 11 power play goals leads the team while centering Leo Komarov and Connor Brown at even strength. Jake Gardiner is the choice on defense as he soaks up a lot of extra minutes when the team draws a penalty. Look for a tough game from the Sabres with Toronto having the upper hand at the end of regulation.

With defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen suspended for three games it looks like the Buffalo defense will not only have a harder time stopping shots but putting them in the opposing net as well. The good news is that Kyle Okposo is set to return and skate on the top line with Tyler Ennis and Ryan O’Reilly. We last left Okposo with 43 points in 63 games and will look to improve on that number tonight. O’Reilly is the man to pair with him here as they should be able to have a hand in a least one goal tonight. Meanwhile Jack Eichel looks to be a decent one-off here as he will skate with Marcus Foligno and Sam Reinhart on the team’s second line. Eichel’s five points in the last seven games has helped him jump over O’Reilly for the team lead in points with 50 of them in the 53 games he has played in this season. Buffalo has scored just six goals in the last five games and it will be awfully tough for the back line to move the puck up into the transition game without Ristolainen.

Elite Plays

TOR: Auston Matthews
BUF: Jack Eichel

Secondary Plays

TOR: William Nylander, Mitchell Marner, James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri, Jake Gardiner
BUF: Ryan O’Reilly, Kyle Okposo, Sam Reinhart

Ottawa Senators at Montréal Canadiens

Ottawa Senators Montréal Canadiens
Article Image Mike Condon Article Image Carey Price
Record Record
41-24-8 41-24-9
Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK% Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK%
Team Stats 2.60 2.58 18.00% 81.10% Team Stats 2.68 2.47 19.70% 80.10%

With a game in hand the Ottawa Senators come into this one trailing Montreal by just one point for the Atlantic Division crown. We are getting down to the nitty gritty here as a win for Ottawa would be huge, I mean, not just huge but ‘Bigly’! Zach Smith, Kyle Turris and Bobby Ryan may be the line that Montreal decides to try to shut down or they could opt to target the Derick Brassard, Ryan Dzingel and Alexandre Burrows line. Regardless of what line has the tougher match up the Senators will still have to find a way to score against Montreal who outscored them by a tally of 8-4 in the two back-to-back losses they suffered earlier this month. Mike Hoffman looks to be a decent one-off play here as he skates on the team’s third line but will get top line power play minutes. His 13 power play goals lead the team by a huge margin as 25 of his 54 points have come with the extra attacker. Defenseman Erik Karlsson also has 25 power play points as he is the choice on the back line if you are looking to pair up an Ottawa forward with an Ottawa defenseman. His 67 points leads Hoffman by 13 points for the top spot on the Ottawa scoring chart this season.

Montreal has dropped their last two games with losses to Carolina and Detroit in front of the home crowd. They will look to save face tonight as a win here could put the team up three points over the surging Ottawa Senators as they both vie for the Atlantic Division crown. Alex Galchenyuk was dropped to the third line last game and promptly scored a goal, much to the delight of those who rostered him thinking he was still on the top line. Phillip Danault reclaims his spot as he centers Max Pacioretty and Alexander Radulov on the team’s top even strength line. Pacioretty leads the team with 60 points while Danault has grabbed four of his 35 points over the last six games. Paul Byron seems to be finding his legs a bit here as he leads the team with six points in the last six games and finds himself on the top power play unit skating with Pacioretty and Radulov. Byron’s even strength line mates are Brendan Gallagher and Tomas Plekanec which could be used as a stack for deeper tournament play just based on Byron’s breakout play over the last few weeks. Defenseman Shea Weber has racked up 41 points so far this season while getting upwards of 25 minutes of ice time on a nightly basis. His 11 power play goals lead the team in that category while his 10 power play assists are tied with three other players in that category as well. Andrei Markov could be used as an alternative here as he has 32 points to his credit in the 53 games he has played in this season.

Elite Plays

OTT: Erik Karlsson
MTL: Max Pacioretty

Secondary Plays

OTT: Mike Hoffman, Derick Brassard, Kyle Turris, Bobby Ryan
MTL: Alexander Radulov, Shea Weber, Phillip Danault, Paul Byron

Arizona Coyotes at Washington Capitals

Arizona Coyotes Washington Capitals
Article Image Mike Smith Article Image Braden Holtby
Record Record
27-38-9 48-17-8
Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK% Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK%
Team Stats 2.34 3.18 14.70% 78.00% Team Stats 3.17 2.15 21.70% 83.90%

When Corey Hart penned his famous one-hit wonder he certainly didn’t have the Coyotes in mind. Arizona has nothing to play for except to see who can possibly play well together as they are no doubt looking at next year. This will make things complicated as they have and will continue to switch up their lines on almost a nightly basis. Max Domi, Anthony Duclair and Christian Dvorak will skate on the top line while Tobias Rieder and Brendan Perlini skate with Jordan Martinook on the team’s second line. Radim Vrbata leads the team 52 points and makes for a decent GPP one-off here as he skates on the third line with Peter Holland and Jamie McGinn but still gets the extra minutes on the team’s top power play line. Beside their 5-3 win at Tampa Tuesday night the Coyotes have scored just two goals in three of their last four games. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is usually a force to be reckoned with but even he seems a bit disinterested this season. Bad hockey breeds bad stats as he has racked up just 37 points which is second on the team this season. Jakob Chychrun could be a punt play here as he has netted five points over the last eight games. Look for Arizona to have a bit of trouble putting the biscuit in the basket tonight.

Washington’s 48-17-8 record is the best in the league as we head into the final nine-game stretch. After a brief four-game losing streak the Capitals have rebounded to win four of their last five games and should have no problem disposing of the ‘Desert Dogs’ tonight on home ice. The top line of Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie should see a lot of ownership in cash games tonight. Backstrom’s 11 points in the last seven games is just the icing on the cake as all things are status quo for him as he leads the team with 78 points in 73 games. Oshie and Ovechkin are battling for the most goals on the team as Oshie’s 30 leads Ovechkin by a goal going into tonight’s game. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Justin Williams and Marcus Johansson could be looked at here against an Arizona team that has given up 236 goals this season with 131 of them being given up on the road. That leads the league in that category. Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk is the play on the back line as he quarterbacks one of the deadliest power play units in the league.

Elite Plays

ARZ: None

WSH: Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Ovechkin

Secondary Plays

ARZ: Radim Vrbata, Max Domi, Oliver Ekman-Larsson
WSH: T.J. Oshie, Kevin Shattenkirk, Marcus Johansson, Evgeny Kuznetsov

Chicago Blackhawks at Florida Panthers

Chicago Blackhawks Florida Panthers
Article Image Corey Crawford Article Image James Reimer
Record Record
48-20-6 32-30-11
Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK% Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK%
Team Stats 2.97 2.49 19.20% 78.10% Team Stats 2.42 2.79 16.40% 85.90%

It really doesn’t matter who centers Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin as this duo just keeps on scoring. Nick Schmaltz drew the lucky straw a few games back but has since been replaced by Ryan Hartman on the top line. Kane has lit the lamp three times on his way to 10 points in the last eight games while Panarin has four goals and four assists over that same time frame. Kane’s 81 points leads the team while Panarin’s 24 goals and 42 assists have him a distant second. Jonathan Toews, Richard Panik and John Hayden will skate on the team’s second line which should see some room to maneuver on the ice tonight. Toews and Panik is the pair to take here if you aren’t going with a full line stack as they get the extra exposure to the team’s scoring leaders when Chicago has the extra attacker. Toews has notched six of his 5 points over the last eight games and could even be used as a one-off here tonight. Defenseman Duncan Keith soaks up most of the time when the Blackhawks draw a penalty as he has recorded 15 of his 50 points with the man advantage. Brent Seabrook and Trevor van Riemsdyk could be alternatives on the back line but you are probably best looking elsewhere for your defensive punts tonight.

Florida has won but just three games in their last 10 which has successfully ousted them from the playoff conversation. No, they are not ‘mathematically’ out of it but their 75 points is seven points and four teams away from grabbing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau and Jaromir Jagr skate as the team’s top line and could be targeted for your tournament plays tonight. Barkov’s eight points in the last seven games has him just two points behind the team leader with 20 goals and 28 assists. Vincent Trocheck leads the team with 50 points as a lot of them had come when there were injuries but has still been able to keep the pace even though his line mates are Jussi Jokinen and Reilly Smith. Thomas Vanek and Jonathan Marchessault skate on the third line with nick Bjugstad and make for a high ceiling type duo for tonight’s contests. Marchessault’s 25 goals is tops on the team while Vanek has found the score sheet eight times in his 11 games he has played in a Florida Panthers sweater. Keith Yandle is the play on the back line as Aaron Ekblad continues to have headache-like symptoms from the concussion he suffered four games ago. Yandle has netted 14 of his 36 points while skating with the man advantage. Look for Florida to play tough here but lose the game in the closing period.

Elite Plays

CHI: Patrick Kane
FLA: None

Secondary Plays

CHI: Artemi Panarin, Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, Richard Panik
FLA: Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Jonathan Marchessault, Keith Yandle, Jaromir Jagr

San Jose Sharks at Nashville Predators

San Jose Sharks Nashville Predators
Article Image Martin Jones Article Image Pekka Rinne
Record Record
42-25-7 37-25-11
Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK% Stats GF/GP GA/GP PP% PK%
Team Stats 2.66 2.34 16.80% 81.90% Team Stats 2.92 2.73 20.00% 80.40%

The Sharks have fallen on hard times as they now have lost five games in a row and are now tied with Anaheim for the Pacific Division lead with 91 points. They have made so many line changes over the last few games that even Stevie nicks would be proud. Too bad for the Sharks her costume changes work better for her onstage than the line changes have worked for the team. Jannik Hansen was shipped up to the top line to play with Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton I their 6-1 shellacking at the hands of the stars in Dallas last night. This meant that Patrick Marleau was back on the second line with Logan Couture and Joel Ward. Normally Marleau and Couture do well together so maybe we will have to wait until tonight for that to happen. Pavelski, Thornton, Couture and Marleau are joined by defenseman Brent Burns to form the top power play unit that was responsible for the team’s only marker last night. Nashville has won six of their last seven home games and could pose a problem to the faltering Sharks tonight.

Nashville is right in the thick of things where the Western Conference playoffs are concerned. Their 85 points has them tied with the St Louis Blues for third place in the Central Division and are in no apparent danger of being caught by the ninth place Kings who have just 77 points. The Predators should be in good shape as long as they can get a few points here and there the rest of the way. Viktor Arvidsson, Filip Forsberg and Ryan Johansen should be the line to target here for your cash game endeavors. This is the team’s top line that is also joined by second liner James Neal for a power play that has scored just three times this month. That doesn’t mean that they aren’t good plays however as just two points separate the top line with Johansen leading the team with 55 points. Forsberg is next in line with 54 points and Arvidsson’s eight points in the last 10 games has his total at 53 points. Look for this line to do some damage tonight. Roman Josi is the defensive play from the back line as he is tapped to quarterback the team’s top power play unit. Josi is fourth on the team in scoring with 44 points this season. Ryan Ellis has been hot of late as his seven points in the last eight games now has his total at a modest 35 for the season. Nashville shouldn’t let down here so look for them to improve on their 22-8-7 home record in front of the Nashville faithful tonight.

Elite Plays

SJ: Joe Pavelski, Brent Burns
NSH: Ryan Johansen

Secondary Plays

SJ: Logan Couture, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau
NSH: Viktor Arvidsson, Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, James Neal

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About the Author

elctrceye
Tom Woollam (elctrceye)

Tom Woollam is a freelance DFS writer and has been a member here at RotoGrinders.com since December 2011. He has played Fantasy Sports for the last 30 years and has been in the daily fantasy sports game for the last four. You can find him on twitter @elctrceye.