NHL Grind Down: Sunday, April 9th
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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.
Important Note #1
With almost virtually every team having nothing to play for it looks like some teams will play this game straight up and some won’t. For instance, Ottawa has decided to rest a majority of their players this evening which would make it awfully tough to project what may or may not happen. Due to the deadline it is impossible to predict what teams may or may not do as the day rolls on. Please make sure all of your players are in the line up tonight before you roster them.
Important Note #2
It has been an honor to write the Grind Down five times a week during the regular season. A lot of words have covered a lot of games this season as I had only missed three ‘assigned’ days of writing all season while filling in a few times where needed. Hopefully the information provided has helped you become profitable throughout the season or at the very least has show you different ways to become a profitable DFS hockey player. It’s been a blast and I look forward to doing it all over again next season.
Ottawa Senators at New York Islanders
| Ottawa Senators | New York Islanders | ||||||||
 | Mike Condon |  | Jaroslav Halak | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 44-27-10 | 40-29-12 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.55 | 2.59 | 17.20% | 79.70% | Team Stats | 2.86 | 2.91 | 14.90% | 81.70% |
Ottawa is doing nothing but waiting here as they are securely seated in the second place spot in the Atlantic Division. If the Maple Leafs grab a point today then the Senators will face them in a first round playoff battle. Defenseman Erik Karlsson will not be in tonight’s line up as the club is resting him for the playoffs. The senators are already injury plagued on the back line which means that Dion Phaneuf will see the extra ice time and can be used here as a cash game play. Clarke MacArthur has returned from injury and skated with Kyle Turris and Ryan Dzingel on the top line while Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone skated on the second line. Hoffman and Turris have each grabbed six points over the last seven games while Turris’ 27 goals leads the team. Hoffman is a decent play here as well as his 61 points is second on the team next to the resting Karlsson’s 71 seasonal points. Derick Brassard will jump up from the third line to join Hoffman, Turris, Stome and Phaneuf on the top power play unit. Ottawa has been resilient all year and should be able to score a few goals here in Brooklyn tonight.
SENATORS UPDATE:
There is now word that Ottawa is resting almost their whole team with Bobby Ryan being the only worthwhile fantasy option this afternoon. This is the quote:
Bobby Ryan will be one of only a few fantasy-worthy players in the Senators lineup Sunday against the Islanders.
The Sens are resting virtually their whole team. Clarke MacArthur, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Ryan Dzingel and Alex Burrows are the most prominent Ottawa forwards who will dress Sunday. The only interested defensemen who will play are Mark Borowiecki and Cody Ceci. Adjust your roster accordingly.
Source: Ottawa Citizen Apr 9 – 10:37 AM
The Islanders were another team eliminated from the playoffs last night and will now look ahead to next year. Anders Lee, Anthony Beauvillier and Josh Ho-Sang give the team their best shot at scoring tonight as they skate on the team’s top line. The New Yorkers have won their last five games but the injury to John Tavares looks like it was more of a mental blow than anything as the team did their best to stay in playoff contention. Lee’s six points over the last two weeks has only added to his team leading 33 goals which makes him a nice one-off candidate here. Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey are the other two forwards to look at here as they skate on the team’s second line. Bailey has been a pleasant surprise as his 55 points this season has to solidify his spot as a top six player for the Islanders next season. Defenseman Nick Leddy is the choice from the back line as he has grabbed 45 points this season while being the mainstay on team’s top power play unit.
Elite Plays
OTT: None
NYI: None
Secondary Plays
OTT: Bobby Ryan, Alexandre Burrows
NYI: Anders Lee, Josh Ho-Sang, Nick Leddy, Josh Bailey
New Jersey Devils at Detroit Red Wings
| New Jersey Devils | Detroit Red Wings | ||||||||
 | Cory Schneider |  | Jimmy Howard | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 28-39-14 | 32-36-13 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.21 | 2.91 | 17.70% | 79.80% | Team Stats | 2.40 | 3.00 | 14.80% | 80.60% |
The New Jersey Devils will put a capper on their horrendous 2016-17 season by visiting another team that must surely be disappointed this season. New Jersey has won just three games over the last 23 scheduled games with two of them coming against division rival, the Philadelphia Flyers. This is a pretty bad team and it’s going to be tough to find anyone playable this evening. Taylor Hall is your best bet as he has been skating with Pavel Zacha and Mike Cammalleri at even strength. Hall’s six points over the last 11 games has only added to his team lead of 53 points while Zacha has been serviceable with his five assists over that same time frame. Kyle Palmieri would be the other choice as he anchors the second line along with Travis Zajac and Adam Henrique. Palmieri leads the team with 26 goals while skating on the top power play unit with the talented Hall. Damon Severson, John Moore and Andy Greene are the choices on the back line. As you can imagine none of them have the cash game stats needed to win as the team has scored just 19 goals in the last 11 games.
The Red Wings get to close out their season in front of the home crowd. The significance of this is that it will be the last game played at ‘The Joe’. Joe Louis Arena has been the home to many decent Detroit teams but this season’s team is not one of them. They should however dig deep enough to make sure that the last game played in this building doesn’t end in a losing effort. Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar should be the target as they skate as the top line but also pull double duty when the team has the extra attacker. Zetterberg leads the team with 66 points while Tatar’s 24 goals is tops on the team. Justin Abdelkader, Dylan Larkin and Matt Lorito skate on the second line while Frans Nielsen centers the third line. Anthony Mantha is done for the season while the status of Andres Athanasiou is unclear as he missed yesterday’s game with an injury. Niklas Kronwall is back on the point when the team has the man advantage but Mike Green remains the safer play from the back line as his 36 points leads all Detroit defensemen in scoring.
Elite Plays
NJ: Taylor Hall
DET: Henrik Zetterberg
Secondary Plays
NJ: Kyle Palmieri, Adam Henrique, Travis Zajac
DET: Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Mike Green
Buffalo Sabres at Tampa Bay Lightning
| Buffalo Sabres | Tampa Bay Lightning | ||||||||
 | Robin Lehner |  | Andrei Vasilevskiy | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 33-36-12 | 41-30-10 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.47 | 2.76 | 24.60% | 77.30% | Team Stats | 2.78 | 2.78 | 23.00% | 81.30% |
Buffalo gets to play a Tampa team that was knocked out the playoffs yesterday by virtue of the Maple Leafs beating the Pittsburgh Penguins. The balloon should be out of air tonight which makes some of the Sabres a decent cash game play tonight. Jack Eichel is the one-off here as the youngster has been able to grab a team leading 57 points in the 60 games he has suited up for. Sam Reinhart is usually his line mate which makes this duo something to consider this evening. Ryan O’Reilly centers the top line along with Evander Kane and Brian Gionta. Kane’s 27 goals leads the team in that category while O’Reilly’s 54 points is three off the pace that Eichel has set this season. Rasmus Ristolainen is the defenseman of choice here as he has found the score sheet 25 times when the team has had the extra attacker. That’s more than half of his seasonal point total of 45 which is 25 points ahead of the next defenseman on the team. Look for Buffalo to come out and score a few here with Eichel leading the way.
Tampa lost out on their playoff bid last night as Toronto was able to squeak in with a victory last night. The Lightning actually didn’t have a bad season when you consider all of the injuries they had to deal with. Nikita Kucherov has notched 40 goals to go along with 44 points this season and should be the player to look at for your cash game plays tonight. Ondrej Palat and Brayden Point skate with him on the top line and should be looked at for a nice tournament stack here tonight. Palat has garnered 10 points over the last seven games while Point has produced half the number over that same time frame. Yanni Gourde centers Alex Killorn on the second line but the better play may come from the third line as Jonathan Drouin has snagged five of his 53 points over the last seven games. Drouin gets the extra ice time with the top line when the team draws a penalty, which makes him a nice one-off play here. Defenseman Victor Hedman is the final piece of the power play puzzle that has scored six power play goals in the last seven games. Hedman is the choice on the back line as he has racked up 70 points so far this season.
Elite Plays
BUF: Jack Eichel
TB: Nikita Kucherov
Secondary Plays
BUF: Ryan O’Reilly, Rasmus Ristolainen, Evander Kane, Sam Reinhart
TB: Ondrej Palat, Victor Hedman, Brayden Point, Jonathan Drouin
Colorado Avalanche at St. Louis Blues
| Colorado Avalanche | St. Louis Blues | ||||||||
 | Calvin Pickard |  | Jake Allen | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 22-55-4 | 45-29-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 1.96 | 3.37 | 12.70% | 76.30% | Team Stats | 2.78 | 2.62 | 21.60% | 84.70% |
For a team that had won all six of their preseason games the Avalanche didn’t even come close to that effort during the regular season. They are the worst team in the league and will no doubt look to the future in today’s final game. Sven Andrighetto and Nathan MacKinnon give the team their best shot of scoring this evening as Andrighetto has grabbed seven points in the last seven games while MacKinnon leads the team with 52 points. yes there are others who can score at times like Gabriel Landeskog who skates on the second line or Matt Duchene who centers the third line but they haven’t played up to expectations this season, which makes it very tough to roster them in cash games tonight. The good news is that Mikko Rantanen returned last night and played with MacKinnon and Andrighetto which makes them a borderline tournament play as Rantanen has added 37 points in his first campaign. Defenseman Tyson Barrie is the play on the back line as he soaks up most of the power play time from the point. Barrie’s 38 points so far this season is good enough for third on the team.
The Blues look like they are sticking with Ivan Barbashev on the top line and quite frankly, so should you. Playing with Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwartz should pay huge dividends tonight on home ice against a lousy Colorado team. Tarasenko is a no-brainer here as he leads the team with 38 goals and 36 points but selecting his line mates could make for a nice cash game play here tonight. David Perron and Alexander Steen secure the second line and both have been playing well of late as evidence of their combined five goals and seven assists over the last two weeks. Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo soaks up a lot of the extra ice time when the team has the man advantage. This has paid off well as the blue liner has grabbed eight of his 48 points over the last seven games.
Elite Plays
COL: None
STL: Vladimir Tarasenko
Secondary Plays
COL: Nathan MacKinnon, Sven Andrighetto, Tyson Barrie, Mikko Rantanen
STL: Jaden Schwartz, Alexander Steen, Alex Pietrangelo, Ivan Barbashev
Columbus Blue Jackets at Toronto Maple Leafs
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||||||||
 | Sergei Bobrovsky |  | Curtis McElhinney | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 49-24-8 | 40-26-15 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.03 | 2.34 | 20.10% | 82.20% | Team Stats | 3.09 | 2.79 | 24.20% | 82.30% |
Columbus is a team looking for answers as they play their last regular season game against a Toronto team that will no doubt be fired up. Their six game losing streak had forced the team to sit Cam Atkinson in the third period yesterday just to shake up the team as they head into the playoffs next week. Look for Atkinson to be on fire today as he is the team leader in with 34 goals and 61 points. One would have to assume that he will rejoin Nick Foligno and Brandon Dubinsky on the top line while Alexander Wennberg will center Brandon Saad and Sam Gagner. Defenseman Zachary Werenski will sit this one out so look for Seth Jones to pick up the pace here on the back line. The Blue Jackets have scored just 11 goals in the last six games so look for both Wennberg and Atkinson to be the spark plugs today to try and get the engine started tonight as Wennberg trails Atkinson by just two points for the team lead.
Toronto needs a point in this game to get themselves out of a first round showdown with the best team in the league. They would rather play the Senators than the Capitals and a point here is what they will be looking for to accomplish that. Auston Matthews and William Nylander feel like the chalk plays here as they skate on the top line and are first and third on the team’s scoring chart. Matthews has taken the reigns as he leads the team with 40 goals and 60 points, which makes him a decent one-off play here as well. Tyler Bozak, James van Riemsdyk and Mitchell Marner should get into the scoring act as well tonight as they are the team’s most consistent scoring line. All three players have registered at least 55 points with Marner leading this group with 61 points on the season. Nazem Kadri has been consistent all year as he has grabbed six of his 61 points over the last two weeks. Look for Jake Gardiner to lead the defensive corps as he too has recorded six points over the last two weeks while being the centerpiece on the back line of the team’s top power play unit. Given Toronto’s situation I would look for them to come out flying tonight.
Elite Plays
CBJ: Cam Atkinson
TOR: Auston Matthews
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno, Brandon Saad, Sam Gagner
TOR: William Nylander, James van Riemsdyk, Mitchell Marner, Nazem Kadri, Jake Gardiner