NHL Grind Down: Sunday, March 6th
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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Dallas Stars at Ottawa Senators – 05:00 PM EST
| Dallas Stars | Ottawa Senators | ||||||||
 | Kari Lehtonen |  | Andrew Hammond | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 39-20-7 | 31-28-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.20 | 2.86 | 21.50% | 79.40% | Team Stats | 2.82 | 3.05 | 17.70% | 74.00% |
Dallas is deadlocked in a first place tie with the Chicago Blackhawks for first place in the Central division. Usually it is pretty easy to figure out who to play for the Stars as the first line that features Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn are almost always higher owned on small slates. A peculiar thing is happening though as the second line of Jason Spezza, Valeri Nichushkin and Mattias Janmark are actually starting to gel as they have been outscoring the top line over the past five games. Spezza has four goals while Nichushskin has netted two goals to go along with two assists in the last five games. It would make sense to pair these two together as they will skate on the second line against a team that not only played last night, but have given up 206 goals so far this season. John Klingberg looks like he will not play today which puts both Alex Goligoski and Jason Demers in play on the point for Dallas.
It’s status quo for the Ottawa Senators as it always seems the opponent can outscore this team in any given situation. The Senators still have a long way to go to get into the playoffs but if there is one thing you can count on it’s the fact that they can score goals, they just have problems when it comes to letting them in their own net. Defenseman Erik Karlsson leads the team in points and is always a consideration night in and night out. With all the scoring the team has been doing this will be more of a pick a line and play them scenario today. The only thing we need to look out for is the fact that they did play last night and may be a little tired. Mike Hoffman and Bobby Ryan skate on the team’s top line and have tallied three points over the last five games while Mika Zibanejad has lit the lamp three times to go along with an assist over the last four games he has played. The second line of Zack Smith, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Mark Stone have also been productive over the last five games with Stone leading the way with six points while Pageau has five and Smith four over that same time period. As stated above, either line should work today against a Dallas team that has given up 33 goals in their last eight games.
Elite Plays
DAL: Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin
OTT: Erik Karlsson
Secondary Plays
DAL: Jason Spezza, Valeri Nichushkin
OTT: Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman, Bobby Ryan, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Mika Zibanejad, Zack Smith
Pittsburgh Penguins at New Jersey Devils – 05:00 PM EST
| Pittsburgh Penguins | New Jersey Devils | ||||||||
 | Marc-Andre Fleury |  | Keith Kinkaid | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 33-23-8 | 31-28-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.67 | 2.52 | 18.20% | 83.90% | Team Stats | 2.20 | 2.39 | 21.30% | 82.10% |
After a horrendous home loss to the Calgary Flames, the Penguins will travel to Newark today to take on the New Jersey Devils. Matt Murray gets the call in net for Pittsburgh while the Devils have to go with their backup goaltender with the injury to starter Corey Schneider. The Penguins have been shuffling up their lines a little bit and now with the news of Carl Hagelin out for today’s game it looks like the waters will be a bit murkier. Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel are the odds on favorites to do well today as they both skate on the second line but see the majority of time on the power play. Malkin has registered five points over the last five games while Kessel has added a goal and three assists in the same time frame. The top line of Sidney Crosby, Patric Hornqvist and Chris Kunitz can’t be counted out either as this line has produced nine goals and 11 assists in the last five games with Hornqvist leading the way with five goals and four assists. Kris Letang gets all the power play time from the pint and makes a good play with his four points over the last five games. New Jersey can be tough to score on at times but Keith Kinkaid is not a good goalie and after losing to Calgary last night, the Penguins should be ready to roll today.
The Devils have only scored eight goals in the last five games and with Corey Schneider not between the pipes, it may be a long afternoon in Newark today. The good news is the top line of Reid Boucher, Adam Henrique and Devante Smith-Pelly have been playing well lately and should have some room on the ice today as the devils can mix and match their lines by virtue of being the home team. Henrique and Smith-Pelly both have four points in their last five games with Henrique having four goals while Smith-Pelly has lit the lamp three times. This duo is a borderline cash play but a definite GPP tandem. David Schlemko continues to see the top minutes on the power play from the point but has not done anything in the last eight games outside of his two assist game a few nights ago. Kyle Palmieri makes a good one-off play here as he gets top power play minutes and has tallied a goal to go along with two assists in his last five games.
Elite Plays
PIT: Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Sidney Crosby, Patric Hornqvist
NJ: None
Secondary Plays
PIT: Phil Kessel, Chris Kunitz
NJ: Adam Henrique, Devante Smith-Pelly, David Schlemko, Kyle Palmieri
Detroit Red Wings at Chicago Blackhawks – 05:00 PM EST
| Detroit Red Wings | Chicago Blackhawks | ||||||||
 | Petr Mrazek |  | Corey Crawford | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 32-21-11 | 40-21-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.52 | 2.55 | 17.50% | 81.50% | Team Stats | 2.82 | 2.41 | 23.50% | 79.00% |
Although they have only two points between them in the last five games it appears that the Red Wings are keeping with their top line of Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Justin Abdelkader. The second line however may be the play here as Andreas Anthanasiou and Brad Richards have lit the lamp twice in the last five games while Dylan Larkin has been left off the scoresheet. Chicago just beat Detroit on Wednesday in their own building by a score of 5-2 so I don’t think much will be different with the change of venue for tonight’s contest. The top line also gets the top power play minutes with Gustav Nyquist and defesnseman Niklas Kronwall rounding out the top unit. Nyquist makes a decent one-off play here as he has grabbed three points over the last five games. Tomas Tatar gets minutes on the team’s second power play and has been the most productive in the last few weeks as evidence of his four points he has tallied over his last five games. Detroit should score a few, but I wouldn’t expect too much today.
Besides Los Angeles, Chicago would seem to be the team to beat in the Western conference as they have made some moves lately to become an even more balanced team. Andrew Ladd joins Jonathan Toews and Andrew Shaw on the Hawks top line that also doubles as the team’s top power play unit. This is a good place to start as Ladd has registered seven points in his last six games while Toews has two goals and four assists in his last seven games. Shaw has been able to keep pace with the big boys as he has found the scoresheet four times over the past seven games. Patrick Kane is always in play as he could be the best scorer in the league this season. His three goals and three assists in his last six games would make him a decent one-off play or pair him with line mate Artemi Panarin to make a nice duo for your lineups today. Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are the choices on defense with Seabrook having a slight edge in the last five games with two goals and two assists. Chicago should score some goals today so going with either line isn’t a bad idea.
Elite Plays
DET: None
CHI: Patrick Kane
Secondary Plays
DET: Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist, Niklas Kronwall
CHI: Artemi Panarin, Jonathan Toews, Andrew Ladd, Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith
New York Islanders at New York Rangers – 05:00 PM EST
| New York Islanders | New York Rangers | ||||||||
 | Jaroslav Halak |  | Antti Raanta | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 35-20-7 | 38-21-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.81 | 2.44 | 18.70% | 86.70% | Team Stats | 2.78 | 2.51 | 17.60% | 77.30% |
The battle of New York is in full effect this afternoon as the Islanders visit Manhattan to take on the Rangers. Both have earned playoff spots as of now but it is the Rangers who are the ones who have a five point lead for the race for second place in the Metropolitan division. The Islanders have been on a tear of late by winning seven of their last ten games and look to improve on that number today. John Tavares, Brock Nelson and Ryan Strome make up the team’s top line but the advice here would be to use Tavares as a one-off as he has been the most productive of the three with three points in his last five games and should be able to find the scoresheet via the power play. The second line is the one that has the most upside here as they will have more room on the ice to maneuver and the don’t have to face goalie Henrik Lundquist, which is a big help in terms of scoring on the New York Rangers. Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen are the choices here as Okposo has registered five points in the last five games while Nielsen has grabbed two goals and two assists over that same time frame. Nick Leddy is the choice on defense as he quarterbacks the team’s top power play unit and has two assists in his last five games. Anders lee makes a nice one-off play as well by virtue of scoring two goals to go along with three assists while seeing top minutes on the team’s power play unit.
The Ranger’s top line of J.T. Miller, Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello have been quiet of late as they have only registered four points between them over the last five games. Look for them to find the scoresheet tonight as there is too much talent on that line to hold them down for long periods of time. Chris Kreider, Derek Stepan and Jesper Fast make up the team’s second with Kreider and Stepan being the plays here as they not only have five goals to go along with two assists between them in the last five games, they also get the top minutes on the team’s power play. Keith Yandle is back on the top power play unit but it has been fellow defenseman Ryan McDonagh who has the hot hand with five points in his last five games. Look for the Rangers to score a few in this one and for my money, the top line is the way to go tonight.
Elite Plays
NYI: John Tavares
NYR: None
h3. Secondary Plays
NYI: Kyle Okposo, Frans Nielsen, Nick Leddy
NYR: Mats Zuccarello, Derick Brassard, Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, Keith Yandle, Ryan McDonagh
Edmonton Oilers at Winnipeg Jets – 07:00 PM EST
| Edmonton Oilers | Winnipeg Jets | ||||||||
 | Cam Talbot |  | Ondrej Pavelec | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 25-35-7 | 27-32-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.40 | 2.96 | 17.20% | 80.90% | Team Stats | 2.59 | 2.95 | 16.10% | 77.50% |
This game will feature the two last place teams in the Western conference. Neither team has any real shot of climbing back into the playoff race but for all intents and purposes, there should be some scoring. Connor McDavid continues to impress as it seems he is finding the scoresheet on a nightly basis. His three goals and three assist easily leads the team with line mate Jordan Eberle right behind him with four points over the last five games. Nail Yakupov completes the top line but I wouldn’t look to him just yet as it will clearly take him a little time to gel with his new line mates. The second line on the road here makes a bit more sense in terms of rostering the whole line as Taylor Hall, Leon Draisaitl and newly acquired Patrick Maroon all have at least two goals over the last five games with Maroon leading the way with four points over that same time period. On defense Andre Sekera mans the point on the team’s top power play unit and has registered two points over the last five games. Edmonton should be able to score tonight as Winnipeg is not a good defensive team and may be a little tired after playing last night.
The top line of Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler and drew Stafford is the line to target here as the Jets get the last change on home ice. Scheifele leads the way with a torrid 13 points in his last eight games while Blake Wheeler leads the team in scoring and has grabbed two goals to go along with two assists in his last six games. Dustin Byfuglien is the play on the point if you can afford him as he has a goal and seven assist in his last eight games. If you want to shy away from the chalk then maybe the second line is for you. Mathieu Perreault gets the top minutes on the power play with the aforementioned four players, so pairing him with either line mate in Joel Armia or Alex Burmistrov may not be a bad idea against an Edmonton team that has given up 200 goals so far this season.
Elite Plays
EDM: Connor McDavid
WIN: Mark Scheifele, Dustin Byfuglien, Blake Wheeler
Secondary Plays
EDM: Jordan Eberle, Taylor Hall, Leon Draisaitl
WIN: Drew Stafford, Mathieu Perreault