NHL Grind Down: Thursday, November 10th - Page Two
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Los Angeles Kings at Montréal Canadiens
| Los Angeles Kings | Montréal Canadiens | ||||||||
 | Peter Budaj |  | Carey Price | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 7-6-0 | 11-1-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.62 | 2.46 | 10.30% | 77.80% | Team Stats | 3.23 | 2.23 | 19.50% | 78.80% |
And out of nowhere the Los Angeles Kings have put up 15 goals over the last five games which is hot on the heels of scoring no goals in the previous three games. Crazy stuff this NHL game is, but that’s why we play. The top line of Tanner Pearson, Anze Kopitar and Teddy Purcell may actually have a little room to skate on the ice tonight as long as Montreal tries to shut down Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli. That’s one of my biggest pet peeves in regards to NHL, it doesn’t matter how the lines are listed in regards to top line and second line but more what the home team thinks the line is that they need to shut down the most. The Kings have 17 players find the scoresheet at least once over the last three games and that’s good for an NHL team, but bad if you are trying to find some good DFS scoring. Drew Doughty and Jake Muzzin saw the most time on top power play unit from the points despite fellow defenseman Alec Martinez leading the team in scoring with nine points in 13 games. Maybe this is a sign that Kings are trying to get back to what has worked in the past instead of trying to re-invent the wheel. Nic Dowd is your one-off play here for GPP play as he sees time on the Kings second power play unit and has racked up three of his seven points over the last three games.
Well, here we go again. Head coach Michel Therrien can’t help but to shake things up when his team’s jump out to an impressive start. After going 10-1-1 he decided to put Paul Byron on the top line with Alex Galchenyuk and Alexander Radulov and wella! Byron grabs a goal and assist! Keep in mind that Byron has probably never had the chance to play on any top line thus far in his career as the 27 year old has never found the scoresheet more than 21 times in any of his six NHL seasons so far. Galchenyuk is also a good play here as he leads the team with 13 points while Radulov is tied with defenseman Shea Weber for second place with 11 points. All four of these guys should be in play tonight with the emphasis being on everyone but Byron, as the other three receive the top power play minutes when the situation calls for it. Defenseman Andrei Markov and Andrew Shaw make up the rest of the top unit with the man advantage that has been in a slump lately by only finding the net once in the last four games. The second line that features Max Pacioretty and Brendan Gallagher can be used as GPP plays but I doubt you will run into them much in your cash games tonight.
Elite Plays
LAK: None
MTL: Shea Weber, Alex Galchenyuk
Secondary Plays
LAK: Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Tyler Toffoli, Drew Doughty
MTL: Alexander Radulov, Andrei Markov
New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning
| New York Islanders | Tampa Bay Lightning | ||||||||
 | Jaroslav Halak |  | Andrei Vasilevskiy | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 5-6-2 | 7-5-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.85 | 2.92 | 10.80% | 77.10% | Team Stats | 3.08 | 2.85 | 25.50% | 87.80% |
The Islanders broke their three-game losing streak on Tuesday night as they defeated the Vancouver Canucks by a score of 4-2. They Travel to Florida to take on both teams from the Sunshine State which starts tonight in Tampa Bay. The Islanders are yet to win on the road and could have to wait at least another day to find their first win away from Barclay’s Center. New York has scored six goals on the road this season and John Tavares has been basically shut out. This is what happens when you start moving your skill players to four different lines, it’s easier to defend the superstar. Now with Cal Clutterbuck joining Josh Bailey with Tavares, this line should be even easier to defend. Brock Nelson makes a nice one-off play here as he centers the second line and has ten points so far this season with four of those coming in the three road games the islanders have played. Shane prince was making some noise as he has six points in eight games from the team’s third line. Nick Leddy gets the most ice time from the back line but is feeling the pressure from Calvin DeHaan who has assisted on three goals over the last four games.
It’s going to be real hard to ignore the fact that Tampa has scored six times on the power play in the last five games while The Islanders have given up nine goals over the last five games while trying to kill a penalty, so let’s not. Steven Stamkos could be the play of the night here as he has played like a man possessed now that all the contract controversy is over. His seven goals leads the team while line mate Nikita Kucherov has 15 points to lead the team in scoring, which is one more than Stamkos. If you haven’t picked up on it by now, yes I like this duo tonight. If you want to go on the cheap and get exposure to Stamkos you can easily slide to Vladislav Namestinikov who gets top line and top power play minutes next to the team’s franchise player. Victor Hedman has done well over the last six games from the point as he has seen his power play time increase all the while lighting the lamp twice and assisting on three other goals. Tyler Johnson is your one-off play here as he centers the second line but skates on the top unit with the man advantage. He has also found the back of the net three times over the last six games and should be in line for a few chances tonight. Anton Stralman is the other choice on defense as he has six assists in the first 12 games.
Elite Plays
NYI: none
TB: Steven Stamkos
Secondary Plays
NYI: John Tavares, Brock Nelson, Nick Leddy, Josh Bailey
TB: Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman, Tyler Johnson, Anton Stralman
St. Louis Blues at Nashville Predators
| St. Louis Blues | Nashville Predators | ||||||||
 | Carter Hutton |  | Pekka Rinne | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 7-4-3 | 4-5-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.38 | 2.54 | 15.70% | 91.20% | Team Stats | 2.58 | 2.83 | 26.70% | 76.90% |
The Predators should be ready for this one as the Blues are fresh off playing against division rival, the Chicago Blackhawks, last night. Nashville is 3-1-1 at home so far this season and look to improve on that record tonight against a tired St Louis team. The top line of James Neal, Ryan Johansen and Viktor Arvidsson should be the line to target here, especially Neal who has caught fire of late by scoring two goals and adding three assist over the last four games. Defenseman Roman Josi and Mattias Ekholm join Neal and Johansen on the top power play unit but it has been Matt Irwin and P.K. Subban outperforming them both of late as Subban leads the team with eight points. An interesting fact here is that Subban has five of his eight points in five home games. Filip Forsberg is your one-off here as he skates on the third line but gets the extra ice time when the team has the man advantage. Forsberg has scored three of his eight points over the last four games and has five points on home ice.
The Blues lost a thriller last night to the Blackhawks as they lost in overtime as Artemi Panarin scored just 25 seconds into the extra frame to give the Hawks the 2-1 win. St Louis did gain a point however as they now trail Chicago by four points for the Central division lead. The top line of Vladimir Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz and Jori Lehtera are the chalk plays here as they account for four of the team’s last ten goals over the last five games. The second line of Alexander Steen, David Perron and Patrik Berglund has one goal over the last five games. Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk makes for a nice cash play tonight as he is second on the team in points while having a hand in six of those last ten goals the Blues have scored. Shattenkirk quarterbacks the point on the top power play unit that features Paul Stastny, Tarasenko, Schwartz and Steen. Something tells me you may run into a lot of these guys in your cash games tonight.
Elite Plays
STL: Vladimir Tarasenko
NSH: James Neal
Secondary Plays
STL: Kevin Shattenkirk, Jaden Schwartz, Paul Stastny, Alexander Steen
NSH: Ryan Johansen, P.K. Subban, Filip Forsberg, Viktor Arvidsson, Roman Josi
Winnipeg Jets at Arizona Coyotes
| Winnipeg Jets | Arizona Coyotes | ||||||||
 | Connor Hellebuyck |  | Louis Domingue | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 6-7-1 | 5-7-0 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.00 | 3.07 | 15.10% | 79.60% | Team Stats | 2.83 | 3.67 | 10.50% | 73.20% |
Winnipeg is coming off their best offensive outburst of the year as they boat raced the Dallas Stars by scoring eight goals on home ice Tuesday night. It may seem like chasing points here but Patrik Laine does lead the team in scoring while playing on the top line with Nikolaj Ehlers and Mark Sceifele, all the while seeing the top minutes when the team has the man advantage. Arizona will surely try to shut down that line which would make Blake Wheeler a perfect one-off play here as he gets the minutes on the top power play. Wheeler does have three goals and seven assists so far to go along with tying Laine in shots for the team lead with 44 of them. Not a bad play on the road tonight. You can try and catch lightning in a bottle and grab either Kyle Connor or Nic Petan as they play on the second line alongside of him. Dustin Byfuglien is usually the play here but he only has two of his eight assists coming in the last five games, his price may be a bit high for rostering him tonight.
After 12 games the Arizona Coyotes have only played four games on home ice so far this season. In those games they are 3-1 with their only loss coming at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche by a score of 3-2. Finally Max Domi has started to heat up as last year’s end of the year sensation has taken over the team scoring lead with the help of snaring four points in his last four games. You can pair him up with line mate Anthony Duclair who has gained two of his three points over the last four games prompting an uptick of ice time on the team’s top power play unit it. Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson mans the point and is the play here as he leads the team in shots and ice time. He will be afforded plenty of opportunity as he has three points in the team’s four home games. Dylan Strome and Shane Doan are somehow also on the power play unit with Domi although their statistics would lead you to believe this to be a mistake as they have a combined four points in 18 man games played. Arizona can give Winnipeg a game tonight but I wouldn’t look for a lot of scoring here.
Elite Plays
WIN: Patrik Laine
ARZ: None
Secondary Plays
WIN: Blake Wheeler, Nikolaj Ehlers, Mark Scheifele
ARZ: Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Max Domi, Christian Dvorak, Anthony Duclair
Dallas Stars at Calgary Flames
| Dallas Stars | Calgary Flames | ||||||||
 | Kari Lehtonen |  | Brian Elliott | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 4-6-3 | 5-8-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.54 | 3.54 | 16.70% | 75.00% | Team Stats | 2.50 | 3.57 | 8.30% | 72.40% |
The Dallas Stars continue their five-game road trip fresh off an 8-2 shellacking from the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night. The loss was their sixth in the last seven games and unless Lindy Ruff has something up his sleeve, this team may just be out of it before it begins. Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn are the focus of the offense as they skate with Patrick Eaves to combine for five goals and 11 assists over the past five games. They are joined on the top power play unit by defenseman John Klingberg who has been heating up of late as the Stars have scored four goals in the last four games with the man advantage. Both Seguin and Eaves had a hand in three of those four power play goals. Antione is your one-off play here as he skates on the second line but gets power play exposure with the skill players on the team. Roussel has three of his six points over the last five games.
UPDATE
In an attempt to snap the Stars out of their scoring funk head coach Lindy Ruff has turned to the dart board once again. This time he has Benn with Radek Faksa and Lauri Korpikoski while Seguin, Eaves and Roussel handle the other line. One would have to think that this bumps up the value on Faksa and Korpikoski just a tad.
If you look real hard you can find some players in the league with the same amount of power play goals as the whole Calgary team. They have four so far this season and now it looks like they will use the top line of Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Alex Chiasson to pull the double duty. The Flames have scored only six goals in the last five games but there is hope as most of those games were on the road. They come back home, where they have scored ten goals in the last three games, to face a shaky Stars team. Johnny Gaudreau could be a one-off here as he has recorded six of his eight points in the six games the Flames have played on home ice so far this season. Both Sean Monahan and defenseman Dougie Hamilton are in the same situation which isn’t surprising when you consider the Flames have been a one line team for quite a while. If you want a couple of flyers, Sam Bennett and defenseman Mark Giordano will play on the top power play unit with the first line so there is at least some opportunity there if they can draw some penalties.
Elite Plays
DAL: Tyler Seguin
CGY: Johnny Gaudreau
Secondary Plays
DAL: Jamie Benn, John Klingberg, Patrick Eaves
CGY: Sean Monahan, Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton