NHL Grind Down: Tuesday, April 4th
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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.
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Philadelphia Flyers at New Jersey Devils
| Philadelphia Flyers | New Jersey Devils | ||||||||
 | Steve Mason |  | Keith Kinkaid | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 38-33-8 | 27-37-14 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.59 | 2.85 | 19.70% | 79.70% | Team Stats | 2.21 | 2.90 | 18.10% | 80.10% |
The Flyers loss to the Rangers Sunday night has put to rest any nonsensical thoughts of them making the playoffs for another season. They finally started to put their top six players on the top two lines which in my estimation is why the team went on a nice run there at the end to at least stay in the hunt until now. Jordan Weal must have a lot of talent because Claude Giroux couldn’t even stop the youngster from putting up a team leading seven points over the last five games. Jakub Voracek skates with aforementioned two players and should be bottled up tonight on the Devil’s home ice. Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn and Valtteri Filppula should be the line to target here for your tournament options as much like the other night in New York, this is the line that won’t be shadowed by New Jersey’s top defensive line. Shayne Gostisbehere has gotten back on track and looks to have broken out of his sophomore slump as he has tallied 11 of his 38 points over the last month. This is still a division battle but the only battle these teams have to shoot for now is breaking 100 on their golf cards in a few weeks.
New Jersey has looked as listless as a team can get over the past six games as they have lit the lamp just eight times over that time frame. It really shouldn’t be a surprise that they all of those games as they are basically a one line team. That one line may be in play here though as the Flyers are easily going to have their ‘A’ game tonight as they now realize, just like the Devils had a few weeks ago, that there is nothing to play for. It’s just skate around for three periods and don’t hurt anyone while collecting your final paychecks of the season. Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac is your top line here with Hall leading the way with 51 points in the 68 games he has suited up for. Adam Henrique, Joseph Blandisi and Beau Bennett serve as the second line which may not even be good enough as a GPP play here. The same could be said for defensemen Damon Severson and John Moore as it is very tough to trust a team that is out of the playoffs and looks like they could care less when puck has dropped over the last two weeks.
Elite Plays
PHL: Jakub Voracek
NJ: Taylor Hall
Secondary Plays
PHL: Wayne Simmonds, Claude Giroux, Jordan Weal, Brayden Schenn, Shayne Gostisbehere
NJ: Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac
Tampa Bay Lightning at Boston Bruins
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Boston Bruins | ||||||||
 | Andrei Vasilevskiy |  | Tuukka Rask | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 39-29-10 | 43-30-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.81 | 2.78 | 23.10% | 81.10% | Team Stats | 2.86 | 2.59 | 21.30% | 85.30% |
When you sit down to watch this Atlantic Division tilt tonight it may seemingly resemble that of a playoff game. That’s because it basically is as the Lightning need to keep winning to stay in the playoff conversation. With a win in regulation here tonight Tampa can pull within two points of the Bruins and still have a game in hand to try and make up the extra two points in their last three games. Tyler Johnson returned to center the second line that features Jonathan Drouin and Alex Killorn. Drouin makes for a decent one-off here as he gets the extra ice time on the team’s top power play unit. This line could also be tempting to use as a tournament stack as well because there is no doubt the ‘beaneaters’ will try to shut down the top line of Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat. Now whether they can or not is a different story which is why they may be worth a tournament risk here. Kucherov leads the team with 38 goals and 81 points. Defenseman Victor Hedman continues to be the play on the back line as he has snared eight of his seasonal 67 points over the last seven games. Look for a wild and woolly one here tonight in Boston.
It all comes down to this. Boston’s 43-30-6 record has them in second place in the Atlantic Division and could wrap up a playoff spot with a win tonight. They are going for their sixth straight win tonight as they face the team that is closest to knocking them out of the playoffs in the form of the Tampa Bay Lightning whose 88 points trails them by four points. Ottawa and Toronto have 91 points and both teams played last night, so both of those teams could have helped themselves by collecting points as well. Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Backes will be the chalk line here tonight as Marchand and his team leading 85 points has seemingly been virtually unstoppable all season. David Pastrnak makes for a decent one-off play here as he jumps up to the top power play unit along with third liner Ryan Spooner to join Marchand and Bergeron when the Bruins have the extra attacker. Pastrnak has accumulated 68 points to go along with his team leading 10 power play goals. Defenseman Torey Krug is the only option from the Boston blue line as 24 of his 50 points have come with the man advantage as he has put over 200 shots on net this season. The Bruins should be buzzing tonight as they can seal a berth in this years end of the season tournament in front of the home crowd.
Elite Plays
TB: Nikita Kucherov
BOS: Brad Marchand
Secondary Plays
TB: Victor Hedman, Jonathan Drouin, Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat
BOS: Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, Torey Krug, David Krejci
Columbus Blue Jackets at Pittsburgh Penguins
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Pittsburgh Penguins | ||||||||
 | Sergei Bobrovsky |  | Matt Murray | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 49-21-8 | 48-19-11 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.04 | 2.28 | 19.90% | 82.80% | Team Stats | 3.36 | 2.77 | 22.60% | 80.30% |
The Blue Jackets come into this one with an opportunity to wrestle the second spot in the Metropolitan Division away from their opponents tonight. Each team has four games left as Columbus and their 106 points is one point shy of the second place Penguins. Columbus has lost their last three games which has seen head coach John Tortorella continue to shake up the lines on almost a nightly basis. This isn’t good for the team nor us as we try to fill our rosters out tonight. Nick Foligno, Cam Atkinson and Brandon Dubinsky saw a lot of time together in Sunday’s game while Alexander Wennberg, Brandon Saad and Sam Gagner skated on what could be called the team’s second line. Columbus has scored just 11 goals over their last seven games so you can see why there might be a lot of concern here as we are just about one week from the playoffs starting up next week. Their loss to Washington over the weekend didn’t come without a price as defenseman Zachary Werenski took a few good hits in the game with the final blow coming from Alexander Ovechkin which knocked the young blue liner out of the game. With his status being day-to-day I’d look for Seth Jones to step up and man the point on the top power play unit of Werenski can’t go.
The Penguins have been making do with a slew of injuries as they precariously hold on to second place in the Metropolitan Division. Chris Kunitz is now out longer than expected while both Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang have taken a bit longer than expected to get back into action. Sidney Crosby, Conor Sheary and Jake Guentzel look to be the line to target here as both of Crosby’s line mates have combined for 79 points in the 95 man-games they have played in. Phil Kessel and Patric Hornqvist join Crosby and Sheary from different lines to assemble on the team’s top power play unit. Just having the exposure to Crosby is enough to use either one of them here as a one-off on home ice tonight. Justin Schultz is still the fixture on the back line as Letang will look to sit out another game while recovering from injury. This will be a decent test for the Penguins to see just how good they are without some of their top players in the lineup.
Elite Plays
CBJ: Cam Atkinson
PIT: Sidney Crosby
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno, Brandon Saad, Sam Gagner
PIT: Conor Sheary, Phil Kessel, Patric Hornqvist, Justin Schultz
Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs
| Washington Capitals | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||||||||
 | Braden Holtby |  | Curtis McElhinney | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 52-18-8 | 39-24-15 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.22 | 2.22 | 23.40% | 84.20% | Team Stats | 3.11 | 2.79 | 24.30% | 83.00% |
Washington could almost clinch home ice advantage throughout the playoffs with a win here in Toronto tonight. The Maple Leafs played last night in Buffalo and were oh so close to qualifying for the playoffs going into last night’s action. Alexander Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie and Nicklas Backstrom will be the line with the target on their backs tonight as they are one of the most potent lines in the league. Backstrom’s 84 points leads the team while Ovechkin’s 33 goals is actually tied with Oshie for tops on the team. There is a lot of firepower here so I wouldn’t be afraid to unleash it here in this spot tonight. Marcus Johansson plays on the second line but gets the shoulder tap to skate with the top line when the Capitals have the extra attacker. Justin Williams and Evgeny Kuznetsov skate with him at even strength and could be looked at as a GPP play tonight. Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk is the go-to guy on the back line as he has snared eight of his 12 points he has accumulated in the 15 games he has played in since coming over in the trade last month. Washington will continue to play a tough physical game which could throw the younger Maple Leafs team off of their game.
Toronto will face a tough test tonight as the best team in the league comes calling for what could possibly be a later round Eastern Conference playoff matchup. It only took one period in last night’s game against Buffalo to realize that the three lines the Maple Leafs run out to do their scoring is still very much alive and well. All three lines lit the lamp last night which makes this team a tough team to match up against, offensively anyway. Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Zach Hyman skate as one scoring line while James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Mitchell Marner has been the most consistent line the team has had this season. Leo Komarov and Nazem Kadri are also dangerous from the third line so it’s just a matter of picking your poison here tonight. Matthews is usually the one that folks target the most as he had scored his 39th goal in the first period of last night’s game. Defenseman Jake Gardiner is the choice on the back line as he grabs a healthy chunk of the extra time when the maple Leafs have the man advantage. This is another good game to sit back and watch tonight as both teams could make some noise when the playoffs start next week.
Elite Plays
WSH: Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Ovechkin
TOR: Auston Matthews
Secondary Plays
WSH: T.J. Oshie, Kevin Shattenkirk, Marcus Johansson, Evgeny Kuznetsov
TOR: William Nylander, Mitchell Marner, James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri, Jake Gardiner
Detroit Red Wings at Ottawa Senators
| Detroit Red Wings | Ottawa Senators | ||||||||
 | Petr Mrazek |  | Mike Condon | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 32-35-12 | 41-27-10 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.41 | 3.00 | 14.90% | 80.70% | Team Stats | 2.54 | 2.63 | 17.80% | 79.80% |
The Senators are down a few men on the back line but have seen their top point-getter in Erik Karlsson rejoin the team in last night’s loss to Detroit. What’s worse is that they have lost their last four games and have only scored six goals in the process going into last night’s action. This should bode well for the Red Wings top line of Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar as they have combined for 16 points over the last two weeks. Zetterberg is the one-off here as his 50 assists and 66 points leads the team. Dylan Larkin and Justin Abdelkader will skate on the second line with newcomer Evgeny Svechnikov while Frans Nielsen and Andreas Athanasiou anchor the team’s third line. Mike Green is the play on the point with 35 points but I’m sure if you look hard enough you could better here at his price point. Detroit can play spoiler here and could very well come in a steal one from a depleted Ottawa team.
As noted above Ottawa has run into major injury problems here as the team was just three points from being eliminated from the playoffs going into last night’s action. The Senators will be without defensemen Marc Methot and Cody Ceci as well which leaves Dion Phaneuf to tighten up the screws along with the recently activated Erik Karlsson. Ottawa has top loaded their best line as Kyle Turris will center Bobby Ryan and Mark Stone while Derick Brassard will center Mike Hoffman and Viktor Stalberg on the team’s second line. Ottawa has only scored 11 goals over the last six games so when you see that Mike Hoffman has racked up points on seven of those goals, you can probably surmise for yourself that he would make a decent one-off play here tonight. Hoffman joins the top line for the extra power play time as well which just helps his case even more for a place on your roster tonight. Erik Karlsson stands alone as the only defenseman on the top power play unit and that should be just fine with him as he has been the team leader in points for most of the season. I wouldn’t look for too many miracles tonight but Ottawa has been able to hang around and be resilient for most of the season.
Elite Plays
DET: Henrik Zetterberg
OTT: Mike Hoffman, Erik Karlsson
Secondary Plays
DET: Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar, Mike Green, Dylan Larkin
OTT: Kyle Turris, Mark Stone, Dion Phaneuf, Bobby Ryan