rmferenc@gmail.com 
Welcome to the NHL DFS Man Advantage for the 2021-22 season.
If you are new to my articles, NHL, or WinDaily Sports then I will tell you that my articles are not going to give you the chalk plays or the obvious plays. I try to dig in and find ways for you to build lineups for GPP contests. I will always point out those top plays to help you build cash but that is not the point of this article.
Early lock for a big Sunday slate!
We have six games on the slate for tonight and the slate locks one hour earlier than usual tonight so make sure you get your lineups in on time!
We have a pair of 6 pm (est) starts, the first being San Jose wrapping up their third, and final, five-game road trip of the season in Columbus who is on the second night of a back-to-back. Tampa Bay is Philly for what appears to be a blowout waiting to happen with how poor the Flyers have been of late. At 7:30 both the Islanders and Blackhawks play their second game in two nights with two poor playing goaltenders expected to start.
Toronto plays their second game in as many nights on the road in Winnipeg, which I expect to be joined by the next game as the highest scoring on the slate. Edmonton hosts the Kings who are making their trek through Western Canada at the moment. Last but certainly not least, what may be the game of the night, Calgary is in Vegas to take on the suddenly red hot offense of the Golden Knights.
NHL DFS: Goaltenders
Cash Game Goalie:
Mikko Koskinen ( vs LA)
Koskinen is not someone I will typically write or play, but on this slate, he projects as the highest-scoring goalie with the best win probability. Over his last five starts, Koskinen is averaging nearly 30 saves per game while scoring 16.5 DKFP per game. That may not seem like a high score, but that is value for his price on Sunday. If you are playing cash games on this slate, lock in Koskinen with McDavid and Draisaitl and look for value elsewhere.
Other Options: Adin Hill/James Reimer ( @ CBJ)
GPP Goalie:
Elvis Merzlikins ( vs SJ)
Mezlikins is inexpensive on both sites ($7.7K) and is in a matchup with a road-weary Sharks team. While he is coming off a bad start against Nashville, before that Merzlikins had two back-to-back solid outings. Merzlikins had a 36 save shutout at home against Winnipeg and then stopped 39 shots in a win over Vancouver. San Jose averages over 28 shots on goal per game while Columbus allows 34.5 per game (30th in the NHL). The Sharks have only scored more than two goals once in their last four and average just 2.58 per game this season (26th).
Other Options: Jacob Markstrom ( @ VGK), Connor Hellebuyck ( vs Tor), Kevin Lankinen (vs NYI)
NHL DFS: Slate Overview
Teams to build around:
Outside of the obvious Edmonton plays, there are plenty of other options on this slate to build around. If you are going to stack Edmonton though, obviously it starts with the dynamic duo of Batman and Ro… oh no not them, it starts with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. One or both of those guys is where ever Oilers stack start, but outside of those two players, there is not much else I love up front tonight. Kris Russell on the other hand has been a solid fantasy point producer this season without really putting up points. Russell is super cheap on both sites and is a lock for me in any Edmonton stacks on Sunday. In his last five games, Russell has one assist but is averaging 12 DKFP per game because of his 24 blocked shots in that same span.
There’s a storm heading into Motown
For me, the number one team I want to build around on Sunday is the Tampa Lightning. Tampa has scored three goals or more in nine of their last ten games and has hit four or more goals in four of those games. On the flip side Philadelphia is has allowed four goals or more in seven of their last ten and has allowed 15 goals in their last three.
Tampa’s top line is my favorite stack followed by their number power-play unit. Steven Stamkos is expensive on both sites, but his linemates are not. Ondrej Palat is under $5K on DK and under $6K on FD and Alex Barre-Boulet is near min price on both sites. ABB has not put up points yet, but he is getting ice time with two of the best players on a team that I expect 4-5 goals from. Victor Hedman can be used as an expensive defenseman, or you can use Zach Bogosian as a cheap dman as well. Bogosian, similar to Russell, does not put up real points, but he racks up fantasy points with shots on goal and blocked shots.
Lastly, you can use both Alex Killorn and Anthony Cirelli to round out a PP1 stack and use them either Stamkos, Palat, or Hedman for an L1/L2 mix stack for the power-play.
Looking to the Windy City boys for some value
Chicago is one of my favorite teams to build around tonight, but also one of the best teams for value as well. The Blackhawks’ top line of Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Brandon Hagel is only $15K on DraftKings and $16.8K on FanDuel. Varlamov is off to a horrendous start this season with a 3.46 GAA and an abysmal .881 save %. The veteran netminder has only allowed less than three goals once in five appearances this season (that was in a relief appearance). On defense, Seth Jones is the obvious play on defense for the Hawks, he is the top FPPG player on the slate for defensemen. Outside of Jones, both Jake McCabe and Erik Gustafsson have been getting plenty of ice time and putting up plenty of blocked shots and shot on goal points. McCabe and Gustafsson are also both min price on DK and near min price on FD.
You can use pieces of line one with Gustafsson on the top PP unit for Chicago. Joining Toews and Kane on that unit are Dylan Strome and Kirby Dach putting them both in play. Both Seth Jones and Hagel skate on the second power-play unit and you can add Alex DeBrincat for a three-man PP2 stack.
In other stacking news:
Vegas has put the band back together now that they are all healthy, so their top unit of Pacioretty/Stephenson/Stone is one of my favorite stacks on this slate. Both Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore are great plays on defense, but my favorite is Nicholas Hague. Hague is not going to put up the offensive numbers of Shea and Petro, but he racks up blocked shots and shots on goal and is very affordable. Both Reilly Smith and Jonathan Marchessault have been finding the back of the net often for the Golden Knights of late and make for a nice L2 stack as well.
Philadephia 1 is another mid-priced stack that could prove fruitful on Sunday. Tampa is on a back-to-back to I expect Brian Elliott to get the start for them which means that Philly is also in play today.
As it is whenever they are on the slate, the Toronto Maple Leafs are in play. Of course, their top two lines are where everyone goes, and with reason. But to be different on this slate, give a look to Jason Spezza. The veteran winger is on fire with four goals in his last five games as well as an assist. Equally as hot is Wayne Simmonds who is Spezza’s winger on the Leafs’ fourth line. Simmonds has three goals and two assists in his last five as well.
With San Jose in getaway mode, I like taking a chance in tournaments with some cheap Columbus pieces. The Blue Jackets’ third line of Robinson/Kuraly/Texier is all min priced on DK and are all averaging over 15 minutes per game in their last five. Columbus themselves are on a back-to-back as well so typically we see third and fourth lines get some extra minutes in games like this.
If Koskinen is the cash game goalie, that means he should be popular so of course, I like some Kings’ stacks on this slate. Line one is the popular way to go, but line two has been the better line of late. Viktor Arvidsson has six points in his last five and 18 shots on goal. Alex Iafallo has five goals in that same span and 19 SOG. Lastly, Phillip Danault centers this line and has a couple of assists in his last five as well.
Thanks for reading this article on the NHL DFS Man Advantage for today. Make sure you head to the Win Daily Sports Discord for up-to-date info and help directly from our pros! Head over to Twitter and give the @WinDailySports account and me (@MVecchio81) a follow! W cover all things Fantasy Sports and make sure to check out WinDailySports.com for more money-making content.
