It’s trade deadline day, and there have been a couple big-name trades that could impact NHL DFS lineups. Some of the biggest names that have been moved include Taylor Hall and Curtis Lazar to the Bruins for Anders Bjork and a second-round pick. Jeff Carter was also sent to the Penguins for third- and fourth-round picks. Toronto has really been active since acquiring Riley Nash from Columbus. It has also acquired David Rittich to add to its large goaltending pool, to go along with veteran Nick Foligno and Stefan Noesen. Stay tuned in to see if there will be any more big implications by the 3 p.m. EST deadline. Also take note that the players that have been moved will have to quarantine for seven days, so they won’t be playing. Let’s get into breaking down the Monday slate and find some winning NHL DFS picks for DraftKings and FanDuel lineups with the help of Alex Baker’s expert projections and Top Stacks Tool.
As always, be sure to check our premium Slack for crucial fantasy hockey lineup information in the 20 to 30 minutes leading up to every game’s lock. With the COVID-19 pandemic still looming, teams have taxi squads and are ready to fill positions daily as teams scratch players. Our Slack chat is hands down one of the best places to get fantasy hockey news and line change notifications.
NHL Power Plays: DraftKings + FanDuel DFS Picks | April 10
NHL DFS Picks: Centers
Nathan MacKinnon (COL vs. ARI)
DraftKings – $9,100
FanDuel – $9,200
MacKinnon playing on the hind end of a back to back might not be as chalky as you think tonight. Awesemo has him slated to be the fifth pivot on the slate, with an ownership projection of 13%. It’s warranted though, as the Coyotes have struggled defensively. MacKinnon is averaging 1.5 points per game to go along with almost five shots on goal. He has also hit the shot bonus in five out of his last eight games, and he tallied multiple points in five of those games as well. Arizona is a bottom-10 team in every advanced metric used for NHL DFS. The biggest issue is high-danger chances. MacKinnon and the top line create a ton of high-danger chances, and Arizona ranks 29th in high-danger chances against per 60 at five-on-five. It is not a special teams matchup to search for because the Coyotes have been pretty disciplined, spending only 4:32 short-handed nightly over the last 10. But when they are short-handed, they are allowing the second-most shots against in the league, and their expected goals are ninth worst.
Sebastian Aho (CAR vs. DET)
DraftKings – $6,900
FanDuel – $7,400
Aho has potted goals in two straight, and he will get the same matchup as Saturday after losing in a shootout to the Red Wings. Carolina has struggled against the Red Wings this year with a head-to-head record of 3-3. It hasn’t struggled to score goals, though, averaging three goals per contest. In terms of line matching, the Aho line got the easier matchups, avoiding the Dylan Larkin line the entire night. Detroit has played better hockey recently, but it is still missing some key components like Tyler Bertuzzi, Robby Fabbri and Bobby Ryan. If Aho can keep his shot volume at three or more, the Hurricanes should put up a handful again tonight.
Value centers to look at: Kirby Dach, Nick Schmaltz, Max Domi
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NHL DFS PICKS: Wingers
Nikolaj Ehlers – (WPG at OTT)
DraftKings – $7,100
FanDuel – $6,600
Ehlers broke through his scoring drought by lighting the lamp in consecutive contests. He has multiple points in two of the last three games as well. When his shot volume picks up, he tends to find success. He is playing at a point-per-game pace, and if he gets the matchup against the Chris Tierney line tonight like he should, he could have another good night. The Senators have been a team to pick on for a couple seasons, but they have shown that they can score goals too. Over the last 10 games, Ottawa ranks 27th in Corsi, 22nd in expected goals against, 28th in shots against and 26th in scoring chances allowed. Their penalty kill has been horrible as well, with a 76.2% kill rate. The Jets have the third-best power play in the league, and when they get to the extra-man advantage, they will get plenty of chances to find twine. Ehlers correlates with Paul Stastny on the top power-play unit, but he also creates exposure to Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler on the power play.
Timo Meier (SJ vs. ANA)
DraftKings – $5,900
FanDuel – $4,600
According to the Awesemo Top Stacks Tool, the Sharks’ top line will likely be a popular play tonight. Going down to the second line with Meier will provide some differentiation with some solid upside. Meier has been a shot-volume guy for most of his career. Looking at players with 400 minutes of ice time this year, Meier ranks second in individual Corsi per 60 (20.76). Anaheim has been absolutely dreadful, as it should be in the early stages of a rebuild. The Ducks rank in the bottom five of every advanced metric. They are also in the bottom 10 in penalty kill. Like last Thursday, the Sharks were heavy chalk and managed to disappoint a lot of DFSers. What could go wrong with some Sharks chalk?
NHL DFS PICKS: Defensemen
Dougie Hamilton (CAR vs. DET)
DraftKings – $7,700
FanDuel – $6,400
Hamilton is Awesemo’s Top projected blue-liner tonight, with a projection of 14.38 DraftKings points. He is logging a ton of ice time for the Hurricanes and is quarterbacking the top power-play unit. Over the last 10 games, Hamilton has averaged 24 minutes of ice time to go along with over five shots/blocks per game. He is a solid contributor, and with the plus-matchup against Detroit, he should have plenty of chances to get on the score sheet.
Seth Jones (CBJ vs. CHI)
DraftKings – $5,900
FanDuel – $4,900
With Zach Werenski out for the rest of the year, Jones needs to step up and be the top blueliner for the Blue Jackets. He has logging over 25 minutes of ice time nightly, and his shot volume has picked up to last year’s rates. Over the last 10 games, Jones is averaging 4.5 shots/blocks per game and has hit the shot bonus twice in four games. The offensive-minded blue-liner is quarterbacking the top power-play unit. The Blackhawks are giving up the second-most shots against per game at five-on-five, and they also have the league’s second-worst penalty kill. Over the last 10 games, Chicago is allowing the most shots against and has the second-worst expected goals against on the penalty kill. Getting creative with a Blue Jackets power-play stack could pay dividends tonight.
Top Stacks
Carolina 1: Andrei Svechnikov – Sebastian Aho – Jesper Fast
The Hurricanes top line took advantage of the last change on Saturday. Aho matched up pretty evenly with the bottom nine and stayed away from Larkin entirely. The Hurricanes’ top line has great offensive numbers with a 63% Corsi-for and a 64% expected goals share. They should find plenty of positive matchups to pay off tonight; the question is, just how popular will they be?
Columbus 2: Mikhail Grigorenko – Jack Roslovic – Cam Atkinson
The Blue Jackets change their lines a ton thanks to John Tortorella. Their second line has been great offensively in a small sample. They carry a 53% Corsi-for while creating 38 shots per 50 and 13 high-danger chances 60. They ran over the Hawks on Saturday, so expect Tortorella to let them run it back. Saturday night they saw the Alex DeBrincat and Ryan Strome line and dominated possession, scoring chances and high-danger chances. If Atkinson gets open looks, he will make the Blackhawks pay. The Blue Jackets’ second line makes for a solid value-filler stack tonight.
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