In daily fantasy hockey, stacking is a key strategy in tournaments. We want to correlate our lineups with up to four players to maximize our upside, as if one player on a line is scoring goals, it's likely that his linemates are getting assists as well. Ideally, we'll want players that will get a lot of ice time together on an even-strength line and a power play line. Two good resources for line combinations are LeftWingLock.com and DailyFaceoff.com, so be sure to check those sites for up to date line information.
Thursday's slate has some matchups that might allow us to stack some different teams than we have been targeting over the past few slates. So let's look at those teams and how to stack them in their games tonight.
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets have had a lot of moving parts in their forward group after the blockbuster trade last month. They finally were able to get their full group of forwards on the ice together on Tuesday, and we saw some of them perform well in that game. The team is deep at forward now, which makes it tricky to stack. The first line has perhaps the best player on the team, Mark Scheifele ($7,300) at center. Then it has two wingers that have been playing some of the best hockey of their careers in Andrew Copp ($4,000) and Nikolaj Ehlers ($6,300). These are three of the top four scorers on the Jets, but only Ehlers and Copp play together on the second power play unit.
This is the only line for the Jets where all three forwards are viable. The new second line has Kyle Connor ($7,200) with new center Pierre-Luc Dubois ($4,900), while Blake Wheeler ($6,500) and Paul Stastny ($5,100) are down on the third line. These are both viable two-man stacks and are a way to get unique exposure to a team that is likely to be popular tonight. Another way to do it would be to play the power play unit of Scheifele, Connor, Wheeler, and Stastny because they both could score on their own even-strength lines, but combine for points on the power play.
The reason why the Jets will be popular is because of the matchup. They will face the Ottawa Senators, who allow the most goals per game in the NHL. In January, these teams played three games in a row, and Winnipeg scored 14 goals in those games. This could be why they have the highest implied team total on tonight's slate, as it's sitting at 3.75 goals. There are a few ways to go with this stack, so it's unlikely that one set of players is the chalk tonight, and lots of these players have upside in this matchup.
Calgary Flames
Another Canadian team we can stack in the no-defense North division is the Calgary Flames. They've received the least amount of hype or discussion because they are right in the middle of the pack and didn't make a big move like Winnipeg. Johnny Gaudreau ($7,600) has nearly found the form of the 2018-19 season when he scored 99 points, as he has at least one point in all but one game this season. His partner in crime, Sean Monahan ($6,800), has been on a scoring drought, but we can expect some regression in his shooting percentage that is only 7.7%, while he is a 14.7 % shooter for his career. Monahan still has 9 points in 12 games, so he has been useful in fantasy without the goals. Their new linemate is Sam Bennett ($3,300), who is affordable and has good underlying metrics, as he is second on the team in expected goals per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The Flames will face the struggling Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night. The Canucks slot in right behind the Senators in most goals allowed per game, conceding 3.94 per contest. They also allow the most expected goals and high danger chances per 60 minutes, so it's hard to say they've been unlucky. This brings another line into play for Calgary, as Matthew Tkachuk ($6,300) and Elias Lindholm ($6,200) have both been good as the second- and third-leading scorers on the team. These guys play with Monahan and Gaudreau on the power play, so if you want to do a Calgary onslaught against a weak opponent, this is the way to do it.
The Flames have the third-highest team goal tonight. Since they've lost some of their luster from what was an exciting team in 2018-19, they tend to go overlooked by most fantasy managers. We can take advantage of that, especially in a good spot tonight.
Columbus Blue Jackets
We as fantasy managers will always have teams or players that we always go back to, and for me, that's the Columbus Blue Jackets so far this season. Max Domi ($4,100) put up zero points on Monday night and generally hasn't been too good. However, his salary for his role on the second line and first power play is too low, so hopefully, there is still some of the player that scored 72 points two seasons ago in him. His new center on the second line appears to be Kevin Stenlund ($3,200), who is nearly the minimum salary and has a point in all three of his games this season, missing the rest due to injury. This two-man stack is a good compliment to one of the four-man power play stacks on Calgary or Winnipeg because the value is so good. You could definitely add Oliver Bjorkstrand ($5,100) to this stack as well, as he plays on the power play with Stenlund and is the team's leading scorer.
The first line for Columbus is also an option. Patrik Laine ($7,600) rode the bench for much of the last game, but that seems to be a thing of the past. This may make fantasy players shy away from him tonight, but he is in a great spot and has five goals in five games this season. His center and former Winnipeg teammate Jack Roslovic ($4,300) has been the best player in the trade so far, with seven points in his last five games, including a dazzling game-winning goal on Monday. His salary is a complete bargain for a player that is on the first line and first power play and has been playing this well. Cam Atkinson ($5,700) is the third member of this line, and while he isn't on the same power play unit, he has been a good goal-scorer and decent rate shooter throughout his career, so he's not someone you should avoid playing if you have room in your lineup.
This matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks is much easier than the previous two against the Carolina Hurricanes. Chicago isn't quite the defensive disaster we expected, but they are certainly not good. They are allowing the second-most shots per 60 minutes and the fourth-most scoring chances per game. They've been propped up by Kevin Lankinen in net, but given that he's a 25-year-old rookie who posted average save percentages in the minor leagues in the last two seasons, we can expect him to come down to earth a bit. The Blue Jackets could light him up in this game, and for affordable salaries, their first two lines are intriguing options tonight.
Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.