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 -- if one player on a line is scoring goals, it's likely that his linemates are getting assists, as well.
Ideally, we want players who 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 updated line information.
Last night, we saw some teams that had already locked up their playoff seeding rest players, so be on the lookout for that tonight. Here are three stacks we can use tonight.
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers rode a rocky ship all season but are now set for the playoffs. Missing out would have been a disaster for them considering they have two superstars in their prime. Luckily for them, they turned things around and are on a hot streak heading to the playoffs.
Connor McDavid ($10,100) is entering the territory of truly great athletes across sports. But he hasn't been talked about as much because people take his greatness for granted. He leads the league in points with a career-high 122 and is likely to win his fourth scoring title at the age of 25.
McDavid is playing with Evander Kane ($6,800) and Jesse Puljujarvi ($4,800) at even strength. Kane has been playing well of late, with six goals in his last four games.
You can always stack McDavid with Leon Draisaitl ($9,900) to get a fully-powered Oilers stack. Even when not playing together full time, these two can combine for big games on the power play.
You can also throw Zach Hyman ($5,800) into this stack, as he will play on the power play and with Draisaitl at five-on-five. Tyson Barrie ($4,900) would also be a defenseman to use as the power play quarterback,
The Oilers are facing the San Jose Sharks tonight. The Sharks just allowed five goals to the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday and really put all their effort into beating the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday. The Sharks allow the second-most shot attempts per 60 minutes in the league.
Edmonton's implied team total is over four goals tonight, and they are one of the highest upside stacks of the night.
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins had a very solid season, as they hit the 50-win mark. They happen to play in the toughest division in hockey, so right now they are in a wild card spot. They could still get into third place in the Atlantic Division, and a win tonight could help that.
The Bruins' made a big change in the middle of the season that ultimately helped the team a ton. They moved Jake DeBrusk ($5,200) up to the first line and broke up what could have been considered the best line in hockey. DeBrusk responded well with a 24-goal season, and his other linemates haven't missed a beat.
Patrice Bergeron ($7,300) has five points in his last two games and has had one of his most dominant seasons from a play-driving standpoint. Brad Marchand ($7,900) leads the team with 78 points in 69 games this season.
You can also stack the second line, as it has the Bruins' leading goal scorer in David Pastrnak ($8,500). He had missed a large chunk of time but has four assists in two games since returning. He correlates on this line and also on the top power play with Taylor Hall ($5,600).
The center of this line is Erik Haula ($4,600), who has surprised with his offense for much of the season and has three goals in his last two games.
The Bruins are playing against the Buffalo Sabres tonight. Buffalo hasn't nearly had as bad of a season as people expected, but they still struggle defensively. They are in the bottom 10 in both goals allowed and shots per game allowed.
Boston's implied team total doesn't come as high as some other teams, but that's more to do with their solid defensive play lowering the total of the game. The Bruins still have the potential to score a lot of goals, and it could come from either the first or second line.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning seem to be peaking at the right time, much like they have the last two seasons. They've won their last four games and have scored 26 goals in those games. Critically for fantasy, their best players have been dominant.
Two players have been absolutely on fire for Tampa during this run. Nikita Kucherov ($9,300) has goals in his last seven games and multiple points in his last four. Steven Stamkos ($7,900) cleared the 100-point mark on Tuesday, in which he had his fifth straight game with at least three points. He is one game shy of tying the record, so he and his teammates could be gunning for that tonight.
The third member of this line is Ondrej Palat ($4,300), whose nine points in his last 10 games are good for just a $4,300 salary.
The Lightning get the same matchup we saw on Tuesday when they dominated the Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus continues to be one of the worst defensive teams this season, allowing the second-most shots on goal per game and the fifth-most goals per game.
Tampa Bay can easily continue their torrid run tonight, which could make them necessary to win a tournament. If you want to make it a bit easier to stack, you can sub in Brayden Point ($7,000) instead of Palat to get a center instead of a wing and extra correlation on the power play.
Others to Consider: Florida Panthers, Colorado Avalanche, Carolina Hurricanes
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.