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.
Just like last night, we've got eight games on tap for tonight. Let's find three stacks we like on this slate.
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets offseason had many people believing that this team would not be in contention for a playoff spot. They didn't add any big names and struck out on the coach they wanted to hire. Fast forward to now, they are in 2nd in the Central Division and 10th in goals per game.
The second line for Winnipeg is the most fantasy-friendly stack on the team. It has Kyle Connor ($9,100) and Pierre-Luc Dubois ($8,600), who are tied for the lead for points among forwards on the team. They also will play together on the first power play. Sam Gagner ($4,500) is also on this line and, with three points in his last four games, is a nice value option.
The team leader in goals is Mark Scheifele ($7,600), but he lost Blake Wheeler on his wing due to injury. He's now playing with Cole Perfetti ($5,400) on the first line and first power play. Karson Kuhlman ($3,400), who was just picked up off waivers, is taking the spot on the right wing. This is an affordable line stack with decent correlation given the good spot tonight.
Winnipeg is at home against the Ottawa Senators tonight. Ottawa is dead last in the Atlantic Division, and they also rank in the bottom 10 in expected goals against and high-danger chances allowed per 60 minutes.
The Jets are -132 favorites tonight, and it would be higher if they had Connor Hellebuyck playing in goal. That doesn't really affect things for us stacking the Jets in fantasy, so they should be able to deliver for us tonight.
Seattle Kraken
The Seattle Kraken are one of the surprise teams of the NHL. They still occupy the third playoff spot in the Pacific Division. Their 3.43 goals per game average is eighth in the league. It's due to their depth at forward rather than one or two stars, and we can look at a few different stacks because of that.
The first line is centered by Matty Beniers ($6,500), the current favorite for the Calder Trophy. He's second on the team in goals with 11 and third in points with 24. He plays with Jordan Eberle ($6,100) at even strength and on the power play, and Eberle is second on the team with 25 points. The other player on this line is Jared McCann ($6,200), the team leader in goals with 14.
We can also look at the second line, which is fully correlated with the second power play. It's very affordable with the total salary adding up to $14,900. Oliver Bjorkstrand ($5,400) only has three goals this season but is due for positive regression; the career 11.4% shooter is shooting just 4.0 percent this season. Jaden Schwartz ($5,300) is fourth on the team in goals with eight and faces off against his former team tonight. Alexander Wennberg ($4,200) gets the most ice time on the team at forward and can support these two wingers with his playmaking ability.
The Kraken will face the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. St. Louis just played last night and will likely turn to backup goalie Thomas Greiss tonight. The Blues have allowed 3.56 goals per game, the seventh-most in the league.
Seattle's top two lines are great stacking options; the team has an implied team total of 3.30 goals tonight. Both stacks should be able to fit into lineups nicely, giving the rest of your lineup flexibility.
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings were once considered a boring team. That isn't the case this season since their games average 6.8 goals this season. They've played multiple games with double-digit total goals, and they get a nice matchup tonight.
The Kings have had to switch their lines around for a lot of the season. They still have Anze Kopitar ($6,900) playing on the first line with Kevin Fiala ($7,300), who are the two leading scorers on the team. Adrian Kempe ($6,000) was moved back to this line after slumping, but there is still hope that last season's 35-goal scorer can find that form this year. This line is on the top power play together and can definitely do damage tonight.
The Kings play against their cross-town rivals tonight, the Anaheim Ducks. Anaheim continues to be the worst team in the league, allowing the most goals and the most shots on goal per game. In fact, both of these numbers are the worst we've seen from a team since the 2004-05 lockout.
L.A. is by far the biggest favorite on this slate and also has the highest team total. This stack will definitely be popular --but for good reason.
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.