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.
Most of the news in the NHL has been about the trade deadline lately, but there are still games to be played and money to be made in fantasy by finding the right stacks.
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars looked like one of the best teams in hockey to start this season. But after their recent 3-3-4 run, perhaps they could use some help at the trade deadline. Luckily, they have a fantastic matchup for scoring goals tonight.
We'll look at the same stack that we always do when targeting Dallas. Jason Robertson ($9,400) is still a top-10 goal scorer in the league despite his recent slump. He'll be playing with Roope Hintz ($7,400), who had a great game on Saturday with a goal and eight shots. Joe Pavelski ($6,500) has the lowest salary of players on this line, and with his role at even strength and power play, he's a good value. This line is fully correlated on the top power play, which is crucial for today's matchup.
Dallas will play at home tonight against the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks have the second-highest goals against per game average, which is nearly four. They also have the worst penalty kill in the league by over six percentage points.
The Stars have the highest implied team total on tonight's slate, and their power play should be able to do damage against Vancouver in this game.
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins made a move at the trade deadline as the league's best team looked to improve their depth. This did not move the needle for fantasy purposes, but they already had enough pieces for us to stack.
The Bruins welcomed Jake DeBrusk ($7,300) to the lineup, and he has hit the ground running with the first line again. He has three goals and five points in the four games since coming back from injury. He's on the first line and top power play with Brad Marchand ($7,200) and Patrice Bergeron ($7,200). Marchand is on a five-game point streak, and Bergeron has six points over those five games.
You can also consider the second line tonight as a good stack. It has the team's leading scorer in David Pastrnak ($10,200). He has a high salary, but his linemates bring the total cost of this stack down. David Krejci ($6,200) and Pavel Zacha ($4,800) have both been great additions from the summer and will play together on the second power play. The first line may have to play a lot of defense tonight given their matchup, whereas this line may be able to attack against weaker competition.
Boston will play against the Edmonton Oilers tonight. They will do their best to put Bergeron's line out against Connor McDavid and company, which could lead to the second line having more success at even strength. But Edmonton is a below-average defensive team with a bottom-10 penalty kill, so either of these Boston lines can be productive against them.
The Bruins should be able to have offensive success in this game. Their implied team total is 3.38 goals tonight, the fourth-highest on tonight's slate.
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings were looking like a team set to miss the playoffs until recently. They've won 7 of their last 10 games and are now firmly in the playoff race for a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Wings have a lot of forwards who can play different spots in the lineup, but they have settled on a first line that is very good for fantasy purposes. Dylan Larkin ($7,700) has been on a roll, with 7 goals and 14 points in his last 10 games. He's now playing with Tyler Bertuzzi ($4,400) at even strength and on the power play. Bertuzzi remains a strong value as he has eight points in his last 10 games and was one of Detroit's best forwards last season. David Perron ($5,300) is also on this line and plays with these two on Detroit's first power play, as well.
Detroit is in Canada tonight to face the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa is in the league's bottom half in most defensive metrics and has already started to move guys ahead of the trade deadline.
The Wings' top line carries a lot of motivation tonight, as these two games coming up against the Senators will have a huge impact on their playoff chances. You can get a fully correlated line for an affordable total salary cost, making Detroit's first a solid stacking option 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.