Three of the NHL's opening playoff series kicked off on Saturday. And there are four more Sunday with Oilers-Ducks beginning Monday. Sunday's first game is at 3 p.m. EDT. Here are my DFS lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are no back-to-backs in the playoffs, but there are some goaltending questions on Sunday - though not for Tampa or Utah. I expect Carter Hart to go for Vegas and Anton Forsberg for LA. Colorado could go with either Mackenzie Blackwood or Scott Wedgewood as both have been solid, yet the latter finished the regular season with a .921 save percentage. And it appears Montreal will turn to Jakub Dobes over rookie Jacob Fowler.
GOALIES
Mackenzie Blackwood, COL vs. LOS ($8,500): Though Wedgewood was better this season, Blackwood has been starting more. Either way, this is the goalie you want. It's not just that Colorado will be at home after winning the President's Trophy. The Kings are one of the worst playoff teams of recent memory as they finished 29th in goals per game.
Jeremy Swayman, BOS at BUF ($7,500): When the Bruins really needed Swayman down the stretch, he stepped up with a 2.24 GAA and .918 save percentage over 17 outings. The Sabres have finally ended a massive playoff drought and the fans are going to be hyped, though the club could falter a bit in Game 1. I'm more open to such speculation when it comes to playoff DFS decisions with fewer easy matchups to target.
VALUE PLAY/ONE-OFF
Brock Nelson, COL vs. LOS ($5,400): Stacking an Avs line for the opener is a little tricky due to the salary outlay and the fact a few key players are slightly banged up. Nelson is good to go after scoring 30 goals for the fourth time in five seasons. That includes 10 goals on the power play. Anton Forsberg performed well down the stretch, yet the Kings still ended up with the 30th-ranked penalty kill.
FORWARD LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Lightning vs. Canadiens
Anthony Cirelli (C - $4,900), Jake Guentzel (W - $6,700), Brandon Hagel (W - $6,600)
The Canadiens were average defensively. They finished middle-of-the-pack in GAA, shots allowed, and penalty-kill percentage. And if not for Jacob Fowler stepping in and posting a .908 save percentage through 17 appearances, they would have been worse. Even if he were to start over Jakub Dobes, he'll be a rookie on the road going up against an experienced, well-coached Lightning squad. I'm going to stack Tampa's second line.
Cirelli was one of several Lightning players who popped in and out of the lineup down the stretch, but will be available for Game 1. He finished the season with 23 goals while reaching 50 points for the second consecutive year and potted a hat-trick to start the month. Guentzel was scoring after the Olympic break having tallied 28 points from 26 matchups. He finished with 38 goals and a personal-best of 88 points, with 30 of those coming on the power play. Hagel also got to 30 goals for the third time in four campaigns and 200 shots in back-to-back seasons.
DEFENSEMEN
Darren Raddysh, TAM vs. MON ($5,800): Can Raddysh carry his out-of-nowhere explosion into the postseason? He stepped up with 22 goals on 212 shots to go with 48 assists. And it's not like Raddysh cooled off having racked up 12 points over his last 14 games. The Habs' average defense and questionable goaltending shouldn't be a concerning matchup.
Rasmus Andersson, VGK vs. UTA ($5,000): Andersson didn't have as large of a role as he did with Calgary, though he's definitely been locked in of late with 10 points, 30 shots, and 21 blocked shots across 12 appearances. Utah has never been in the playoffs, but of course before that Arizona wasn't exactly a postseason regular. I'm a bit concerned about Karel Vejmelka, who may have been overworked after posting a .884 OPS in 18 outings since the beginning of March.
