Here we go! The Cup will be in the building. Sunday could be it for the NHL season. If Vegas can't win at home, the Hurricanes are your champs. The puck drops at 8 p.m. EDT to see whether or not we need a Game 7 on Wednesday.
For DFS purposes, you get $50,000 in salary for six players. One is your Captain, who nets you 1.5 times the points with an elevated salary. Here's the roster I ended up with.
CAPTAIN
Mitch Marner, VGK vs. CAR ($15,300): The Golden Knights are at home in a must-win matchup. If Vegas takes the Cup, Marner will win the Conn Smythe as he's been the club's best player. When I was looking at the salaries, I felt like I could make him my Captain and still put together a strong roster. It's a bit of a bet on the Golden Knights winning on Sunday where Marner would likely be on the scoresheet.
FLEX
Shea Theodore, VGK vs. CAR ($8,000): Theodore has played plenty of minutes during the postseason, which makes sense given he's on the first pairing and receives some power-play time. He's also a defenseman who's been as productive as many forwards with 18 points from his last 18 games. Theodore isn't a slouch at the other end having blocked 58 shots so far.
Jordan Staal, CAR at VGK ($7,200): After Game 1, I was intrigued at Staal's role and salary level. And that's paid off throughout this series when it comes to DFS. Like Marner, Staal is effectively etched in as the Conn Smythe recipient if his team wins the title. I mean, he's potted a goal in every game versus Vegas. Staal's on fire. Why wouldn't I select him?
Andrei Svechnikov, CAR at VGK ($6,800): Svechnikov was struggling a bit, so his salary dropped. We're now at a point where Svechnikov - a 30-goal scorer - lists a lower salary than Staal or Taylor Hall, two solid veterans who aren't as offensively gifted or in their prime as their teammate. Svechnikov has scored during two of his last three appearances where he directed three shots on net in each.
Brett Howden, VGK vs. CAR ($6,400): And now I completely flip that paradigm and go with the player who's been decidedly more productive in the playoffs. Howden tallied 12 goals during the regular season and is already at 14. He's been on a heater and has been lucky, but he's worth adding based on what he's recently achieved.
Tomas Hertl, VGK vs. CAR ($5,600): I didn't set out to have more Golden Knights than Hurricanes, though they're at home and need to win. And there's a good chance they do so. Hertl ended the regular season cold and carried that into the postseason. He's gone on to rack up five goals and seven assists from his last 12 outings. Hertl also participates on Vegas's top power play unit, so getting him at this salary is a fine way to close out a lineup.
