3 Daily Fantasy Hockey Stacks for 1/29/20
When playing NHL DFS -- much like MLB DFS -- stacking is key. Having multiple players from the same team, who correlate together, can give your lineup upside and help you maximize potential points.
You can roster up to four players from the same team in NHL, and you should look to have players from the same forward line or power-play unit together. Shared ice time is the key, as it will maximize their ability to contribute to real-life goals with each other, ultimately leading to more fantasy points for us.
Generally, we don't see late scratches in the NHL, and the team's lines are confirmed at practice or before the game. Two of the best resources for that are LeftWingLock.com or DailyFaceOff.com. That is where you can find updated forward and power-play lines for each team.
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks were buzzing in the final games before the All-Star break, winning 7 of their last 10, and they're set to start the second half of the season in a very soft matchup. They are on the road to take on the San Jose Sharks, who are a disaster of a team this season and have allowed the third-most goals in the NHL. The Sharks will have Martin Jones in net tonight and he is absolutely terrible. Not trying to pick on Jones, but he just isn't a good goalie. In fact, he is the 67th-rated goalie this season, holding a save percentage under .900 and allowing over three goals per game.
If this is the case, we want to look at the Canucks top power-play unit with Bo Horvat ($5,900), J.T. Miller ($6,000), Elias Pettersson ($7,200), Brock Boeser ($6,800), and defender Quinn Hughes ($4,000). The forwards are spread out on the first three lines -- which lacks full correlation -- but you can really take whoever fits in your lineup, since this is an amazing spot.
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals are getting Alex Ovechkin back tonight and you should be looking to stack them up.
Ovechkin missed the Capitals' first game back after the All-Star break due to a suspension, but he is back in the lineup tonight and will be up on the first forward line. The Capitals hold the highest implied goal total on the slate (3.55), so it's natural to look towards them as one of, if not the best option for stacking tonight.
We know a few things are always true for a Capitals stack -- they can win a tournament but are very expensive. The Capitals come into this game in the top 10 for Expected Goals For, the number of High-Danger-Scoring-Chances created, and Corsi For (shot attempts) per 60 minutes. They take a ton of shots, those shots are coming close to the net, and those shots are leading to plenty of goals.
This means you want to spend up for Alex Ovechkin ($9,200), Nicklas Backstrom ($6,700), Evgeny Kuznetsov ($7,400), T.J. Oshie ($7,100), and John Carlson ($7,000). Clearly, one of the most expensive stacks on this slate -- or any slate -- but worth the upside they bring to your lineup.
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars make one of the most interesting stacks on the slate, and I don't think they will be highly owned.
Given the teams we have on this slate, it's safe to say the Canucks, Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Edmonton Oilers all have 'better offenses' compared to the Stars. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't be looking to the Stars tonight -- it's actually the opposite. They are a great team to stack given their matchup against the Maple Leafs. Both teams are in the bottom half of the league in Corsi Against and both in the top half of the league in Corsi For. That means they both generate a good amount of offense while being middle of the road on defense.
The Stars have a few injuries right now, so you shouldn't go anywhere else but the top power-play unit. Those players are Tyler Seguin ($7,700), Jamie Benn ($6,600), Alexander Radulov ($6,100), and John Klingberg ($5,400).
