3 Daily Fantasy NHL Stacks for 4/9/21

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, as if one player on a line is scoring goals, it's likely that his linemates are getting assists as well. Ideally, we'll want players that 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 up to date line information.

We'll close the week out with a seven game slate with a few pretty good spots to stack, so let's look at those.

Washington Capitals

The Washington Capitals haven't been on the fantasy radar as much this week with two tougher matchups. That will change tonight, as they will get one of the best matchups they could hope for. Despite the two losses this week, the Caps are still within striking distance of first place in the East -- just two points out. And despite scoring just three goals in the two losses, they are still one of the highest-scoring teams in the NHL, sitting tied for the third-most goals per game. Let's look at the way they've changed their lines and how we can use them in stacks.

When stacking the Capitals, it mostly revolves around getting exposure to Alex Ovechkin ($8,100). The Russian Machine is tied for fifth in goals this season with 20, including one last night. T.J. Oshie ($5,900) had an assist on that goal and also scored himself. He continues to play with Ovechkin at even strength and on the power play, making him a good player to use with Ovi. The center on the line yesterday was Lars Eller ($4,300). He also played on the second power play with Ovechkin, who will usually just stay out for the entirety of the man advantage. He hasn't been much of an offensive contributor this season, but he is a good way to get cheap exposure to Washington's top line.

If you want to get more exposure to the Capitals' dangerous power play, you could add in Nicklas Backstrom ($6,500), who leads Washington with 40 points and 17 power-play points. This stack should also include John Carlson ($6,900), who is a key contributor to the power play from defense. These two both will try to get the puck to Ovechkin in his spot for one-timers, so they'll have chances to get assists.

The Capitals are facing the last-placed Buffalo Sabres. Both teams played last night, so there is no rest advantage either way. The only advantage that might bring is the fact that it may cause Buffalo to start Dustin Tokarski in net, and he is a below-average goalie who -- before this year -- had one appearance in the NHL since the 2015-16 season. Buffalo has been better of late, but they are still in last place in the league and allow the third most goals per game.

Washington's implied team total is 3.38, the second highest on the slate, so getting some of their high-end talent in your lineups is definitely a good strategy tonight.

Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche finally had a dud of a performance on Wednesday night. This was especially true if you had Philipp Grubauer as your goalie, as he put a miserable -19.2 FanDuel points in the 8-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild. This was the team's first loss in regulation in 15 games, as they've been the most dominant squad in the NHL in the past month. The Wild are one of their tougher opponents in the West, and tonight the Avs will look to bounce back against the weakest team in the division, the Anaheim Ducks

Wednesday wasn't all bad for every member of the Avalanche. Nathan MacKinnon ($9,100) had a goal and an assist to extend his point streak to seven games. He's fourth in points per game and likely would be in the MVP discussion again if not for missing a few games earlier this season. Mikko Rantanen ($8,600) also had a goal and an assist, putting him third in the NHL in goals with 22. Gabriel Landeskog ($7,000) didn't get any points, but that's a rarity these days, as he has been on the scoresheet in 12 of the last 14 games. Cale Makar ($5,700) continued his stellar play with two power-play assists, which brought his average up to one point per game, the best mark for any defenseman who has played more than one game this season.

Those four make up potentially the best four-man stack in the NHL at the moment. The Avs lead the league in goals per game (3.59) and have exploded for more than eight goals three different times. They'll take on the Ducks, who are in last in the West and have allowed the fifth most goals per game. This should be the perfect matchup for Colorado to show that Wednesday was just a bump in the road and not a sign of things to come.

Vegas Golden Knights

The Vegas Golden Knights are doing their best to keep up with the Avalanche in the West, and they are close to first place, sitting two points behind with a game in hand. They certainly haven't been as good as Colorado of late, as Vegas' record in their last 10 games in just 4-5-1. Some of those games were help with player missing from the lineup, as the Golden Knights couldn't even ice a full roster due to the salary cap. With everyone back and in a good matchup, they can definitely right the ship on Friday versus the Arizona Coyotes.

The line that was most affected by the lineup changes was the first line. Chandler Stephenson ($3,800) missed three games due to suspension, which caused this line to have a rotating cast of centers, none of whom really worked. Now the line is back to Stephenson with Mark Stone ($6,900) and Max Pacioretty ($7,500).

This line actually struggled for the last handful of games, but the opportunities have still been there. Pacioretty has games with seven and six shots on goal, so there isn't a ton of reason for concern that he and the line won't turn things around. This trio will play together on the power play, as well, and they could use the man advantage to break their slump. Shea Theodore ($6,200) is also on this unit and is tied for ninth in points by a defenseman and has the sixth most shots on goal for a blueliner. Theodore is definitely worth considering in a stack.

The second line for Vegas is also in play. The trio of Jonathan Marchessault ($6,100), Reilly Smith ($4,400) and William Karlsson ($5,400) is a more affordable way to get exposure to the Golden Knights.

You'll likely want to get that exposure tonight in this matchup against the Coyotes. Arizona allows the fifth most expected goals per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick, which is bad news for them against a Vegas team that averages the third most expected goals per 60. Vegas has the third highest implied team total on the slate, so it's a good time to jump back on either their first or second line and hope they can hit it big.

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.