Welcome back to the Fantasy Hockey Hacks Podcast! In the ninth episode of the podcast, Devon and Bruce discuss recent news from around the NHL, including playoff results and highlights, suspensions, injuries, and more. This week we take a look at second round matchups; who is projected to win (odds makers, The Athletic, and MoneyPuck.com), and who we personally think will win each series. We also cover DFS picks that we like for the upcoming week as the second round of the NHL Playoffs proceed.
Hockey News | May 24 – May 31
- May 26th | New York Islanders close out their series with the Pittsburgh Penguins after 5-3 win.
- NYI will face the Boston Bruins in the second round. Former Oilers Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall to face off.
- May 26th | Tampa Bay Lightning end the series against the Florida Panthers after a 4-0 victory.
- Spencer Knight started the final two playoff games for the Panthers. He was by far the best goalie of the three, with a 2.06 GAA and a .933 SV%. Additionally, Knight had a 2.3 Goals Saved Above Expected (MoneyPuck.com), good enough for 7th among playoff goaltenders.
- May 27th | Wayne Gretzky rookie card sells for 3.75 million dollars according to the Athletic!
- May 28th | Tampa Bay Lightning Visiting Jersey Policy – Hot Garbage
- Asked father/son to remove their jerseys or leave with a refund. 🤬
- May 28th | Vegas Golden Knights close out series against the Minnesota Wild with a 6-2 win on Friday.
- Will face off against the Colorado Avalanche in round 2.
- Matthias Yanmark scored his first career hat trick. 🎩
- May 29th | Seth Jones apparently not interested in resigning with the Columbus Blue Jackets; would like to test free agency. Which teams are interested?
- May 29th | Montreal Canadiens force game 7 after OT winner by Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
- Would the Leafs blow things up if they lose in the first round?
- Auston Matthews (1 goal and 4 points; 2.3 pts/60) and Mitch Marner (0 goals, 4 assists; 1.6 pts/60) have not made an impact on this series.
- Who do you guys like to win game 7? Odds are set at:
- +175 for Montreal, -208 for Toronto.
- Total set at 5.5 (Over at +100, Under at -138
- May 30th | Lehner Starts For Vegas?
- Interesting decision by Peter Deboer, particularly given MAF’s play in round 1. Looks like the wrong call as the Avs are out to a 6-1 lead in game 1.
NHL Playoffs – Round 2
Boston Bruins (3) vs. New York Islanders (4)
- According to Dom Luszyzychsn at The Athletic, the Bruins have nearly an 80% probability to win the series! 👀
- Moneypuck.com gives the Bruins an 83.4% probability to win.
- Boston took game one on Saturday night with a 5-2 win.
Head-To-Head Matchup
- The New York Islanders took the season series 5-2-0-1.
- Boston Bruins
- GF/G: 2.25
- GA/G: 2.63
- PP (10th): 21.9 %
- PK (2nd): 86%
- Players/Stories to watch:
- Perfection Line
- Second Line
- Charlie McAvoy
- New York Islanders
- GF/G: 2.63
- GA/G: 2.25
- PP (20th): 18.8%
- PK (6th): 83.7%
- Players/Stories To Watch:
- Ilya Sorokin
- Can he keep up his performance? How long is his leash?
- Mathew Barzal
- He did not match up well against the top line and McAvoy during the regular season. Will that change?
- Anthony Beauvillier
- 15 points in his last 13 games.
- Contributions from Wahlstrom, Palmieri, Pageau.
- Devon’s Pick: Boston in 6 games.
- Bruce’s Pick: Boston in 6 games.
Carolina Hurricanes (1) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (3)
- According to Dom Luszyzychsn at The Athletic, the lightning have a 59.8% probability to win the series.
- Moneypuck.com gives Tampa Bay a 61.3% probability to take the series.
- 3 of 4 oddsmakers have game one set at -110 for both. Should be a close series.
- Tampa Bay managed to pull out a game one win, with the goal by Barclay Goodrow just over half-way through the third period.
Head-To-Head Matchup
- Split season series with Carolina going 4-3-0-1 against the lighting.
- Carolina Hurricanes
- GF/G: 2.25
- GA/G: 2.13
- PP (2nd): 25.6 %
- PK (3rd): 85.2%
- Players/Stories to watch:
- Dougie Hamilton
- 5 points in 8 games against the Bolts this season. Can he keep pace with Hedman?
- 5 points in 8 games against the Bolts this season. Can he keep pace with Hedman?
- Dougie Hamilton
- Vincent Trocheck
- Just two points in 7 games versus TB in the regular season.
- Alex Nedeljovic
- 1.02 GAA and .962 SV% against Tampa this season.
- Andrei Svechnikov
- 1 goal in 7 playoff games this year.
- Tampa Bay Lightning
- GF/G: 2.13
- GA/G: 2.25
- PP (9th): 22.2%
- PK (4th): 84.2%
- Players/Stories To Watch:
- Andrei Vasilevsky
- 2.14 GAA and .933 SV% against the Hurricanes this season.
- 1.00 GAA and .974 SV% in game 1 against Carolina on Sunday.
- Andrei Vasilevsky
- Victor Hedman
- 5 points in 8 games against Carolina in the regular season.
- Nikita Kucherov
- 12 points in 7 playoff games!
- Brayden Point
- 4 points (2 goals) in 8 games against Carolina during the regular season.
- Devon’s Pick: Lightning in 7 games.
- Bruce’s Pick: Lightning in 7 games.
Colorado Avalanche (1) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (2)
- According to Dom Luszyzychsn at The Athletic, the Avs have a 68.9% probability to win the series!
- MoneyPuck.com gives the Avs a 60% probability to move on.
- Odds Shark open was -182 for Colorado (game 1), and +150 for VGK.
- Colorado absolutely demolished the Golden Knights on Sunday with a 7-1 victory in game 1.
Head-To-Head Matchup
- Split season series with Colorado going 4-3-0-1 against the Golden Knights.
- Colorado Avalanche
- GF/G: 2.13
- GA/G: 2.25
- PP (8th): 22.7 %
- PK (8th): 83.1%
- Players/Stories to watch:
- Nathan MacKinnon
- Cale Makar
- Phillip Grubauer
- How does he stack up against the Vegas tandem?
- Secondary scoring – Nazem Kadri, Brandon Saad, Andre Burakovsky
- Vegas Golden Knights
- GF/G: 2.13
- GA/G: 2.25
- PP (22nd): 17.8%
- PK (1st): 86.8%
- Players/Stories To Watch:
- Goalie usage/performance
- Shea Theodore
- Just two assists through the playoffs so far. Can he get back to his usual offensive output? Just 3 assists against Colorado in the regular season.
- Alex Tuch
- 5 points in 7 games against MIN, can he provide similar results against Colorado?
- 4 points in 8 games against the Avalanche in the regular season.
- Devon’s Pick: Colorado in 6 games.
- Bruce’s Pick: Colorado in 6 games.
DFS Picks | May 31 – June 6
FORWARDS
- William Nylander, TOR| DK Salary: $5,900
- Averaging 14.82 FPPG in series with the Habs! Great value considering his current salary. Producing despite not playing with John Tavares for majority of the series.
- 4 goals, 3 assists, 15 SOG through 6 games versus Montreal.
- Anthony Beauvillier,NYI | DK Salary: $5,300
- Averaging 14.91 FPPG in 7 playoff games. Again, great value considering his current salary.
- 17 points (10 goals) in his last 16 games played! Beauvillier has been on a tear since the end of the season.
- Taylor Hall, BOS | DK Salary: $5,000
- Averaging 8.5 FPPG over his last 10 contests, which isn’t all that substantial. However, a closer look at his analytics suggest that a breakout is coming… 12th in expected goals among skaters in the playoffs. xGF at 3.38 5v5, xG% at 64.8.
- 13 points (9 goals) in his last 16 games played. 44 SOG.
- David Pastrnak, BOS | DK Salary: $7,400
- Averaging 22.85 FPPG so far in the 2021 Playoffs! Any late-season concerns fantasy owners and DFS players had going into the post-season should be long gone at this point. Spend up for Pasta!
- Hat trick and 7 SOG in series opener!
DEFENCEMEN
- Charlie McAvoy, BOS | DK Salary: $5,300
- Averaging 14.00 FPPG so far in the playoffs.
- 6 points (1 goal) in 6 games played so far this post-season.
- Cale Makar, COL | DK Salary: $5,700
- Averaging 10.9 FPPG
- 6 points (1 goal) in 5 playoff games.
- Devon Toews, COL | DK Salary: $4,400
- Averaging 9.6 FPPG
- 3 points (0 goals) through the playoffs to date.
- First pairing with Cale Makar, exposure to Landeskog, MacKinnon, and Rantanen. Makes for an affordable stack with one of those forwards. Also getting time on the second power play unit.
GOALIES
- Andrei Vasilevsky, TB | DK Salary: $7,500
- 2.24 GAA and .927 SV%
- Averaging 21.14 FPPG through the first two series.
- The spectacular numbers speak for themselves, but pair that with a salary of just $7,500 and the choice is obvious.
- Phillip Grubauer, COL | DK Salary: $8,100
- 1.71 GAA and .937 SV% so far in these playoffs!
- Averaging 18.84 FPPG so far in the post-season.
- Colorado has to be the favourite for the cup at this point, and Grubauer looks very good. Spend up for the Avs netminder.