Today’s NHL Sunday Slate Breakdown goes over Sunday’s three (3) game main slate, which will lock at 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT.
I’m going to be copy/pasting this GPP process for every GPP article that I write this season.
Remember, the concept of playing GPPs is generally the same in all sports. Take some risks. Be a little different. Go for the win. In GPPs, if your lineups are cashing more often than not cashing, you’re probably doing it wrong.
People who have more winning nights than losing nights at GPPs are probably people who don’t take enough risks to get 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, which tends to be what you want to go for when you’re entering GPP tournaments. If you think doing so is “too risky” then I highly advise for you to stick to cash games.
When it comes to taking the necessary risks to get 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in these tournaments, you’re going to have to stack. Stacking in NHL means playing 2, 3, or 4 players from the same team who play on the same line (either at even strength or on the power-play).
As a whole, the most common stacks (not including goalie) that you’ll see on DraftKings is probably 4-3-1 or 3-3-2. The most common stacks that you’ll see on FanDuel is probably 4-4 or 4-3-1. Is that the way to go? Not necessarily. The bigger your stacks, the more risk you’re taking, but the bigger the upside. The smaller the stacks, the less risk you’re taking, but it comes with less upside.
The approach I am recommending EVERYONE takes this season is to start with a 3-2-1 stack and go from there. This means entering a 3 man stack, a 2 man stack, and a standalone player (doesn’t matter if it’s a C, W, or D), and then go from there. There’s a lot of different combinations you can go with after those six players are locked in. The possibilities are endless.
Please be sure to keep an eye on late news by looking at our NHL Team Beat Writers lists on Twitter by clicking here.
Beyond that, you should also absolutely use Left Wing Lock for lines by clicking here and goalie confirmations by clicking here.
Before I go through my favorite stacks of the day, let’s take a close look at the updated Pace of Play chart, which will include the overall pace (Corsi For and Corsi Against Per 60 Minutes) and as an added bonus, the high-danger “Pace of Play” (High Danger Corsi For + High Danger Corsi Against Per 60 Minutes). This will take a close look at the pace of play over the last two weeks. I’ve highlighted the specific game matchups in specific colors.
Stacks to Consider
With 4 lines and 2 power-play units per team, there are a lot of different options. I am listing six (6) stacks that I think are very much in play today. This does not include numerous VIABLE stack options. Please feel free to go outside of these stacks, but I promise you, I’ve narrowed down my list, and I do feel these are my favorite.
TOR1: Mitch Marner/Auston Matthews/Zach Hyman
Possible add-on: Morgan Rielly or Jake Muzzin
TOR1 is just a well-oiled machine, and definitely thrive with this specific combination of three (I haven’t had to even mention Joe Thornton in a long, long time). While AM34 has had to endure a few tough injuries, he now does look like his usual aggressive self. Over the last two weeks of play, he has been averaging 6 iFenwick per game, which is well above anyone else on this short slate.
TOR2: Alex Galchenyuk/John Tavares/William Nylander
With the Flames likely playing without Mikael Backlund again tonight, it’s hard to pinpoint too many scenarios where the Flames are going to be able to contain the Leafs top 6. I suppose it helps that Michael Hutchinson is in net, so their win condition might end up being making this a high scoring affair, but that’s also hard to imagine with Darryl Sutter behind the bench. The Flames have won one of their last seven games, and it just doesn’t feel like they have what’s necessary to beat
DAL1: Jason Robertson/Roope Hintz/Joe Pavelski
Possible add-on: Miro Heiskanen or John Klingberg
Wouldn’t you know it… Roope Hintz missed another game last night! Color me shocked. Hopefully you can see through my sarcasm here. Hintz just always misses games, on-and-off. While I do not know the specifics on his status, I do know that he hasn’t missed two consecutive games due to this injury since February, and has only missed two games in a row this season on two occasions. If he doesn’t play, it’ll just be Jason Dickinson instead of Hintz, and you can play accordingly. But if he does play, I, once again, love him. He has been shooting the puck a ton and players just tend to stay away from him because of his inconsistent lineup status.
CGY1: Dillon Dube/Elias Lindholm/Matthew Tkachuk
Possible add-on: Mark Giordano
While I don’t like the overall upside they possess, because the Calgary offensive attack has been in shambles before and after Darryl Sutter took over, I’d be foolish to not consider some type of Calgary exposure with Hutchinson confirmed in net. Hutchinson has generally been solid this season, but he has only made two starts over the last month of play, and he has had the 3rd worst GSAA/60 (better than Hunter Miska and Ivan Prostvetov, and WORSE than Carter Hart, Matt Murray, and Brian Elliott). Again, we’re only talking about two games here, so we do have to give him the benefit of the doubt, but these numbers are definitely weak enough to make us want to look deep into Calgary. Another alternative might be the top PP unit, and if you do decide to go that route, keep in mind that Mark Giordano is now on the top unit as the main D.
CAR3: Warren Foegale/Jordan Staal/Nino Niederreiter
Possible add-on: Dougie Hamilton or Jaccob Slavin
I think all of the lines for the Hurricanes are generally in play, but they tend to spread the wealth outside of their top power-play unit (which, should be considered EVERY slate). When looking closely at their current lines, I think the one that stands out for me is their “stopper” line, which is centered by Jordan Staal. They are a possession powerhouse and tend to generate a high number of scoring chances due to their strong defensive play at both ends of the ice.
ARI4: Michael Bunting/Nick Schmaltz/Conor Garland
Possible add-on: Jakob Chychrun or Alex Goligoski
They might be listed as ARI4, but they looked like Arizona’s top line in Game 1 against the Ducks. It’s no secret that Schmaltz and Garland have been struggling after starting off hot, but they’re clearly better off together than on different lines. Looking at the NST line tool, both Garland and Schmaltz have below average CF%’s, SF%’s, and HDCF%’s when playing AWAY from each other, but they are all above average when playing together. The jury’s still out on Michael Bunting, but he performed admirably on their line, and even got some power-play time with them.
Goalie Rankings
*Please check on the status of your goalies prior to lock
- Adin Hill, Coyotes
- Jake Oettinger, Stars
- Michael Hutchinson, Leafs
- James Reimer, Hurricanes
Jacob MarkstromDavid Rittich, Flames- John Gibson, Ducks
Favorite Individual Plays
Top Studs: Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner
Possible Edge-Play: Roope Hintz (if he plays) or Conor Garland
Top Defensemen: Dougie Hamilton, Miro Heiskanen
Possible Edge-Play: Mark Giordano
Top DraftKings Values below $4k: Isac Lundestrom, Radek Faksa, Troy Terry, Michael Bunting, Trevor Zegras, Alex Goligoski, Jamie Drysdale
Top FanDuel Values below $4.5k: Nick Schmaltz, Max Comtois, Denis Gurianov, Troy Terry, Michael Bunting, Esa Lindell, Kevin Shattenkirk
Cash Game Core Four
DraftKings: Auston Matthews, Nick Schmaltz, Miro Heiskanen, Alex Goligoski
FanDuel: Auston Matthews, Nick Schmaltz, Dougie Hamilton, Miro Heiskanen
