The Montreal Canadiens had a rude awakening to the Tampa Bay Lightnings might in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Canadiens one goal happened to be a double deflection off of two Tampa players so while they were not officially shutout, they came darn close. This was a complete effort by the Lightning. All three of their top lines scored and a couple defensemen not named Victor Hedman got in on the fun. Can the Habs turn it around and even up the series before they head back to Canada and the Bell Centre?
Here’s a sparky lineup For DFS Hockey 6/30/21 (using DraftKings Values)
| Captain | Vasilevskiy/Kucherov | ~$16,000 | |
| Flex | Hedman/Stamkos | ~$9,000 | |
| Flex | |||
| Flex | $3,800 | ||
| Flex | |||
| Flex |
This lineup is going to be pretty tilted. As much as we need to give the Canadiens their due for making it this far, they are up against a juggernaut. It is clear just by the pricing in DraftKings that points scoring is not really even close. For our captain today we are choosing between Andre Vasilevskiy and Nikita Kucherov. Kucherov is capable of higher point totals but Vasi has been more consistent and must show up every night. The Lightning can afford a game off from Kucherov, not that he is ever not trying his hardest.
In a similar vein, the choice between Victor Hedman and Steven Stamkos proves to be a choice between floor and ceiling. Be careful with the recency bias of Stamkos’ goal in game one. Hedman has not exploded for points in the last few games but his peripherals and occasional offensive outbursts keep his average fantasy points higher than that of their captain.
It is looking like our secret pick Jake Evans will be out tonight and we will be switching that pick over to the other guy. Evans still had a solid game even if he did not pad your stats. He got three hits which is nice to see when the reason for missing time was a concussion. We are happy to see him back but also happy to pick our other guy who has been a bit more of a stalwart over the course of the season.
Now what do you get if you sign up now?
• A physical Canadien who is coming back after a short time off
• A top winger vs a depth center
• Get 7-days for free and all-access for all sports for $99 per year after
As you are putting together your roster today you will for sure want a Hab or two. You will not be surprised that we are focusing on Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. You should have at least one of this dynamic duo and should even consider taking both of them as a stack. If one scores the other is probably involved.
To actually compare some guys from different teams we are pitting Brandon Gallagher against Yanni Gourde. It is silly on the outside of it because Gallagher is a top line winger whereas Gourde is a third line center. Gourde did score a goal though and Gallaghers line is built a little more as a shutdown line than a scoring line. That said, if you have seen Gallaghers face you know he is out here to score. He has some gnarly wounds on his face from getting high sticked and he is barely phased by it. He is the consummate competitor.
Take a peek at Tyler Johnson for some cheap upside. Normally a depth center, he is hanging out on the second wing with Cirelli and Stamkos. He is an easy way to round out your roster and maybe afford another big piece that we highlighted above.
We have a confession to make. We had our weekly tacos on Monday. It’s ok, you can unsubscribe now. In our defense they were still delicious. Get all up on that Twitter (@FantasyDFSX) and let us know how disappointed in us you are. Have a great rest of your week!.
