Ah…the Saturday before the trade deadline! Next week we’ll be able to build a roster of new faces in new places, but for tonight let’s steer clear of those players rumored to be on the trade block. There’s nothing worse than having a guy that you picked for your DFS lineup ending up as a healthy scratch because he’s being discussed in a potential move.
With all of that said, I think it’s safe to say that our goalie pick for today is firmly entrenched as a player who will be unavailable on the trade block. Linus Ullmark (DK: $8,300) has been written up a few times in this space, and for good reason. His video game-esque numbers keep getting better. He’s 29-4-1 and leads the league with a .937 SV%. Just for reference, Tim Thomas’s Vezina numbers in his Stanley Cup year (2010-2011) were 35-11-9 and .938 SV%.
Tonight, Ullmark faces a Canucks team that is at the opposite end of the standings. Don’t miss the mark here, and lock in Linus for our backstop today.
Our main slate is an eight gamer this evening, starting with the Bruins at Vancouver (7:00 PM ET) and running all the way through to the Blackhawks at Sharks (10:30 PM ET). This will be the main group that we’ll draw our $50,000 DraftKings lineup for our tourneys or double ups.
Let’s get to it!
C – David Krejci , DK: $4,500 – It’s easy to pick either of the two Bruin centers here, but Krejci is the more affordable of the duo. I’ve mentioned it here before. The B’s needed someone to solidify their second line and Krejci has done just that since his return after a brief hiatus back home. He’s gotten more than 15 FPTS in each of his last two games and should be in for more of the same on the road in this one.
C – Nathan MacKinnon, DK: $9,100 – I went out of order in our build today and saved this spot for the end. Needless to say we had enough money to spend…and then some. MacKinnon is the chalkiest chalker in Chalktown (totally a legit hockey term), so this one is a pretty big no-brainer. He’s scored between 22 and 38.5 FPTS in his last five games and has 12 points over that span. The Flames could be extinguished pretty quickly by the Mack Daddy tonight.
W – Jake DeBrusk, DK: $7,000 – DeBunk. DeBooty. DeDonkey. DeBust. The number of nicknames this guy garnered from me and a fellow Bruin fan are pretty abundant. When he pouted and requested a trade last year, we were completely out and ready for the Bruins to ship him out of town. But a funny thing happened over the last few months. DeBrusk was elevated to the first line with superstar forwards, and the head coach that he seemingly did not see eye to eye with was sent packing. All of this has lit a fire under DeBrusk this year to the tune of 34 PTS in 39 GP. He’s scored in each of his three games since coming back from an LBI. DeBest!!!
W – Dawson Mercer, DK: $4,000 – With seven goals in his last five games, Dawson Mercer certainly checks the “hot streak” box. The winger position doesn’t have a lot of great options in this middle salary zone, so let’s run this guy out there today. He had 2G and 1A on Thursday, including the GWG in OT. Mercer is just two goals shy of his first 20 goal season.
W – Pavel Zacha, DK: $3,500 – It’s been a while since I had a chance to write up the Bruins for a Saturday night, and I’m certainly taking advantage. Zacha is priced very well for a guy that has 39 PTS in 54 GP. He’s getting top 6 minutes at even strength and sees some time on PP2. He has 4G (6PTS) in February.
D – Brent Burns, DK: $6,500 – Here’s our chalk defenceman for today. Burns has six points in his last four games and isn’t afraid to add in some blocked shots for good measure. Sure he takes up a big chunk of our DFS wallet tonight, but this guy could end up with a ton of feathers in his giant beard after this one…because he’s about to feast on some Ducks.
D – Bowen Byram, DK: $4,100 – Another double B! Hands up if you had this guy on your IR all year hoping for a return from the concussion/lower body issues he’s had over the last couple of years! Yep. That’s me, too. Well, it seems like our patience is paying off. Byram has 11 points in the 17 games played since returning from his injury. Worries about him not reclaiming a spot on the man advantage seem to have been for naught too, as Byram is getting PP2 time. 5PTS in his last 5GP is pretty solid for our second defender.
UTIL – Garnet Hathaway, DK: $2,500 – This is a bit of a roll of the dice, but after the Orlov/Hathaway trade to Boston, the new skaters were expected to arrive in Vancouver to join the team ahead of gametime. Bruins Athletic writer Fluto Shinzawa reported that both guys remain options for this one. Double check before gametime if you choose to pick him, but I have a feeling that a guy with 198 hits and more than a few blocked shots on the year will really want to make his mark in his Bruin debut. At the very least we won’t get a zero in our UT spot if we play him today.
Well, the one good part of having a busy weekend with my eldest’s hockey tournament is that I had to write this up and edit late Friday night. Needless to say, we didn’t go over our $50,000 cap, (we’re actually $900 under), so feel free to play this whole lineup!
Here’s the three moneyline picks for the week too…
The Sea Bass : (Favorite)
A Bruins stack means a play as our favorite today too. The B’s are on the road, but come in at (-255) against a bottom six Vancouver (+215) squad tonight.
The Happy Gilmore : (Underdog)
I made the mistake of taking the Rangers on the road against Calgary last week. They’re on the road again tonight (-140) against another team that I whiffed on in Washington (+120). If the Caps don’t win outright, I could see them making it tough for the Rangers this afternoon. If you play it, just make sure to get it in early as this is a 1:00 PM ET start.
The Claude Lemieux : (Turtle/Flop)
Ottawa is a pretty heavy favorite (-170) on the road against Montreal (+145) tonight. Maybe it’s the Canadian (Canadien?) voodoo of a Saturday night matchup, but I always hate taking anyone that’s up against “le bleu, blanc, et rouge” for Hockey Night in Canada. Be careful if you’re thinking of playing the Sens in this one.
That’s it for this week! I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below or give me a shout @MarmosDad.
