Written by LineStar Daily Fantasy Life Coach @ZeroInDenver.

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Welcome to the NHL Hat Trick.

Sorry for the recent lack of newsletters. I've been so slammed with work and the dad life that I've had limited time for extracurricular activities.

One thing that I've been thinking of, as I get ready for baseball, is how we might want to be doing stacks and building lineups.

When I started playing NHL DFS, my typical lineup was a full forward line from my favorite team on the night, filled with the best players I could fit alongside that - stacked or not. Some call these "naked" stacks in that they're not matched with another stack from another team. In other words, I might have a Tampa Stack, but then trying to fit in MacKinnon, Ovi, Pastrnak and any other high ceiling players. The idea is that I'm trying to get correlation from one of the top stacks, but putting players that can score points alongside that. Of course, even the best strategies don't always work in DFS.

The point is, how can my lineup be different enough but also be solid in that I'm including enough upside so that I can be paid if I'm right.

What do you think? Anyone try anything similar? Any questions on the slate tonight? Hit me up in LineStar Chat

Tonight's Targets

First - a lot of this data might be foreign to most of you, so let me break it down (numbers over the last 10 games):

• W and L: Wins and Losses

• CF%, CF60, CA60: This is Corsi For %, Corsi For/60 minutes, Corsi Allowed/60 minutes

• HDCF60, HDCA60: This is High Danger Corsi For/60 minutes and High Danger Corsi Allowed/60 minutes.

• SF60, SA60: This is Shots For/60 minutes and Shots Allowed/60 minutes.

• SOT: Percentage of shots on target .

• Sh%: The percentage of shots on goal that are goals.

• SCF60, SCA60: Scoring chances for and allowed per 60 minutes

• GF60, GA60: These are goals for and goals allowed per 60 minutes.

• ScoreAgg: Summed numbers of a teams GF60, xGF60 and the opponent's GA60 and xGA60.

I'm overgeneralizing, but I want teams that aren't afraid to shoot the puck. More shot attempts the better. Then I narrow it down more based on teams that are hitting the net and getting goals. Again, really high level stuff. Don't go all in based on one or even a few numbers, but I think it's more useful than just going off of implied goals.

Now let's dig into this slate.

Goaltenders

Elvis Merzlikins - CLS (DK: $7500, FD: $7500)

I think Merzlikins is a little underpriced given his numbers over the past month (1.63 GAA with .954 Save%). It's a tougher matchup, as Carolina has been scoring 3.2 goals a game over their last 10 games, but they've also been averaging 33.2 shots on goal over that period. For me, the possible upside is worth the risk.

Centers

Nathan MacKinnon - COL (DK: $7900, FD: $8700)

I did a few early builds and came out with almost 100% MacKinnon each one. I think I'm ok with that. San Jose has been pretty pathetic this season, and the Sharks are allowing 3.2 goals a game over their last 5 games.

Wingers

Artemi Panarin - NYR (DK: $6800, FD: $8400)

Hard not to love Panarin these days - especially at that price on DraftKings.

Defensemen

Shea Theodore - VGK (DK: $5100, FD: $5000)

If I'm trying to fit a top-tier player at C and W, I'm going to have to spend down at D. However, I think Theodore is a great option without having to give up too much upside. He checks my boxes in that he plays over 24 minutes a game and sees time on the top power play unit. He also gets a good matchup against an Ottawa team that is allowing 3.6 goals a game over their last 5 games.

If you take anything away from this, keep in mind that hockey is a high-variance sport. The top ranked player in each category could be a great play or be a dud tonight. Going all in on any player probably isn't a great move.

With DFS, I try to think of these things:

• Who makes the most sense to play?

• Where is the field leaning?

• Who has been the most consistent?

• Who has the most upside?

• Who will benefit me most if others are wrong?

Bottom of the Barrel

Some people call these "value" plays or "salary savers." I hate both terms. These are players that I like for tonight that fit at the lowest salary tier. It could be they're playing on one of the top forward lines or it could be that they've been playing well, but these are my cheap calls for a skater to pick up a goal or assist.

Lars Eller: WAS - C (DK: $4.4K, FD: $4.6K)

Ondrej Kase: ANH - W (DK: $4.4K, FD: $3.4K)

John Klingberg: DAL - D (DK: $4.4K, FD: $5.8K)

Line Stacks

Line stacking is a common strategy in GPP. You’ll see a lot of winning lineups where players are stacked from the same forward lines or power play lines. DraftKings allows a maximum of 6 skaters from the same team (with skaters from at least 3 teams) and FanDuel allows a maximum of 4 skaters from one team. In tournaments, you'll often see 3-3 stacks (meaning 3 players from one team and 3 from another team), 4-3, and 3-3-2 stacks.

Looking at stacks for tonight, here are LineStar's top projected owned stacks, my top ranked, and the "risk it for the biscuit" stacks (high-upside, low ownership stacks.

Keep in mind, these are my favorites. These lines may change so keep an eye out for news during the day and during pre-game warmups. You should all do your own research and you might (and probably should) disagree with me in some spots. Don't be afraid to go your own way.

Good luck to–day! Tag me in the LineStar Chat @ZeroInDenver if you have any questions or feedback. Follow me on Twitter @ZeroInDenver.

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