This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
The Islanders and Lightning have been two of the highest-scoring teams in this postseason. For the Lightning that's not a surprise, but for the Islanders that was a bit unexpected. This series, though, has been a little more defensively-minded and has seen some fine goaltending. Both teams have a 2-1 win in this series, and Game 2 was a 4-2 affair.
This is all worth noting as we prepare for single-game DFS contests Saturday. You need to select a roster of six players, with one of them being your team captain who is worth 1.5 times the fantasy points, but also requires a higher salary. Do you go with a goalie as your captain? Do you go with a goalie at all? Here's a roster I have put together that would work for Saturday's Game 4 on Long Island. The game starts at 8:00 p.m. EDT.
CAPTAIN
Brayden Point, TAM at NYI ($14,700): Point leads the playoffs in goals with 11, and he's on the precipice of joining elite company. He's scored a goal in six straight games, putting him on the verge of a seven-game point streak that would tie the postseason record held by the likes of Mario Lemieux and, um, Claude Lemieux. In fact, Point has come oh-so-close to having the record to himself. He's scored a goal in eight of his last nine games.
FLEX
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TAM at NYI ($10,400): Sure, the Lightning are on the road, but I still like Vasilevskiy. He's leading the postseason with a .935 save percentage and he has a 2.12 GAA as well. The Russian hasn't allowed more than two goals in a game yet in this series, and there's no reason to think that won't continue given Vasilevskiy's track record. It's not a bad idea to have a goalie in a single-game competition, and Tampa's netminder is definitely the better choice.
Victor Hedman, TAM at NYI ($8,400): Hey remember when people were worried about Hedman's health heading into the playoffs. All he's done is average 24:47 in ice time and notched 14 points in 14 games. The Swede has tallied 34 shots on goal and 29 blocked shots, and he's also averaged 3:23 per game with the extra man on what is perhaps the best power play in the NHL when fully healthy.
Jordan Eberle, NYI vs. TAM ($6,400): You want to have players on both teams Saturday. My top guys are all Tampa players, but at a lower salary I like Eberle. During the regular season he averaged 61.3 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, highest on the Islanders. In the playoffs he's first on the team again, but now he's averaged a whopping 72.9 percent of offensive-zone starts. That really gives his fantasy potential a boost.
Anthony Cirelli, TAM at NYI ($5,200): It was up in the air if Cirelli would play Game 3, but there he was in his usual spot. That would be centering the second line between Steven Stamkos and Alex Killorn. He hasn't notched a point in this series but he does have six shots on goal. At this salary, even an assist would be a real boon.
Noah Dobson, NYI vs. TAM ($4,200): Dobson started 58.6 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone during the regular season, most among New York defenseman. In the playoffs he's started 65.9 percent of his shifts there, which is also tops among blue liners for the Islanders. Dobson is also on the top power-play unit for the Islanders and has averaged 2:04 with the extra man in the playoffs. At this salary, it adds up to a ton of upside.
