This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Memorial Day hockey is happening! We have a Game 6 on Monday between the Stars and Golden Knights. The game starts at 8 p.m. ET. You have $50,000 for six players. Your Captain earns you 1.5 times the points, but the Captain also has an elevated salary. Here's a lineup I like.
CAPTAIN
Joe Pavelski, DAL vs. VGK ($12,900): With the elevated salary aspect here, I decided to go with Pavelski. He had a four-goal game earlier in these playoffs, and he has a point in each of his last two games. The veteran is a first-line player with at least 25 goals in each of his last three campaigns. He provided the best value to me at the Captain position.
FLEX
Roope Hintz, DAL vs. VGK ($9,600): Sure, Hintz has slowed down, as he only has two points over his last four games. However, he's still the leading scorer in the playoffs. The Finn has put 57 shots on net in 18 postseason contests, and he has 37 goals in each of his last two seasons. His salary now makes him feel like a potential value, as I feel like it dropped too much too fast.
Jonathan Marchessault, VGK at DAL ($9,000): Early in the postseason, I was espousing Marchessault as a candidate for a breakout, as he was dealing with some bad puck luck. Sure enough, that happened. He has 14 points and 37 shots on net over his last nine games. That includes an ongoing four-game point streak.
Wyatt Johnston, DAL vs. VGK ($6,800): With Marchessault's luck turning around, Johnston may be the reigning hard-luck player in this postseason. The rookie had a couple excellent chances in Game 5, and he ended up putting five shots on net. In these playoffs he has a 7.4 shooting percentage after having a 15.0 shooting percentage in the regular season. It's not like Adin Hill, he of the career .910 save percentage, is so formidable that Johnston is facing a terrible matchup.
Reilly Smith, VGK at DAL ($6,200): Or maybe Smith has been the king of the snake-bit shooters. He has a 5.4 shooting percentage, though he has dished out seven assists. He had 26 goals this season, and the veteran has a career 12.3 shooting percentage, so Smith's luck could turn around any day now.
Ivan Barbashev, VGK at DAL ($5,400): Jake Oettinger has been a formidable goalie for much of his career, and he's looked good recently, but this has not been his best run of play. In this postseason he has a 2.89 GAA and .901 save percentage. Barbashev may be the "other guy" on Vegas' top line, but playing with Vegas' top scorer Jack Eichel and the red-hot Marchessault, the Russian has 14 points in 16 games.
