This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
A Vegas-Tampa final does seem inevitable. The Canadiens did their best but might not have enough talent to beat the Golden Knights, who received three goals from their defensemen while Ben Chiarot finished with a minus-3 rating, Shea Weber played through an injury and Jeff Petry remained too injured to play.
Playing in enemy territory was tough for the Habs, who played all season without any fans and will only have a limited capacity crowd to look forward to in Game 3. Look for them to come out strong again, as they did in Game 1, but it'll be very difficult to sustain any sort of pressure on a deeper and more talented team.
Puck drop is at 9 p.m. EDT.
As with all FanDuel showdown formats, no goalies are available for selection and a Captain can be designated for 1.5x fantasy points. The remaining roster spots are not restricted by position.
VALUE PLAYS
Chandler Stephenson, VGK vs. MON ($7,500): Stephenson doesn't generate a lot of offense himself, but his faceoff prowess led to an assist on Shea Theodore's goal. What makes him a strong value play is his high usage and star linemates, Max Pacioretty and Mark Stone.
Cole Caufield, MON at VGK ($8,000): Caufield will remain a strong value play as long as he stays in this salary range. He's on a three-game point streak and led all Habs forwards with six shots on net, and along with linemate Nick Suzuki were the only two players to attempt more shots than their opposition.
LINE STACKS
William Karlsson (C - $9,500), Reilly Smith (W - $9,000), Jonathan Marchessault (W - $13,500)
Combining Stone and Pacioretty alone ($28,000) costs almost the same as this entire line ($32,000) even though the scoring is pretty evenly balanced between the two lines. Game 1 showed Carey Price can be beaten, and Vegas' overall speed might be a problem for a Habs defense that isn't particularly mobile and certainly banged up.
DEFENSEMEN
Alec Martinez, VGK vs. MON ($9,500): Between Vegas' three-headed monster on their blue line, Martinez is the best value. His 13.14 fantasy points per game is very comparable to Alex Pietrangelo (13.85) and Shea Theodore (12.97), and even when he doesn't score, at least he can fill the stats sheet with blocked shots.
Alexander Romanov, MON at VGK ($6,000): Consider Romanov a value play if you're low on salary space and need someone who could outperform expectations. He made a tremendous impression in Game 1 with a big open-ice hit, and finished the night with 15 minutes. It's unlikely Romanov will score a point, but there is definitely a chance his role is increased if Petry doesn't play and Chiarot continues to struggle, and he's one of the few younger defensemen on the roster who has the speed and agility to keep up with some of Vegas' quicker forwards.
