The 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs continue on Sunday as the San Jose Sharks take on the Colorado Avalanche and the Carolina Hurricanes take on the New York Islanders in conference semifinal action. The Sharks and Hurricanes took Game 1 of their respective series and will look to take a commanding lead with another victory in Game 2. The legendary Joe Thornton had a big game in the series opener with a goal and an assist to guide the Sharks to victory while Hurricanes goalie Petr Mrazek turned in a 31-save shutout. Those two are sure to be popular options in NHL DFS tournaments and cash games on FanDuel and DraftKings after their Game 1 heroics. However, before you set your Sunday NHL DFS lineups, be sure to check out the NHL DFS picks and advice from DFS millionaire Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with nearly $2 million in career winnings. He's also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account. This allows him to find the best NHL DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They're a must-see for any NHL DFS player.
On Friday, McClure recommended Hurricanes goalie Petr Mrazek at $7,800 on FanDuel. The result: He turned in a 31-save shutout against the Islanders -- returning 44.8 points and nearly 6x value on a low-scoring NHL DFS night. Anybody who had him in their lineup was well on the way to a HUGE day. Now, he's set his sights on Sunday's NHL DFS slate and locked in his picks.
For Sunday's slate, we can tell you McClure is high on Sharks defenseman Brent Burns at $7,600 on FanDuel and $6,800 on DraftKings. Burns put on a Herculean effort in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, scoring a goal and handing out three assists for his first ever four-point playoff performance. Playing over 27 minutes in a 5-2 win, Burns did all his offensive damage at even strength which is a sign that he's seeing the ice incredibly well.
And he did all that despite the fact that Colorado edged San Jose in the Corsi battle 52.2 percent to 47.8 percent. Burns and the Sharks have typically been very good with puck possession and as that balance swings back in San Jose's favor, it should mean more opportunities for Burns which is scary to think of after what he did in Game 1.
Another pick he loves: Hurricanes wing Justin Williams ($5,300 on FanDuel, $4,400 on DraftKings), who had four points and fired 21 shots on goal in the series win over Washington. Williams got three more shots on goal against the Islanders on Friday night but failed to register a point. However, his puck possession numbers were outstanding, as he led the Hurricanes with a Corsi For Percentage of 76.9.
That number was inflated a little by the fact that 78.6 percent of his shifts started in the offensive zone, but Williams' veteran experience was undoubtedly a big part of Carolina keeping the puck in dangerous areas of the ice when he was out there. Look for Williams to capitalize soon and possibly more than once if he continues spending that much time in the offensive zone.
McClure is also targeting an undervalued player who is set to explode for huge numbers on Sunday. He's a huge steal at his price point, so this pick could be the difference between cashing and going home with nothing. You absolutely need to see who it is before setting your lineups.
So what are the optimal NHL DFS lineups for Sunday? Visit SportsLine now to see DFS millionaire Mike McClure's complete optimal tournament lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings, and cash in big on NHL DFS.
