The Calgary Flames have been one of the most pleasant surprises in the NHL this season. They sit atop the Western Conference with 83 points through 61 games and are second to only Tampa Bay in the NHL standings. A matchup against the worst team in the league on Sunday, the Ottawa Senators, should have NHL DFS players salivating. The Flames and Senators square off at 7 p.m. ET and Calgary players like Sean Monahan and Mark Giordano are sure to be among the most popular options for NHL DFS tournaments and cash games. Before you make your NHL DFS picks for Sunday on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel, be sure to check out what SportsLine's resident DFS millionaire, Mike McClure, has to say.
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 Saturday, McClure was all over Oilers goalie Mikko Koskinen at $7,300 on FanDuel. The result: He turned away 33 of 34 shot attempts in a win over the Ducks -- returning over 34 points and close to 5x value. Anyone who rostered him was well on their way to a winning night.
For Sunday's, we can tell you McClure is loving Flames wing Johnny Gaudreau at $8,100 on FanDuel and $7,300 on DraftKings.
Gaudreau is one of the most dynamic talents in the NHL and the Flames' most dangerous offensive option with 79 points in 61 games this season. And Saturday's matchup against the Senators is one you won't want to miss given how the Senators have struggled with speed recently.
Against the Blackhawks earlier this week, the Senators allowed similarly small but quick players Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat combine to score four goals and register four assists. In his career against Ottawa, Gaudreau has 10 points in eight games.
McClure's optimal NHL DFS strategy also involves rostering Jets center Bryan Little ($4,700 on FanDuel and $4,500 on DraftKings), who has three points in his last three games.
Little and the Jets get the Coyotes on Sunday and he's had success in that spot already, with eight goals and six assists in 20 career games against them.
The veteran center is up to 39 points this season and his recent success is due in part to how hot he's been in the faceoff circle. He's winning just under 60 percent of his draws the last three games and if he can stay hot against the Coyotes, he'll have a chance to make good on those possessions with multi-point potential.
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.
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.
