This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
The Stanley Cup Finals are here, and I'm excited. I'm excited to watch the Edmonton Oilers try and bring the Cup back to Canada. I'm excited to see if the Florida Panthers can win their first title. And then there's the DFS with Game 1 starting at 8 p.m. EDT. For your lineups, you get $55,000 in salary for five players. One is your Captain, who nets you 1.5 times the points. The matchup is already exciting, but a successful DFS entry would make it even better. Here's the lineup I ended up with.
CAPTAIN
Connor McDavid, EDM at FLA ($15,000): The Oilers are on the road and the Panthers have the advantage on the defensive end, but there's also no other player I'd want as my Captain. McDavid has been "Could he win the Conn Smythe even if Edmonton doesn't win the Cup?" good during the playoffs with 31 points. Leon Draisaitl ranks second at 28. And no one on Florida has more than 20. McDavid lagged on the goal front early on, though he potted three against the Stars. Make the NHL's best player your Captain. It's not rocket science.
UTILITY
Evan Bouchard, EDM at FLA ($12,000): You don't need a defenseman in your lineup, but Bouchard is worth rostering. I mentioned McDavid and Draisaitl, yet Bouchard is third in postseason points with 27. He's also fired 54 shots on goal while his plus-14 rating leads the way. It helps that Bouchard frequently plays with Edmonton's stars while skating on the top power play, but he's producing thanks to his favorable circumstances and it all counts the same.
Sam Bennett, FLA vs. EDM ($10,000): I may have started with two Oilers, but I have three Panthers to round out my roster. They are at home, after all, and I did mention the goaltending gap. These teams enter with the top-two penalty kills in the playoffs, and both have been stingy at allowing shots. The difference is that Sergei Bobrovsky has a 2.20 GAA and .908 save percentage and Stuart Skinner is at 2.50 and .897. Bennett has missed time this postseason and throughout his career, though he's been on fire since returning with five goals and three assists in 10 games.
Gustav Forsling, FLA vs. EDM ($9,500): Forsling doesn't participate on the power play, but he's on the lead pairing with Aaron Ekblad that is set up to lock down the opposition. He's also averaged 23:17 in ice time. And this season, Forsling registered over 100 hits and 100 blocked shots while posting a remarkable plus-56. Not only has he been defensively robust, yet he's managed four goals and seven assists in the playoffs. Forsling has arguably been Florida's best player, and some of that has translated to DFS success.
Vladimir Tarasenko, FLA vs. EDM ($8,000): Did a snakebit Tarasenko break through in the clincher against the Rangers? After a point drought, the deadline addition scored a goal while producing three shots, four hits, and three blocked shots. Tarasenko has also totaled 24 shots from his last 11 games and was brought in for a series just like this. Wanting to round my lineup out with a Panther, I'll take a player with six 30-goal campaigns who knows what it takes to win a Cup.
