You couldn't write this, and be believed!

With three games remaining – under a week now – that last Eastern Wild Card has four teams scrambling, and all within one point in the standings. Do the Penguins hold a theoretical advantage, with the single point lead? They play three playoff teams (unless the Islanders implode), while the Red Wings complete their season in a home-and-home twosome with the Canadiens. Washington's path runs through matches against Tampa and Boston before concluding in Philadelphia. The Flyers have only themselves to blame and only two contests remaining.  Saturday will prove a lot about these teams.

Revenge: New York Style

I'm not at all sure what I saw when Mika Zibanejad and Adam Pelech collided, and I watched it several times. No, I'm not a fan of either New York team, and I'm as neutral as anyone. But that (and the boarding/interference no-call that put Vincent Trocheck down) won't be forgotten in the early game, and I'll put my side-bet on the Blueshirts. The Isles losing in regulation would open the Metropolitan's third-place spot into the melee. There's not a spot in my DFS lineup, as I've only picked from evening games all season, but maybe think about Alexis Lafreniere….

5:30 pm: Tampa Bay Lightning @ Washington Capitals

If the Capitals are in the mix, I can't ignore this match. The Caps have been led by the resurgence of Alexander Ovechkin and John Carlson. The power-play defenseman has 21 points in his last 29 games, which calculates out to a 60-point pace. Oh – and Charlie Lindgren, who claimed the net, posting an 11-5-0 record in the five weeks from February 20 to March 26. Unfortunately, April hasn't been as kind – his stats are 1-4-0 with a 0.881 SV%.  Darcy Kuemper hasn't won a game since February, and his March/April GAA hovers near 5.00. Nikita Kucherov WILL get his 100th assist. If my editors are listening, yes, I'm predicting Tampa to win their first-round playoff series.

Main course:  Detroit Red Wings @ Toronto Maple Leafs, AND Boston Bruins @ Pittsburgh Penguins

These games are at 7:00 and 8:00 pm Eastern, and will provide some of us a split screen or channel flipping opportunity. (I'll be on the glass at the PPG arena, hopefully without a voice at all by the third period.) Let's dig into the stars and the unsung value picks. Auston Matthews ($10,100) is a great bet to post his 69th goal (-160), or even two points (+110), but the Wings' defense will clamp down more desperately than they showed in Pittsburgh on Thursday. Dylan Larkin ($6800) is the engine that runs Detroit, they can't and won't win without his lead. But also – think Tyler Bertuzzi ($5200) for the Leafs, and David Perron ($3100) for the Wings. These are the pre-playoff games where experience and determination – spelled G R I T – matter. Perron has six points and 15 shots in the past six games, and Bertuzzi six points and 14 over that same span. In net, I'll play Ilya Samsonov ($8000), 14-3-1 in the last two months. His 5-6 loss to New Jersey this week should be a wake-up call, and I'd play Toronto to win.

An hour later, the Sidney Crosby ($8500) show begins. Both in success and (rarely) failure, the brightest spotlight follows Sid all over the ice. The Penguins' captain, when it's mattered most, has posted 20 points in ten games – 18 at even strength. Imagine if Pittsburgh could figure out their power play. Bryan Rust ($6900), if my team can't afford Crosby, has 13 points, 28 shots, and 11 blocks in those same last 10. It's Erik Karlsson's ($5700) 1000th NHL game – he had the overtime game-winner Thursday – but I'd choose Kris Letang ($4800) as his betting equal, for less invested.

Let's not overlook the Bruins. They're in a dogfight to win the Atlantic Division, and then face…. oops, the Lightning!  (Remember my playoff pick above – Tampa isn't a tough out, they're not GOING out.) The Bruins' David Pastrnak ($9600) is the show. In seven games (Boston 5-2-0), "Pasta" has eight points, and the rest of the team has managed only eleven other markers.  Pavel Zacha ($5000), with nine points over that stretch, now has 56 for the season, one off from his career high set last year. Danton Heinen ($3500, five points in four games) was worth coach Jim Montgomery moving him to the top line, and a value pick to balance some of the top names.

Pacific Time Zone

The late games are both haves and specifically the have-nots of Anaheim and San Jose. The freeway matchup between the Kings and Ducks had me choose at least one winger, Kevin Fiala ($5600). Fiala has seen power-play success this season – 30 of his 71 points have come with the man advantage – and he has eight points in the Kings' past seven games. Up the coast, I chose Brock Faber ($5200), almost certain to be a Calder nominee leading the Wild's defense corps. Faber has apples in three of the last four contests, and San Jose does tend to retrieve the puck from their own net a lot. 

My Lineup

Centers – Crosby and Zacha

Wings – Rust, Fiala, Perron

Defense – Faber and Jake McCabe ($3300)

Goalie – Samsonov

Utility – Juraj Slafkovsky ($4400), quickly becoming the player that Montreal dared to dream.

Side bet – Auston Matthews, two or more points – PLUS the Rangers to win (+233 for the parlay)

Last week, a loss on the DFS, a win on the LA Kings side bet vs. Vancouver.  Mostly a wash. Season: down a massive five bucks, and never hit the big payoff I'd hit last season (yet). 

This will be my last regular season article. I may find a weekday to put out a combo DFS plus props wagering piece during the playoffs, maybe Wednesdays? I wish everyone a great weekend.