This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
There are five games on the NHL schedule after 7:00 p.m. EST on Friday. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
The obvious teams to build around Friday are the Bruins in Arizona and Penguins at home against Detroit, but the other three games all offer interesting storylines. The Avalanche are substantial favorites in Chicago, but Colorado will be without superstar Nathan MacKinnon, whose nose was broken on a hit by Boston's Taylor Hall on Wednesday. Washington-Dallas is a toss-up, but keep in mind that the Capitals have won just three of their last 11 games while the Stars are 14-4-1 on home ice. Finally, Wild-Rangers will have extra significance to the New York faithful, as Henrik Lundqvist's number will be going up into the rafters at Madison Square Garden prior to puck drop.
GOALIES
Tuukka Rask, BOS at ARI ($8,500): A trip to Arizona seems like a natural spot to give Rask a start as the veteran netminder attempts to reacclimate to the NHL. He has struggled since returning from hip surgery with a 2-2-0 record, 4.28 GAA and .884 save percentage, but facing an Arizona offense that's scoring just 2.24 goals per game should give Rask some confidence. If the Bruins give Linus Ullmark ($8,500) the nod, that's all the better, as you can safely build around Ullmark in this favorable matchup without the same concerns over recent form that Rask has.
Darcy Kuemper, COL at CHI ($8,400): Kuemper's living up to his lofty expectations in his first year with the Avalanche, as he boasts a 20-5-1 record, 2.64 GAA and .913 save percentage. He should build on those robust numbers against a Chicago offense that's averaging only 2.42 goals per game – fourth-fewest across the NHL.
Braden Holtby, DAL vs. WAS ($7,500): Holtby's on a three-game winning streak, and the most recent of those games was by far his best performance in that stretch, as he set aside 36 of 37 shots in New Jersey on Tuesday. Given Dallas' strong play at home and Washington's recent struggles, Holtby – who has recently reestablished himself as the Stars' top netminder over Jake Oettinger – is an intriguing value option in net against his former team.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Nazem Kadri, COL at CHI ($6,900): Kadri's expected to hop up on the top line with MacKinnon sidelined. Even without the luxury of skating between Colorado's top two wingers for most of the season, Kadri's having a career year, as he ranks fifth league-wide in points with a 16-39-55 line. The sky's the limit for him on a line with Mikko Rantanen ($7,700) and Gabriel Landeskog ($6,200) against a Blackhawks team that gives up 3.28 goals per game.
Joe Pavelski, DAL vs. WAS ($6,500): Pavelski's been on fire for a while. He's been held off the scoresheet entirely only once in his last 14 appearances, and Tuesday in New Jersey marked his third performance with at least four points over that stretch. In the last five games alone, Pavelski has a 3-7-10 line. His 48 points in 40 games have him on pace to top the 90-point mark at age 37.
Evgeni Malkin, PIT vs. DET ($6,000): Whether you deploy him on his own or as part of a larger Pittsburgh stack, Malkin's a strong choice against a Red Wings team that's allowing 3.40 goals per game. The star center has a six-game point streak rolling, and he potted Pittsburgh's only goal in Thursday's 2-1 overtime loss to Seattle.
Mats Zuccarello, MIN at NYR ($5,700): This will be an emotional night for a number of Rangers, but the same will be true for Zuccarello, who was Lundqvist's closest friend during their time together on Broadway. The diminutive winger will likely have a bit of extra motivation on the night that Lundqvist's number gets retired, and it's not like Zuccarello needs that motivation to find the scoresheet given his recent success. Zucc comes into this one riding a five-game multi-point streak and nine-game point streak, having totaled a 4-12-16 line over his last nine appearances.
Barclay Goodrow, NYR vs. MIN ($2,800): With the Rangers banged up at forward, Goodrow's getting an opportunity to skate with Artemi Panarin and Ryan Strome on the second line, and the affordable winger's making the most of his move up the lineup. Goodrow has managed to light the lamp in each of the last two games while throwing 10 pucks on net over that span, and he'll likely continue to benefit from his linemates' tremendous playmaking ability as long as he's deployed in a top-six role.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Bruins at Coyotes
Erik Haula (C - $3,600), David Pastrnak (W - $7,900), Taylor Hall (W - $4,900)
The Bruins' Perfection line has been broken up for a while now to provide some more balance at even strength, and Pastrnak has elevated the production of the entire second line as intended. Pasta himself has been excellent over the past 10 games, with an 11-5-16 line. Hall spent most of his last game skating away from challenges by Avalanche players incensed with his late, high hit that injured MacKinnon, but he was producing at a point-per-game pace over the 13 contests prior to that dud. Haula has been a reliable source of value at his modest price for a while now, with a 3-7-10 line in his last 13 games. This trio should continue to produce against a Coyotes team that's surrendering 3.76 goals per game. As is the case offensively, only the Canadiens have been worse than the Coyotes on defense.
Penguins vs. Red Wings
Sidney Crosby (C - $7,700), Jake Guentzel (W - $7,200), Bryan Rust (W - $6,800)
The Kraken managed to cool off Pittsburgh's top line Thursday, with the exception of a Rust assist, but a Red Wings team that's surrendered 17 goals in its last three games will be hard-pressed to match that success. Despite the recent dud, this trio has still been immensely productive, both throughout the season and more recently. Guentzel leads the Penguins in both goals and points with a 21-19-40 line over 37 contests. Crosby's been closing the gap with a 6-4-10 line in his last seven games and now boasts an 11-23-34 line in 31 appearances overall. Rust's the hottest of the three, with an 8-11-19 output in nine games since the calendar flipped to 2022.
Red Wings at Penguins
Pius Suter (C - $3,400), Tyler Bertuzzi (W - $5,000), Robby Fabbri (W - $3,000)
This will likely be a high-scoring affair, as Pittsburgh played Tristan Jarry on Thursday, which means struggling backup Casey DeSmith (3-3-1 with a 3.58 GAA and .886 save percentage) is likely to occupy the home net for this one. Detroit's hottest line of late should offer excellent bang for the buck given the circumstances. Bertuzzi's tied with Dylan Larkin for the team lead in both goals (20) and points (38), but he's needed just 35 games to reach those totals – three games fewer than Larkin. That production includes a 5-9-14 line in Bertuzzi's last eight games, and Bertuzzi has lit the lamp 11 times in his last 14 appearances if you stretch back further. Suter has managed to light the lamp in two of his last three games and has 12 shots in the past four contests, while Fabbri has a 3-2-5 line over his last five games.
DEFENSEMEN
Devon Toews, COL at CHI ($5,000): Toews is often overlooked because he plays on the same defense corps as Cale Makar, but his 8-24-32 line is outstanding in its own right, as Toews is one of just six defensemen around the league that has played in at least five games and is averaging at least a point per game. He's a bargain at $5,000 regardless of matchup, and the lottery-bound Blackhawks aren't exactly imposing opponents.
Jacob Trouba, NYR vs. MIN ($4,800): Adam Fox left Thursday's game in Columbus due to an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day. If Fox isn't ready to return one day later, Trouba should take his spot on New York's highly effective top power-play unit. Taking on that role would further raise Trouba's ceiling, and he already provides a high floor thanks to his well-rounded contributions. Just look at Trouba's stats over the last three games – two goals, one assist, 14 shots and 10 blocks.
Moritz Seider, DET at PIT ($4,700): If you want to commit to exploiting the favorable matchup against DeSmith, then Seider's worth consideration as Detroit's best source of offense from the blue line. The rookie has notched double-digit fantasy points in five of his last six games and boasts a 4-23-27 line through his first 43 NHL games.
Alex Goligoski, MIN at NYR ($2,900): Goligoski has posted consecutive two-assist games, and he quietly has 25 points in 33 games this season, which is a 62-point pace prorated to 82 games. The veteran blueliner's unlikely to maintain this lofty level of production, but the reward outweighs the risk at just $2,900.
