This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Friday's NHL slate includes four games after 7:00 p.m. EST. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
All the games are expected to be reasonably competitive, though the Hurricanes and Golden Knights are both clear home favorites against the Predators and Kings, respectively. Panthers-Wild has the highest over/under at 6.5 goals, while Stars-Blackhawks is the lowest at 5.5.
GOALIES
Laurent Brossoit, VGK vs. LA ($8,200): Brossoit's the main man in the Vegas net while Robin Lehner recovers from an upper-body injury, and he's been excellent in two February starts. The first was a shutout win over the Oilers and the second was a tough-luck loss in which he held the powerful Avalanche offense to two goals. Brossoit's strong play should continue against the subpar Los Angeles offense.
Jake Oettinger, DAL at CHI ($7,900): Oettinger's riding a three-game winning streak and coming off arguably his best outing of the season, in which he stopped 46 of 47 shots to hand Colorado a rare loss in its own building. After that outing, taking on a Chicago offense that's scoring just 2.42 goals per game — third-fewest in the league — should be a piece of cake.
Marc-Andre Fleury, CHI vs. DAL ($7,400): On the other side of the Stars-Blackhawks matchup, Fleury's a high-risk, high-reward play at $7,400. He's held two of his last three opponents to a single goal but surrendered five in the other game. If Fleury's on, he'll be a strong value play, but he could also tank your lineup if it's an off night.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Jack Eichel, VGK vs. LA ($7,400): Now that he's had a game to shake off the rust, Eichel should put forth a stronger performance in his second appearance for the Golden Knights. He's still a risky choice coming off neck surgery, but we're talking about a 25-year-old center with a career average of .94 points per game.
Jason Robertson, DAL at CHI ($5,800): Robertson is by far the most affordable member of Dallas' top line, as both of his linemates come in with valuations of $7,000-plus. That difference in valuation isn't supported by their difference in production, as Robertson leads the Stars with 1.18 goals per game, and all three of him, Roope Hintz and Joe Pavelski have potted 21 goals. The 22-year-old winger's showing no signs of slowing down, with five goals in his last five games.
Matt Duchene, NSH at CAR ($5,600): Duchene's six-game point streak was snapped by the Capitals on Tuesday, but he still has a 6-2-8 line in his last seven games and 23-20-43 output in 45 appearances overall. Another productive outing is certainly possible despite the tough matchup.
Kirby Dach, CHI vs. DAL ($2,700): Dach has five points in his last four games, and the 2019 third-overall pick is getting plenty of opportunities with a top-six role and power-play time. He's a low-risk, high-reward play at just $2,700.
Arthur Kaliyev, LA at VGK ($2,500): Like Dach at center, Kaliyev's a nice bargain option on the wing. He has a two-game goal streak going, and Kaliyev's production hasn't been flukey, as he's totaled a robust nine shots over those two games. The Uzbek-born 20-year-old likely won't be available for just $2,500 much longer.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Hurricanes vs. Predators
Sebastian Aho (C - $6,900), Teuvo Teravainen (W - $5,100), Martin Necas (W - $3,600)
Nashville goalie Juuse Saros has struggled coming out of the All-Star break, dropping three consecutive games in regulation while allowing 11 goals. Carolina's top line should pile onto his recent struggles here. Aho leads the team in both goals (21) and points (49) over 44 games, while Teravainen boasts a 12-25-37 line in 42 appearances. The affordable Necas has added an 8-16-24 line, but his 9.6 shooting percentage figures to climb closer to his career 13.4 percent mark at some point.
Wild vs. Panthers
Ryan Hartman (C - $6,000), Kirill Kaprizov (W - $8,000), Mats Zuccarello (W - $6,000)
Minnesota's prolific top line should find itself right at home in a contest that should feature plenty of scoring chances on both ends. Kaprizov has an 11-15-26 line in his last 15 games, and Zuccarello has been right there with him, producing nine multi-point performances in his last 12 appearances. Hartman hasn't matched his linemates' recent form, but he still ranks second on the Wild with 19 goals overall, three back of Kaprizov's team lead.
Panthers at Wild
Sam Bennett (C - $4,900), Jonathan Huberdeau (W - $6,300), Owen Tippett (W - $2,500)
Minnesota's allowed 10 goals in its last two games, and tightening things up defensively won't be easy against a Panthers offense that's averaging a league-best 4.06 goals per game. Huberdeau has led the charge for Florida's prolific offense, as his 66 points in 48 games are two off the league lead shared by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Bennett has frequently been the beneficiary of Huberdeau's playmaking prowess, as Bennett's 21 goals in 38 games have him one behind Aleksander Barkov's team-leading total. Skating on a line with Huberdeau makes Tippett an appealing value play at the minimum valuation, though the 2017 first-round pick's 6-8-14 line is nothing to write home about.
DEFENSEMEN
Tony DeAngelo, CAR vs. NSH ($6,200): DeAngelo has a 2-4-6 line in his last five games and a 9-30-39 line through 40 appearances with the Hurricanes. While nobody will confuse DeAngelo with a shutdown defenseman, he's also providing fantasy value in his own end, having blocked multiple shots in each of the past three games.
Alex Pietrangelo, VGK vs. LA ($6,100): Pietrangelo's floor is as solid as it gets thanks to his varied production. He has a goal, 10 shots and 10 blocked shots in three games since the All-Star break, translating to an average of 15.2 fantasy points.
Jared Spurgeon, MIN vs. FLA ($4,800): The streaky Spurgeon has three points in his last two games. Before that, he went five games without a point, and prior to that drought he had a four-game, seven-point streak. Ride him while he's hot, especially since Spurgeon gets to share the ice with Minnesota's top producers on the No. 1 power-play unit.
John Klingberg, DAL at CHI ($4,000): Klingberg does most of his damage on the power play, and Chicago has an exploitable, bottom-five penalty kill. Fourteen of the Swede's 26 points this season have come with the extra man, while Chicago's denying just 74.5 percent of opposing power-play opportunities.
