This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
The NHL playoffs are so close! First, though, there is more to be settled in the remainder of the regular season. Saturday is packed to the brim, but it's half afternoon, half evening in terms of the schedule. There are seven NHL games starting at 7 p.m. ET or later. Here are my DFS recommendations. Good luck Saturday!
SLATE PREVIEW
There are four teams on the second leg of a back-to-back Saturday. Nashville and Edmonton are at home, while Anaheim and Minnesota are on the road. However, Minnesota is also facing San Jose, so the DFS impact will actually be fairly limited.
GOALIES
David Rittich, LOS vs. ANA ($8,400): The expectation is that Rittich will pop into the net Saturday for a start. You know, give Cam Talbot a day off when they can afford to. After all, the Ducks have averaged 2.47 goals and 26.8 shots on net per game, and they have been in "playing out the clock" mode since the trade deadline. By the way, Rittich has been no slouch either. He has a 2.21 GAA and .919 save percentage.
Juuse Saros, NAS vs. CLM ($8,200): Not only did Kevin Lankinen start Friday, but the Predators called up Troy Grosenick, a 34-year-old career minor leaguer, to serve as his backup. They wanted to fully let Saros rest. That being said, it would be bold of the Predators to let Grosenick make his first NHL appearance since 2020. Saros has a 2.34 GAA and .920 save percentage over his last 19 games, and the Jackets are 26th in goals per contest. If the Finnish netminder plays, I'd roster him even though his team is closing out a back-to-back. Now, if it's Lankinen or Grosenick, that's a different story.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Matt Boldy, MIN at SAN ($7,100): Boldy's had an up-and-down campaign, but when all is said and done he's here with 27 goals and 37 assists in 72 games. That includes 22 points with the extra man. While the Sharks have managed to get away from the 4.00 threshold, but their 3.87 GAA is still comfortably last in the NHL. The Jackets, in 31st, are at 3.61.
Luke Evangelista, NAS vs. CLM ($3,400): Well, I just mentioned the Blue Jackets rank 31st in GAA. They also rank 31st in shots on net allowed per game for good measure. Evangelista has tallied 16 goals on 167 shots on net this year, but he's also been shooting a lot recently. In fact, he's put at least five shots on goal in each of his last three games.
FORWARD LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Kings vs. Ducks
Anze Kopitar (C - $5,300), Adrian Kempe (W - $6,800), Quinton Byfield (W - $4,000)
Lukas Dostal, with his career .901 save percentage, will be in net for the Ducks. He'll be behind a defense on the second leg of a back-to-back as well. Also, Anaheim ranks 31st on the penalty kill, and two of these Kings are on the top power-play unit.
In his age-36 season, Kopitar has put up 70 points for the second season in a row. The Slovenian also has his fifth season in a row with 20 power-play points, including 23 this year. Kempe has been on fire recently, with 21 points in 16 games. Not only that, but he has a 14.3 shooting percentage across those outings, so he hasn't even been particularly lucky. Byfield is on the second power-play unit now, and he's hit a cold spell. However, he has 53 points this season in his breakthrough campaign, and he still has these two excellent linemates.
DEFENSEMEN
Jakob Chychrun, OTT vs. MON ($6,500): Chychrun has his second 40-point campaign to his name, and he's also put 198 shots on net, a new personal best. He has three multipoint games in his last 10 outings, and twice he has picked up all those points with the extra man. The Canadiens are going to finish 30th in shots on net allowed per contest, and Cayden Primeau, who will be in net, has a career .893 save percentage.
Mike Matheson, MON at OTT ($6,300): Matheson has been one of the under-the-radar fantasy stars on the blue line. He's on a six-game point streak that has given him 60 points this season. That includes 27 points with the extra man. Matheson has also put 180 shots on target while blocking 176 shots as well. The Senators have a 3.44 GAA, and they also have a bottom-five penalty kill for good measure.
