This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
On the eve of Halloween, the NHL is treating us to four games in the evening (but, sadly, relegating the Devils to an afternoon affair). Your DFS winnings Sunday could buy you deeply-discounted candy Tuesday, so let's get to the recommendations!
SLATE PREVIEW
The Maple Leafs and Rangers are both on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back against rested teams. Meanwhile, the Blackhawks host the Wild, and both teams are on a back-to-back. I'm expecting a high-scoring day of hockey Sunday with the teams, and goalies, in line to be in action.
GOALIES
Logan Thompson, VGK vs. WPG ($8,200): Thompson has given Vegas zero reason to sweat Robin Lehner's injury. He has an 1.69 GAA and .943 save percentage through six starts. In his career, he has a .921 save percentage. Winnipeg is not a bad offense – 16th in goals per game since the start of last season – but I like Thompson at home.
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG at VGK ($7,200): Alright, here's the thing. There is literally no other goalie in line to start Sunday I want any part of. I'm not going with Marc-Andre Fleury or Alex Stalock when their teams are on the second leg of a back-to-back. The Leafs will be trotting out Erik Kallgren, while the Rangers are going to be stuck with Jaroslav Halak. Even against the Coyotes I don't want Halak on the road. Speaking of Arizona, there is no circumstance where I ever would roster Karel Vejmelka. The same goes for John Gibson against Toronto. By process of elimination, and also his .925 save percentage to start the season, Hellebuyck is the only other viable option.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Mats Zuccarello, MIN at CHI ($7,500): It's easy to forget Zuccarello had 79 points in 70 games last year. He's making us remember with 12 points in eight contests to start this season, including eight with the extra man. Since the start of last season, the Blackhawks have the 25th-ranked penalty kill. They also have a goalie in Stalock with a career .909 save percentage.
Travis Boyd, ARI vs. NYR ($3,500): Boyd moved to the desert last season in search of opportunity, and he found it. He added almost six minutes of ice time per night and responded with 17 goals and 18 assists. This year he's centering Arizona's top line and has averaged 4:07 per game on the power play as well. The Rangers have a great primary goalie, but one of the NHL's worst backups. Over the last three seasons, the 37-year-old Halak has a .901 save percentage.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Ducks vs. Maple Leafs
Trevor Zegras (C - $4,700), Troy Terry (W - $5,400), Max Comtois (W - $2,500)
With Matt Murray's injury, the Leafs had to turn to Ilya Samsonov as their top goalie. Samsonov has held up, but there is a trickle-down effect to a goalie injury. Namely, Kallgren is now the backup. In his career, Kallgren has a 3.34 GAA and .885 save percentage. Anaheim may be rebuilding, but there is enough talent to provide a first line worth stacking.
Zegras only has one assist so far, but he has four goals in eight games. He's coming off a season with 38 assists to go with 23 goals, so the playmaking should bear fruit soon enough. Terry has slowed down after a torrid start, but nine points in eight games is still nine points in eight games. That does include three points and 12 shots on net over his last five contests, so it's not like he's ground to a halt or anything. Comtois has been added to the first line recently, perhaps to try and get him going. He doesn't have as much upside, but he did have 16 goals in 55 games two seasons ago.
Rangers at Coyotes
Vincent Trocheck (C - $6,100), Artemi Panarin (W - $7,200), Alexis Lafreniere (W - $3,500)
Even on the second leg of a back-to-back, it's always nice to see the Coyotes on the schedule. Since the start of last season, Arizona is last in the league in GAA and shots on net allowed per game. This season, Vejmelka has a 4.41 GAA and .884 save percentage, and he's the Coyotes' primary starting goalie. Mullett Arena is playing home to a pretty brutal hockey team, one worth targeting in a stack basically any chance you get.
Trocheck has been extremely active as New York's number-two center. He has 33 shots on goal through nine games, plus nine points for good measure. Panarin started the season on a six-game point streak, and while that has ended, it's not like he won't start racking up the points again. He had 96 points in 75 games last year, including 37 with the extra man. Unsurprisingly, the Coyotes have a bottom-five penalty kill since the start of last season. Lafreniere has had some brutal puck luck, but if he remains active, this is the kind of matchup that can turn things around. He has 27 shots on net through nine games, and the one-time first-overall pick had 19 goals with a 17.3 shooting percentage last season, so he's shown he can score.
DEFENSEMEN
Shayne Gostisbehere, ARI vs. NYR ($6,900): Like Boyd, Gostisbehere went west last season in search of a career boost. Sure enough, he responded with 51 points, including 19 with the extra man, in his first campaign as a Coyote. This year he is scoring hot, with eight points in seven games, including five on the power play. Now, his 16.7 shooting percentage is going to regress, but the fact he's averaged 4:18 per game with the extra man is huge. The Rangers will be trotting out Halak, and this season he has a 3.69 GAA and .867 save percentage.
Seth Jones, CHI vs. MIN ($6,200): Jones is called upon to be quite active for the Blackhawks on defense, and like last season when he had 51 points and 194 shots on net, he's been up to it. Playing over 25 minutes a night, Jones may only have four points, but he's put 22 shots on net and blocked 21 shots. Over the last two seasons – including his brief stint with the Blackhawks – Fleury has a 2.99 GAA and .906 save percentage.
