This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Thursday's NHL slate begins at 7:00 p.m. EST and features nine games. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
This slate offers a nice mix of familiarity and freshness, with five rematches from Tuesday's action and four new matchups. The Canadiens are by far the largest favorites at home against the Senators, followed by the Maple Leafs versus the Canucks, and those two games also have the night's highest over/under at 6.5, so most lineups will likely lean heavily on Montreal and Toronto. The Hurricanes (at CHI), Avalanche (vs. MIN) and Blues (vs. ARI) are also clear favorites in their respective matchups.
GOALIES
Carey Price, MON vs. OTT ($8,500): Price has earned his status as this slate's most expensive netminder, as he's undefeated in regulation and comes in riding a three-game winning streak during which he has allowed exactly two goals in every game. The Senators' biggest problem has been defense, but they're also near the bottom of the league offensively with 2.40 goals per game.
Philipp Grubauer, COL vs. MIN ($8,200): Grubauer held Minnesota to one goal on 28 shots in Tuesday's win, improving to 7-2-0 with a 1.67 GAA and .934 save percentage. His Colorado team is the largest favorite among the four games with an over/under of just 5.5, narrowly edging out St. Louis.
Jordan Binnington, STL vs. ARI ($8,000): Binnington gave up three goals on 33 shots when these teams met Tuesday, but he still managed to push his personal winning streak to four. His .909 save percentage Tuesday was also Binnington's lowest in his last five outings, so he's locked in heading into this rematch with a bottom-10 Coyotes offense that's scoring only 2.56 goals per game.
Kevin Lankinen, CHI vs. CAR ($7,000): Lankinen continued his strong play in Tuesday's shootout loss in Carolina, stopping 38 of 41 shots through overtime. He has been a revelation in Chicago's net, going 3-1-3 with a 2.09 GAA and .935 save percentage. The Hurricanes put a lot of pucks on net (34.3 shots per game), which allows opposing goalies to post exorbitant save totals when locked in, so Lankinen has tremendous upside relative to his paltry valuation.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Tyler Toffoli, MON vs. OTT ($6,500): Toffoli's off to an outstanding start, leading Montreal's league-best offense in goals (nine) while sharing the team lead in points (13) through 10 games with defenseman Jeff Petry. The offseason addition is showing no signs of slowing down heading into this matchup with the 1-8-1 Senators, having racked up three goals, an assist and 12 shots in his last two games.
J.T. Compher, COL vs. MIN ($3,400): Compher's filling in on Colorado's top line with Nathan MacKinnon sidelined by a lower-body injury. With all the talent surrounding him in that role, Compher's a strong value play regardless of opponent.
Vincent Trocheck, CAR at CHI ($5,900): Trocheck's off to a tremendous start while centering Carolina's second line, with a 5-2-7 line and 26 shots through seven games. That output includes a goal on seven shots Tuesday in Chicago, and he's capable of a repeat effort for the heavily favored Hurricanes.
Carter Verhaeghe, FLA vs. NSH ($4,700): Verhaeghe's thriving on Florida's top line in the early going, with a 5-2-7 line through six games. It's worth riding the affordable winger while he's hot, and the visiting Predators are off to an uncharacteristically slow start defensively, allowing 3.22 goals per game.
Andrew Copp, WPG vs. CGY ($5,300): Who needs Patrik Laine when you have Copp? The previously unheralded 26-year-old winger has thrived since being promoted into Winnipeg's talented top six, producing a 4-6-10 line and 30 shots in his last eight games.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Canadiens vs. Senators
Nick Suzuki (C - $5,700), Josh Anderson (W - $5,000), Jonathan Drouin (W - $4,000)
Montreal surprisingly leads the league in goals per game (4.40) while Ottawa's allowing the most goals per game (4.80), so the Canadiens are primed for another scoring outburst, led by what has been an extremely effective second line. Suzuki has started his sophomore season with a 3-8-11 line through 10 games, including two points apiece in each of the last two. Anderson has a 6-2-8 line and is coming off his second two-goal performance of the campaign, while Drouin is also pushing a point-per-game pace with a 1-8-9 line. These guys rank second through fourth in points among Montreal's forwards behind Toffoli.
Maple Leafs vs. Canucks
Auston Matthews (C - $8,500), Mitch Marner (W - $7,400), Zach Hyman (W - $4,500)
Matthews and Marner have produced despite a revolving door of left wings working alongside them, while Hyman is looking comfortable now that he's back on the top line alongside them. Matthews is top-10 league-wide in both goals (six) and shots (39) despite having played just nine games, while Marner's tied for third in the league with 14 points in 10 games. Hyman's coming off back-to-back 21-goal campaigns and has bounced around the lineup a bit, but he scored a goal on five shots in his last game and is due for a hot steak considering that's his only goal on 24 shots over the last seven games. This highly productive top line should be worth paying up for at home against a Canucks team that's surrendering 3.69 goals per game.
Rangers vs. Capitals
Ryan Strome (C - $3,800), Artemi Panarin (W - $6,800), Kaapo Kakko (W - $2,600)
There's some potential hidden value in this matchup, as the Rangers have scored 10 goals en route to a 2-0-1 record in their last three games, while the Capitals have given up 11 goals in their last three and three-plus goals in eight of 10 games. Panarin has a 3-3-6 line during his active three-game goal streak and a 5-7-12 line in nine games overall. The Russian winger's more than capable of sustaining this pace after posting a 32-63-95 line over 69 games in his first season on Broadway. Strome's off to a slow start after totaling 59 points in 70 appearances last season, but he's starting to find his game and comes into this one riding a three-game point streak. Kakko's back after missing New York's last game due to COVID-19 protocols, and the 2019 second overall pick is worth a flier given his affordability and deployment alongside two established point producers.
DEFENSEMEN
Shea Weber, MON vs. OTT ($5,900): Teammate Jeff Petry ($6,500) is rightfully getting a lot of attention for his early scoring spree, but Weber's production hasn't been too shabby, either. Weber has a 2-5-7 line through 10 games — including six power-play points — and leads the Canadiens with 23:40 average TOI. His usage in all situations allows the nine-time 40-point scorer to carve out a high floor with supporting stats, and this matchup against the defensively challenged Senators gives Weber a lofty ceiling.
Keith Yandle, FLA vs. NSH ($4,900): Yandle's tied for the Panthers team lead in power-play points with five through six games, which is no surprise considering he racked up 60 over the previous two seasons. The puck-moving defenseman's success with the extra man should continue against a 64.9 percent Nashville penalty kill which is the worst in this slate.
Quinn Hughes, VAN at TOR ($5,000): The Canucks will need plenty of offense of their own to keep up with the high-powered Maple Leafs, and Hughes should be a focal point of their offense. He leads the team — and all defensemen league-wide — with 14 points through 13 games, yet is still valued below 21 other defensemen in this slate.
Samuel Girard, COL vs. MIN ($4,400): Girard's coming off his quietest performance against the Wild, but he has still dished out three assists in the last three games — all against Minnesota — while skating over 25 minutes per night on a Colorado blue line beset by injuries. He's a nice value option as long as his outsize role lasts.
