This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Tuesday's NHL slate features 11 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
Most of the games in this slate should be highly competitive, but there are still certain situations to target and no shortage of value to be found if you know where to look. Tuesday's largest favorites are the Panthers at home against the Devils, followed by the Flames in Buffalo and Maple Leafs versus the Rangers, even though both teams in the latter matchup come in on four-game winning streaks. Other popular teams to choose from should be the Golden Knights (vs. Detroit), Oilers (vs. Winnipeg) and Blue Jackets (in Arizona).
GOALIES
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at PHI ($7,700): Given Vasilevskiy's excellent play and the Flyers' scoring struggles, he's a tremendous option at $7,700. Vasilevskiy's 7-2-3 with a 2.20 GAA and .924 save percentage, and he hasn't taken a regulation loss in any of his past eight outings. Meanwhile, the Flyers haven't scored more than two goals in any of their past six games, and they've topped that mark only once in their last nine.
Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA vs. NJ ($8,700): Bobrovsky has already captured the Vezina Trophy twice as the league's top goalie, and he's the early front-runner to win the award for a third time. After previously struggling since joining the Panthers, Bobrovsky has flipped the script with a 7-0-2 record, 1.78 GAA and .942 save percentage. If he's given the nod in Florida's net, Bobrovsky should be worth paying up for against a visiting Devils team that's won only one of its last four road games.
Elvis Merzlikins, CLS at ARI ($8,200): The Coyotes just doubled their win total by beating the Blues on Tuesday, but Arizona's still a dreadful 2-13-1 while averaging a league-low 1.63 goals per game. Merzlikins should add to the Coyotes' scoring struggles, as he boasts an impressive 6-2-0 record, 2.49 GAA and .925 save percentage for a Blue Jackets team that's off to a surprisingly strong start.
Cayden Primeau, MON vs. PIT ($7,200): Opposing goalies have had a field day against the scuffling Penguins recently, as Pittsburgh has scored only five goals on 102 shots during its three-game losing streak. Montreal's goalie of choice will be an appealing value play given that context, especially if it's Primeau. In addition to being $200 cheaper than either Jake Allen (concussion) or Samuel Montembeault, Primeau's coming off a solid performance in a losing cause in his season debut, as he stopped 31 of 34 Rangers shots in Tuesday's 3-2 defeat.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Leon Draisaitl, EDM vs. WPG ($9,100): Draisaitl's two-goal performance in Tuesday's road loss to the Jets was his third two-goal game in the past four, and he has league highs in both goals (17) and points (33) through 15 games, as the German continues to track towards a historic season. Building around Draisaitl has been an excellent strategy all season long, and that should continue to be the case here.
Sidney Crosby, PIT at MON ($7,400): If you can't afford one of today's top centers in Draisaitl, you can settle for one of the top pivots from years past in Crosby. A wrist injury and stint in COVID-19 protocols have limited Crosby to three appearances, but he just logged his first point of the season, which could get him rolling heading into this matchup with the underwhelming Canadiens. Crosby's minus-6 rating isn't pretty, but if there was ever a time for the 10-time 80-point scorer to turn things around, it's a matchup with a 4-12-2 Canadiens team that's been outscored 61-38 this season.
Troy Terry, ANH vs. CAR ($5,500): Terry just keeps racking up points but remains priced like a player who isn't on a 15-game point streak. He ranks fifth in goals (11) and is tied for fourth in points (21) among all players league-wide, yet Terry isn't even valued among the top 20 healthy wingers in this slate.
Jakub Voracek, CLS at ARI ($4,600): Voracek's point streak isn't nearly as impressive as Terry's, but eight points in six games, with at least one in each, is nothing to sneeze at. Despite his recent success and point-per-game pace through 13 contests overall, Voracek still costs only $4,600 for this matchup with a Coyotes team that's allowing a league-high 3.81 goals per game. You'll be hard-pressed to find a better bargain across this large slate.
Alex Kerfoot, TOR vs. NYR ($3,200): Kerfoot has been a key component in Toronto's four-game winning streak, racking up five points over that span. Locking in the affordable winger gives you exposure to the success of his highly skilled linemates without having to pony up $7,200 for John Tavares or $7,500 for William Nylander.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Flames at Sabres
Elias Lindholm (C - $6,400), Matthew Tkachuk (W - $6,700), Johnny Gaudreau (W - $5,400)
Calgary's top line has been among the league's most productive lines, and another strong performance should be forthcoming from this trio against a Sabres team that has fallen back as expected after a strong start. Buffalo's just 2-5-1 in its last eight games, needing 33-save and 45-save robberies from Dustin Tokarski in net to capture their two wins over that stretch. The Flames will tilt the ice towards Buffalo's net, and these players' high skill level should allow them to finish off their chances. Lindholm leads Calgary in both goals (eight) and points (17) through 16 games, and he's showing no signs of slowing down, with a 1-2-3 line and 13 shots over the past two games. Gaudreau's a nice value play as this line's most affordable member considering he's just one point back of Lindholm's team-leading total. Tkachuk has a 7-5-12 line overall, including a 6-4-10 line in the past 11 games following a slow start.
Panthers vs. Devils
Sam Bennett (C - $5,100), Jonathan Huberdeau (W - $5,700), Anthony Duclair (W - $4,500)
The Panthers will have to shuffle their forward lines for a while with Aleksander Barkov sidelined by Scott Mayfield's dirty knee-on-knee hit, but Florida has the forward depth to weather the star center's absence, and this trio is more than capable of stepping up in the meantime. Huberdeau is only two points shy of Barkov's team-leading total with a 5-10-15 line in 16 games, including a goal in each of the past two. Duclair's hot on his heels with an 8-6-14 line. Bennett has played 22 regular-season games for the Panthers since being acquired in a trade with Calgary, and he's produced a spectacular 11-13-24 line in those contests. The visiting Devils have benefited from an easy early schedule, but they're just 1-6 against teams with a higher points percentage.
Golden Knights vs. Red Wings
Chandler Stephenson (C - $4,800), Mark Stone (W - $5,300), Evgenii Dadonov (W - $3,700)
Vegas' top line still isn't complete with Max Pacioretty (lower body) out of the lineup, but having Stone back in the fold certainly helps its outlook. All Stone does is rack up points, with five in four appearances this season and 61 in 55 games last year. Stephenson had to carry the load without either of his usual wingers for a while, but he has maintained a point-per-game pace nonetheless, and Stephenson's 5-11-16 line includes six points in the four games Stone has played. Dadonov's no Pacioretty, but he's filling in admirably with a 3-1-4 line and 15 shots in his last four games. A visiting Red Wings team that's allowing 3.33 goals per game is unlikely to keep this trio in check.
DEFENSEMEN
Zach Werenski, CLS at ARI ($7,100): Werenski's finally starting to get rewarded for all the chances he generates. The 2019-20 league leader in goals by defensemen (20) has a goal and an assist over the past two games after going without a point over the previous five despite totaling 24 shots on net, including at least three in every game. He should continue to put plenty of rubber on net in Arizona, and Werenski has a good chance of marking the scoresheet for a third consecutive game given the Coyotes' inability to keep the puck out of their net.
Erik Karlsson, SJ at STL ($5,400): Karlsson has picked up a point in each of his two appearances since clearing the league's COVID-19 protocols and boasts a 3-5-8 line in nine appearances overall this season, showing he still has some of the magic that made him one of the league's most productive scorers from the blue line in his prime. He'll have a nice opportunity to add to his point total against a reeling Blues team that's dropped four games in a row, most recently suffering an embarrassing 3-2 home loss to the Coyotes on Tuesday. If you're okay with sacrificing a higher ceiling in order to secure a higher floor, the two-way prowess of fellow Sharks blueliner Mario Ferraro ($4,100) could be preferable to Karlsson's offensive potential.
Nate Schmidt, WPG at EDM ($4,500): Schmidt's quietly enjoying a strong season on the Jets' blue line. He has a 1-10-11 line in 15 games and also chips in noticeable totals in secondary stats, with multiple shots on goal in five of the past seven games and eight blocked shots over the past four. Throw in Schmidt's prominent role on the power play -- six of his 11 points have come with the extra man -- and you have a solid mid-tier value play at $4,500.
Scott Perunovich, STL vs. SJ ($3,000): Perunovich is a low-risk, high-reward play on the blue line. He didn't look out of place in his NHL debut Tuesday, ranking fourth among Blues defensemen with 18:26 of ice time. Prior to getting called up, the 23-year-old defenseman was dominating AHL competition with 20 points in just 12 games.
