This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
There are 11 NHL games scheduled Thursday after 7:00 p.m. EST. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective DraftKings DFS lineup. All game lines and odds used below come courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are plenty of clear favorites to build around Thursday. The Panthers (vs. Montreal), Maple Leafs (in Arizona), Blues (vs. Chicago) and Islanders (vs. Columbus) all have favorable matchups. Five of Thursday's games have an over/under of 6.5 goals, with Red Wings-Sabres, Canucks-Jets and Flyers-Sharks joining the Panthers and Islanders games.
GOALIES
Jordan Binnington, STL vs. CHI ($8,300): The streaky Binnington has been underwhelming overall this season at 12-11-3 with a 3.20 GAA and .895 save percentage, but he's shown significant upside with a pair of shutouts and has an ideal matchup Thursday. St. Louis will host a Chicago team that brings up the rear league-wide with just 2.27 goals per game.
Ilya Sorokin, NYI vs. CLS ($8,200): Sorokin has held three of his last four opponents to no more than one goal, improving his ratios to a sparkling 2.32 GAA and .926 save percentage, though his record is a pedestrian 12-11-1. Goal support shouldn't be a problem against a Blue Jackets team that's allowing 4.06 goals per game, and Sorokin can usually be relied upon to take care of business in his crease.
Pheonix Copley, LA at COL ($7,300): Copley stayed hot coming out of the holiday break, defeating the Golden Knights 4-2 on Tuesday for his fifth consecutive win. Facing Colorado isn't easy, but with key contributors including Nathan MacKinnon, Valeri Nichushkin and Gabriel Landeskog sidelined by various injuries, Copley's catching the Avalanche at the right time.
Sam Montembeault, MON at FLA ($6,900): Montembeault has been inconsistent, but he's been strong when on his game, quietly going 6-3-2 while allowing two or fewer goals in every win. The backup goalie should get the nod after Jake Allen lost in Tampa Bay on Wednesday, and he'll take on a Florida team that allows the most fantasy points to goalies by virtue of massive shot volume. While the Panthers lead the league in shots per game at 36.7 percent, their conversion rate is mediocre, as they rank 13th with 3.23 goals per game.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Matthew Tkachuk, FLA vs. MON ($7,700): Tkachuk's 15-25-40 line has him easily leading the Panthers in points, as Carter Verhaeghe ($5,700) is second with 28, though Verhaeghe actually leads the team with 17 goals. Both productive wingers are poised for success at home against a Canadiens team that's playing its second game in as many nights after falling to 1-5-1 in its last seven games.
Travis Konecny, PHI at SJ ($6,700): This game is expected to be far from a goaltending masterclass. Philadelphia's situation is outlined below, while the Sharks will go with Kaapo Kahkonen, who's 3-7-2 with a 3.83 GAA and .872 save percentage. Konecny should add to Kahkonen's struggles, as the winger leads the team in goals (15) and points (32) despite dressing for only 29 of a possible 35 games. He's showing no signs of slowing down with a 3-3-6 line during his current three-game point streak.
Anders Lee, NYI vs. CLS ($5,100): The Islanders' balanced offense makes it tough to pinpoint which players will produce on any given night, but Lee has consistently generated chances recently. He has at least three shots on goal in nine of the past 10 games, totaling 40 over that span. The chances have started to go in for him recently, as Lee has a 2-3-5 line in his last three games. Lee's netfront presence is likely to create problems for an underwhelming Columbus defense that's letting up 4.06 goals per game.
J.T. Compher, COL vs. LA ($4,500): Compher continues to play a prominent role for the undermanned Avs, skating over 21 minutes in each of the past 13 games. The center has accumulated a 4-7-11 line over that span, and he should get plenty of opportunities to add to those totals against a Kings team that's allowing 3.39 goals per game.
Michael Rasmussen, DET at BUF ($3,600): Rasmussen continues to thrive in a top-line role, with a 2-4-6 line, 12 shots and five blocks since being moved up. He's a low-risk, high-reward play at $3,600 against a Sabres team that gives up 3.41 goals per game.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Maple Leafs at Coyotes
Auston Matthews (C - $9,000), William Nylander (W - $7,400), Michael Bunting (W - $4,500)
Toronto should have the puck for the vast majority of this game, leading to plenty of scoring chances for the top line. Matthews' 17-23-40 line is actually a disappointment through 35 games, but he's put at least five pucks on net in six of his last eight games, and this would be as good a time as any for his first multi-goal game since Nov. 5. Nylander will be looking to extend a four-game goal streak during which he's mustered a 4-3-7 line, while Bunting's a massive bargain considering he has a goal in five of the last seven games and at least one point in 12 of 14.
Blues vs. Blackhawks
Robert Thomas (C - $4,300), Jordan Kyrou (W - $7,200), Vladimir Tarasenko (W - $5,400)
Kyrou has been red hot recently, lighting the lamp in each of his last four appearances while producing a 7-3-10 line over that span. Thomas has been hard to keep off the scoresheet for longer than that, as the affordable setup man has scored at least one point in 11 of his last 13 games en route to a 4-9-13 line. Tarasenko has heated up recently with a 1-6-7 line in his last four games, and this entire line should keep rolling against a lowly Blackhawks team that's 1-9-0 in its last 10 games, with seven of the losses coming by at least three goals.
Sharks vs. Flyers
Logan Couture (C - $5,800), Timo Meier (W - $8,100), Alexander Barabanov (W - $4,100)
This isn't the first forward trio that springs to mind on a busy night in the NHL, but these guys are capable of carrying your team in a highly favorable matchup. The visiting Flyers plan to deploy Samuel Ersson in net, and Philadelphia has only one win all season in games started by a goalie other than Carter Hart. Ersson allowed five goals on 30 shots to the Hurricanes before being pulled in the third period last week in his only career NHL appearance. Meier tests the goalie on a regular basis, ranking second in the NHL with 165 shots, and the power forward comes in riding a five-game goal streak during which he's accumulated six goals and three assists. Couture ranks second on the team with 14 goals, trailing only Meier's 20, while Barabanov has a solid 3-8-11 line in his last 15 games.
DEFENSEMEN
Noah Dobson, NYI vs. CLS ($6,100): Dobson's riding a three-game point streak, and he's contributed a 10-14-24 line overall, putting him in a tie for second among defensemen in goals. The Blue Jackets are one of two teams allowing more than four goals per game, and Columbus has also surrendered the second-most fantasy points to defensemen, so Dobson's likely to add to his success Thursday.
Josh Morrissey, WPG vs. VAN ($5,800): Morrissey's 6-34-40 line has him second in points among defensemen. He's likely to add to that total on home ice against a Vancouver team that's giving up 3.82 goals per game – third-most in the NHL.
Erik Gustafsson, WAS vs. OTT ($3,900): Keep riding Gustafsson while he's hot. The former 60-point scorer has a 5-4-9 line in his last five games and should continue to get more opportunities while John Carlson (face) recovers.
Mattias Samuelsson, BUF vs. DET ($3,200): Samuelsson has stepped into a much larger role recently on Buffalo's injury-riddled blue line. The 22-year-old Philadelphia native has skated at least 28:30 in each of the past three games while averaging 9.3 fantasy points over that span thanks mostly to 10 blocked shots. As long as he's seeing that much ice time, Samuelsson will be worth a look at his modest valuation.
