This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
There are eight NHL games scheduled after 7:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective DraftKings DFS lineup. All game lines and odds used below are pulled from DraftKings Sportsbook.
SLATE PREVIEW
Most of Tuesday's games are expected to be competitive, but a couple of the later games have heavier favorites. The Kings are Tuesday's largest favorites at home against the rival Ducks, while the Flames are favored in San Jose. The Kraken (vs. St. Louis) and Flyers (vs. Columbus) are also favored in their respective home games. Flames-Sharks and Blues-Kraken are tied for the highest over/under at 6.5 goals, while Rangers-Penguins has the lowest at 5.5.
GOALIES
Pheonix Copley, LA vs. ANH ($8,500): Either LA goalie will be poised for success against the Ducks, whose 2.41 goals per game are tied with the Flyers for second-fewest in the league. Copley has been better than Jonathan Quick ($8,500) since being promoted to the NHL, going 4-1-0 with a 2.71 GAA and .904 save percentage.
Pyotr Kochetkov, CAR vs. NJ ($7,800): You'll be hard pressed to find a goalie hotter than Kochetkov, who is 7-0-1 in his last eight outings with two shutouts in the last four. The Devils were once hotter than any NHL team, but they have come crashing back down to earth, losing five straight in regulation.
Igor Shesterkin, NYR at PIT ($7,400): Shesterkin has been excellent during New York's seven-game winning streak, winning six of those games while limiting the opposition to a single goal on four different occasions. He dominated the Penguins last season, posting a 3-1-0 record, 1.01 GAA and .960 save percentage in the regular season. Even when he struggled against Pittsburgh last postseason, Shesterkin still did enough for the Rangers to ultimately get through in seven games.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at TOR ($7,500): Like Shesterkin, Vasilevskiy has returned to dominant form after a slow start by his lofty standards. Vasilevskiy's 6-2-0 in his last eight starts, and he's allowed more than two goals only once in that stretch. He'll face a Maple Leafs team that's cooled off after a 9-0-3 stretch, suffering consecutive regulation losses since.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Elias Lindholm, CGY at SJ ($6,400): Lindholm's valuation will likely keep climbing, as he's found his game after a slow start. The top-line center has a 5-7-12 line over his last nine games and looks like the player who racked up a 42-40-82 line last season. Lindholm should keep rolling against the Sharks, who give up 3.52 goals per game.
Patrik Laine, CLS at PHI ($6,900): Laine is one of the league's most gifted snipers and should stand out in this battle of Metropolitan Division bottom-dwellers. In 10 games since recovering from an ankle injury, Laine has a 7-4-11 line, and he's reached 20 fantasy points six times over that span.
Martin Necas, CAR vs. NJ ($6,100): Necas is establishing himself as Carolina's go-to guy while Sebastian Aho recovers from a lower-body injury. The 23-year-old Czech leads the team in points with a 13-17-30 line through 31 games, and Necas has totaled 14 shots in the last two games alone. Look for another big game from him against the free-falling Devils.
Robert Thomas, STL at SEA ($4,900): Thomas had been instrumental to the Blues' turnaround after a slow start. He's been held without a point only once in the past 10 games, and the 23-year-old center's closing in on a point per game overall with 30 in 31. If available, Blues winger Jordan Kyrou ($6,800) would be a strong choice to pair with Thomas. Kyrou has a 6-3-9 line in his last three games but got hurt late in Monday's win over the Canucks.
Mason McTavish, ANH at LA ($3,400): McTavish offers significant upside relative to his modest $3,400 valuation against a Kings team that's allowing 3.59 goals per game. The third overall selection in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft has 18 points through 32 games this season, including two assists in each of the last two. With a spot on the top power-play unit, McTavish is set up for further success.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Kings vs. Ducks
Anze Kopitar (C - $5,500), Kevin Fiala (W - $5,900), Adrian Kempe (W - $4,500)
The Kings' top line is poised for a big game against the league-worst Ducks defense, which is surrendering 4.16 goals per game. Fiala leads the Kings in points with a 9-25-34 line through 34 games, and he's hungry for a goal after being blanked on 14 shots over the past three games. Kopitar's 10-18-28 line has him second on the team in points. Kempe has four goals in his last five, so perhaps he's finding the scoring touch from last year's 35-goal season.
Jets vs. Senators
Pierre-Luc Dubois (C - $6,100), Kyle Connor (W - $7,700), Sam Gagner (W - $2,600)
This line offers a nice mix of elite skill and affordability against a Senators team that's bringing up the rear in the Atlantic Division standings. Connor has a 5-9-14 line during his current nine-game point streak, and prolonged stretches of elite offense are the norm for the star winger, who has a 60-68-128 line in 110 games since the start of last season. Dubois is cruising above a point per game as well, as a 7-11-18 output over the past 12 games has him up to 15-20-35 in 31 games overall. Gagner's worth a look at just $2,600 while he's skating on this line, as he's chipped in a 2-1-3 line over the past four games.
Flyers vs. Blue Jackets
Morgan Frost (C - $3,800), James van Riemsdyk (W - $4,100), Owen Tippett (W - $3,700)
This affordable trio currently comprises the top line for the Flyers as coach John Tortorella tries to squeeze all the offense he can out of this limited roster. Whether you use all three or just one, there's value to be found in this group against a Blue Jackets team that's giving up 4.00 goals per game — second-most in the NHL. Van Riemsdyk has been quietly effective when healthy this season, with a 5-6-11 line in 12 games overall, including a 3-3-6 output over the last four. Frost has a 2-3-5 line in that four-game span, while Tippett has added a 1-2-3 line and 12 shots.
DEFENSEMEN
Victor Hedman, TB at TOR ($6,100): Hedman's having a down year by his lofty standards, and the lack of production can be attributed to Mikhail Sergachev bumping him off the top power-play unit. Sergachev has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, and Hedman has capitalized with 32 fantasy points across those two games thanks to three assists, five shots and five blocks. If Sergachev sits again, Hedman should keep producing like the Hedman of old.
Noah Hanifin, CGY at SJ ($5,600): Only three of Hanifin's 14 points have come on the power play, so he's poised to exploit San Jose's five-on-five struggles. The Sharks allow the eighth-most goals per game overall (3.52) despite boasting the league's second-stingiest penalty kill (83.8 percent). Hanifin also complements his point production with a steady stream of shots and blocks.
Drew Doughty, LA vs. ANH ($4,700): If you're stacking Kings against Anaheim, make sure to include Doughty. The seven-time double-digit goal scorer is stuck on one due to a career-low 1.7 shooting percentage, but Doughty has remained productive, as his 18 assists are tied with Kopitar for second on the team.
Justin Schultz, SEA vs. STL ($3,500): Schultz has been a strong source of offense from the blue line, and that should continue against a Blues team that's giving up 3.56 goals per game. He has 17 points in 28 games, including seven from his role as the point man on the top power-play unit.
