This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's featured NHL slate begins at 7:00 p.m. EDT and includes six games. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
The Avalanche and Golden Knights are both heavily favored in their Western Division home tilts against the Coyotes and Kings, respectively, followed closely by the Flyers on the road against a Sabres team that has gone a shootout-era record 18 games without a win. The Philadelphia-Buffalo game has the night's second-highest over under at 6.0 goals, trailing only Toronto-Winnipeg (6.5), while the remaining four games — also consisting of Wild-Sharks and Flames-Canucks in addition to the lopsided Western Division clashes — sit at 5.5.
GOALIES
Philipp Grubauer, COL vs. ARI ($8,400): Grubauer should be worth paying up for against Arizona's bottom-10 offense, which is averaging just 2.54 goals per game. The German netminder has a 21-7-1 record, 1.74 GAA and .929 save percentage, including a 9-0-1 record in his last 10 decisions and just 10 goals allowed over that span.
Marc-Andre Fleury, VGK vs. LA ($8,200): Fleury is enjoying a spectacular season, with a 17-7-0 record, 2.06 GAA and .927 save percentage. That success should continue against a slumping Kings team that's averaging just 2.76 goals per game and mustered only one against Robin Lehner in Monday's meeting between these teams. Most lineups will likely rely on either Grubauer or Fleury in net.
Martin Jones, SJ vs. MIN ($7,400): Jones has been hot recently, which makes him an enticing bargain option if he gets the nod in the Sharks' net. His 4-3 shootout triumph Monday against Minnesota brought Jones' record over the past six starts to 4-1-1, and he has allowed only 13 goals on 200 shots over that stretch for a .935 save percentage. The recent success gives Jones a high ceiling, but his floor remains low given his general poor play over the past three seasons.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Nathan MacKinnon, COL vs. ARI ($9,000): MacKinnon has been merely great for much of this season, but he has returned to being flat out dominant over the last 10 games, posting a 5-11-16 line and 37 shots. Clearing the salary to fit the superstar center should pay off against a visiting Coyotes team that's missing top two goalies Darcy Kuemper and Antti Raanta due to lower-body injuries.
Kevin Fiala, MIN at SJ ($5,600): With a goal and an assist Monday in San Jose, Fiala reached double digits in goals, putting him one shy of the team lead shared by Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek. Fiala also leads the Wild with 87 shots despite having missed three of the team's 33 games. He heated up at the end of last season with 14 goals in his last 18 games, so maybe Monday's performance marked the beginning of another late-season surge for the 24-year-old winger.
Alex Galchenyuk, TOR at WPG ($2,900): After a tumultuous few years on and off the ice, Galchenyuk seems to be finding his game again for the Maple Leafs. He has three points in five games since being called up and has been skating on a highly skilled second line alongside John Tavares and William Nylander. The former 30-goal scorer has the skills to keep this up, so this could be a great buy-low opportunity on Galchenyuk.
Mark Scheifele, WPG vs. TOR ($6,200): With two goals and an assist in Monday's win over the Flames, Scheifele increased his team-high point total to 43 in 36 games and pulled into a tie for second in goals with Nikolaj Ehlers (15), trailing only Kyle Connor's 17. The high-end first line center doesn't have an exorbitant valuation for this matchup with Toronto, making him an enticing option, especially since the Maple Leafs are without top goalie Frederik Andersen (lower body).
Nils Hoglander, VAN vs. CGY ($3,400): Hoglander has Vancouver's lone goal over the past two games, and the affordable top-line left wing has been held off the scoresheet only once in the past five games. He's a nice value option to round out the lineup if you're looking to fit in some of the night's pricier options.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Flyers at Sabres
Sean Couturier (C - $6,500), James van Riemsdyk (W - $6,500), Travis Konecny (W - $5,200)
Buffalo's winless over its last 18 games, so expect most lineups to be populated by Flyers skaters, led by this top line. Van Riemsdyk leads the team with 31 points in 34 games, and his 13 goals are just one behind Joel Farabee's team-leading total. Couturier has been Philadelphia's most productive player on a per-game basis, as his 10-16-26 line in 23 appearances tops the team in both goals per game (0.43) and points per game (1.13). Konecny has a respectable 7-14-21 line in 28 games, but he's capable of even more, as evidenced by last season's team-high totals in both goals (24) and points (61) in 66 games.
Golden Knights vs. Kings
Chandler Stephenson (C - $4,400), Max Pacioretty (W - $8,000), Mark Stone (W - $7,000)
The wheels have fallen off for the Kings after a surprisingly strong start, as they're 2-6-0 in their last eight games. Vegas' excellent top line should help add to Los Angeles' recent misery. Stone leads the team in points with a 12-28-40 line through 32 games, while Pacioretty's second in points and first in goals with an 18-15-33 line in 31 games. Stephenson has been a strong value play between the two prolific wingers throughout the season, contributing a solid 7-13-20 line.
Flames at Canucks
Elias Lindholm (C - $5,700), Matthew Tkachuk (W - $5,900), Josh Leivo (W - $2,500)
Both of these teams have struggled lately, with the Flames dropping five of six and the Canucks going winless in their last three games. Vancouver has been outscored 13-5 during its slump and is allowing 3.22 goals per game overall, so perhaps the extinguished Flames offense will take this opportunity to spark back up. Lindholm leads the team with 31 points through 37 games, while Tkachuk's tied with Johnny Gaudreau for second with 27. Tkachuk in particular is likely ticketed for improvement considering his 8.5 shooting percentage is a career low. Leivo has failed to replicate last season's small-sample success (7-12-19 in 36 games), but perhaps facing the Canucks team with which he achieved that success will motivate him to capitalize on his favorable top-line deployment here.
DEFENSEMEN
Cale Makar, COL vs. ARI ($5,700): Makar has thrived in seven games since returning from an upper-body injury, posting a 2-6-8 line while putting 20 pucks on net. The highly skilled defenseman has played at nearly a point per game pace for his career (72 in 79), so his recent success is sustainable and likely to continue against a Coyotes team that's allowing the fourth-most fantasy points to defensemen.
Ivan Provorov, PHI at BUF ($5,200): If you're stacking Flyers against the lowly Sabres, make sure to lock in Provorov. The team's top defenseman plays in all situations, and Provorov has fired a remarkable 19 shots on net in his last three games. His efforts were rewarded with a goal and an assist in Monday's win over Buffalo, and a similar effort could be in the cards here.
Brandon Montour, BUF vs. PHI ($3,600): With trade rumors swirling around him, Montour's doing his best to up his value and hopefully earn a ticket out of the dumpster fire in Buffalo. His goal in Monday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Flyers was Montour's fifth point in the past seven games, and he has a nice opportunity to add to that recent success here considering Philadelphia's allowing 3.56 goals per game — second-most in the league.
Erik Karlsson, SJ vs. MIN ($4,100): Karlsson delivered a throwback performance in Monday's win over the Wild, potting two goals to improve his season line to 4-9-13 in 30 appearances. Outbursts like Monday's are no longer common for the four-time 70-point scorer, but Karlsson could still easily outperform his $4,100 valuation while he's hot.
Morgan Rielly, TOR at WPG ($5,300): This game's expected to feature plenty of offense, and Rielly's likely to get in on the action. He has 25 points through 35 games and has topped 22 minutes of ice time in nine of the past 10.
