This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's NHL slate features six 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
This medium-sized slate has a little bit of everything, including clashes between star-laden contenders (Toronto-Colorado) and battles between lowly bottom-feeders (Seattle-Detroit, Vancouver-Ottawa). In what's expected to be a night filled with competitive hockey, the Rangers are the largest favorites on home ice against the Flyers, followed by the Golden Knights in Anaheim. The Philadelphia-New York game and Penguins-Oilers matchup are tied for the highest over/under at 6.0 goals.
GOALIES
Igor Shesterkin, NYR vs. PHI ($8,200): The Rangers haven't played since Friday because a COVID-19 outbreak among the Islanders cancelled their would-be matchup, but the better New York team had been rolling prior to this little break with seven wins in eight games. Shesterkin was credited with all but one of those wins, and he hasn't allowed more than two goals in any of his last five starts, while the visiting Flyers have scored more than two goals only twice in their last 12 games.
Jack Campbell, TOR vs. COL ($7,900): The red-hot Campbell has some against-the-grain appeal against the league-best Avalanche offense. He has allowed just seven goals in his last seven games, winning six of those. Against any other opponent, Campbell wouldn't be available for under $8,000.
Thomas Greiss, DET vs. SEA ($7,800): The surging Alex Nedeljkovic has pulled away as the top option in Detroit's net, but Greiss should get the nod as the Red Wings finish off a back-to-back set against a Kraken team that has an underwhelming 3-7-1 road record. Perhaps Detroit's solid recent defensive play in front of Nedeljkovic will carry over with Greiss in the cage.
Filip Gustavsson, OTT vs. VAN ($7,600): With Matt Murray having worn out his welcome in Ottawa, the Senators are ready to hand the reins to their goalie of the future in Gustavsson. The 23-year-old Swede has been inconsistent behind a porous Ottawa defense, but he's 8-6-3 with a 2.79 GAA and .919 save percentage in his brief NHL career, and the visiting Canucks have been the most fantasy-friendly opponents for goalies. Vancouver has seven goals and one win in its last five games.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Mika Zibanejad, NYR vs. PHI ($6,800): Just like last year, Zibanejad's off to a slow start in the goal department, with just four through 20 games. Last season, facing the Flyers helped cure all of his scoring ills, as the former 40-goal scorer mustered a 7-11-18 line in eight meetings with Philadelphia. It's worth seeing whether he can rekindle his hot hand against Philly in the first meeting of the season between these Metropolitan Division rivals.
Jaden Schwartz, SEA at DET ($4,700): After a slow start to his Kraken tenure, Schwartz has produced at a point-per-game pace over the past 16, notching five goals and 11 assists. The top-line winger should continue his recent success against the tired Red Wings and Greiss, who has an uninspiring 3.41 GAA and .901 save percentage.
Nazem Kadri, COL at TOR ($6,900): Just like using Campbell against the Avs is a high-risk, high-reward move, so is turning to Colorado's scorers against such a locked-in goalie. Kadri could be worth the risk, though, as he's in the midst of a remarkable stretch consisting of six multi-point performances and a 4-12-16 line in seven games. He's up to 27 points in 18 games overall, which is tied for fourth league-wide.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, EDM vs. PIT ($5,500): Building around one or both of Edmonton's superstars is almost always a viable strategy — though Pittsburgh's league-best penalty kill could slow them down a bit — but Nugent-Hopkins is a solid value here regardless of whether or not you're pairing him with Connor McDavid ($9,700) or Leon Draisaitl ($9,400). RNH is just four assists shy of McDavid's league-leading total with 18, but the 2011 first-overall pick has been looking to shoot more of late. Both of Nugent-Hopkins' goals have come in the past seven games, and he has outbursts of seven and eight shots over that span as well.
Drake Batherson, OTT vs. VAN ($5,100): Batherson is expected to make his return from COVID-19 protocols, and he still leads the Senators in points despite not having played since Nov. 13. He posted two goals and two assists in his last appearance, bringing his line to 7-9-16 in 14 games. Batherson will have a nice opportunity to pick up where he left off against a Canucks team that's allowed 3.17 goals per game.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Rangers vs. Flyers
Ryan Strome (C - $4,500), Artemi Panarin (W - $7,100), Dryden Hunt (W - $2,500)
The tried and true Strome-Panarin combo has been cooking lately. Strome has an eight-game point streak working (2-8-10), while Panarin has a 4-13-17 line over his past 13 games. The hardworking Hunt is getting an opportunity to skate on this line due to New York's questionable depth at right wing, and he has made the most of the opportunity with a 2-1-3 line in his last four games. Philadelphia has shown improvement after allowing the most goals in the league last season, but the Flyers are hardly a defensive juggernaut, having allowed 25 goals during their six-game losing streak.
Golden Knights at Ducks
Chandler Stephenson (C - $4,700), Max Pacioretty (W - $7,000), Mark Stone (W - $5,200)
Vegas' top line is finally whole again, and it should dominate a Ducks team that's finishing up a back-to-back set. Stephenson held down the fort admirably while his wingers were on the mend, and his 8-12-20 line in 21 games includes an active three-game goal streak. Stone's at a point-per-game pace through nine appearances and had 61 points in 55 games last season. Pacioretty has a 2-3-5 line and 22 shots in four games, including a point in each of his two games since returning from injury. Meanwhile, the Ducks have allowed at least four goals in three of their last four games.
Canucks at Senators
J.T. Miller (C - $5,900), Brock Boeser (W - $5,000), Nils Hoglander (W - $4,600)
The Senators give up the most goals by a substantial margin (3.84 per game), so Vancouver's top offensive players are primed for success here. Miller leads the team with 20 points in 23 games, and his seven goals are tied with Conor Garland ($5,100) for the team lead. Boeser and Hoglander are both slumping, but they won't have a better chance to break out than this matchup with the league-worst Ottawa defense. The former has a career average north of 0.8 points per game, while the latter had a stretch of five goals in six games last month.
DEFENSEMEN
Quinn Hughes, VAN at OTT ($5,600): Hughes is more reliant on offense for his value than the majority of blueliners, but that gives him a high ceiling relative to most players at his position. Look for Hughes to add to his total of 16 points through 22 games — which is tied for the ninth-most points among defensemen — against a Senators team that's allowing the most goals per game league-wide.
Morgan Rielly, TOR vs. COL ($5,300): Rielly can produce value in a variety of ways, and his expansive skill set has been on full display over the past eight games, during which he has scored double-digit fantasy points six times. This strong stretch has included a pair of multi-point performances, three games with five shots and three with multiple blocks. Rielly should add to his recent success against a Colorado club that's allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to defensemen.
Devon Toews, COL at TOR ($4,900): Toews should always be in consideration for a lineup spot as long as he's valued at less than $5,000. The productive blueliner currently has a four-game point streak working, and Toews has a 3-7-10 line through nine appearances this season, along with multiple shots in all but two games.
Vince Dunn, SEA at DET ($3,800): With Mark Giordano in COVID-19 protocols, Dunn's enjoying an even more expansive role on the power play than usual. With three power-play helpers in his last six games, the affordable blueliner is in position to capitalize on Detroit's bottom-10 penalty kill (77.6 percent).
