This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's NHL slate is expected to feature six games after 7:00 p.m. EST, barring further postponements. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
This is expected to be a high-scoring slate, as Canucks-Ducks is the only game that doesn't have an over/under of at least 6.0 goals, and Oilers-Blues comes in at a robust 6.5. There are no heavy favorites Wednesday, with the largest favorites being a Panthers team that's hosting the Rangers, who are expected to welcome back Vezina Trophy candidate Igor Shesterkin. The rest of the slate offers an interesting mix of matchups, as the Predators visit Washington in a battle of teams with justified playoff aspirations, while Devils-Sabres and Flyers-Kraken matchups represent clashes between teams whose contention windows this season are already perilously close to shutting. With plenty of offensive firepower in action, maximizing your spending power up front should pay off if you pick the right forwards to build around.
GOALIES
Igor Shesterkin, NYR at FLA ($7,100): Holding off Florida's potent offense is no easy feat, but if anyone can do it, it's Shesterkin. Set for his first action since Dec. 3 after having recovered from a lower-body injury, Shesterkin brings a 13-3-2 record, 2.05 GAA and .937 save percentage into this one, including a 42-save, 4-3 win over the Panthers on Nov. 8. At just $7,100, Shesterkin's upside justifies the risk.
Thatcher Demko, VAN at ANH ($7,300): Demko has been unbeatable under new coach Bruce Boudreau, going 5-0-0 with just seven goals allowed. The Ducks' surprisingly decent offense ranks 12th in the league with 3.16 goals per game, but Demko's still an excellent value proposition at $7,300 in what's expected to be the night's lowest-scoring game.
Mackenzie Blackwood, NJ at BUF ($7,800): The holiday break came at a convenient time for Blackwood, as it has allowed him to heal up from a neck injury just in time for a favorable matchup against a Sabres offense that's scoring just 2.67 goals per game – eighth-fewest in the league. Blackwood has been inconsistent, as is often the case with goalies on middling to bad teams, but his pair of shutout wins this season showcase his high ceiling.
Ilya Samsonov, WAS vs. NSH ($8,200): Recent trends suggest deploying Samsonov against the Predators isn't a good idea, but how relevant are those trends after a week off? Prior to the holiday break, Samsonov was mired in a rut while the Predators were on a seven-game winning streak. If you take a more holistic view, Washington's netminder still boasts an excellent 11-2-2 record to go with a 2.64 GAA and .910 save percentage, while Nashville's offense is right around league average at 2.93 goals per game. Samsonov's outlook is boosted by the Predators having placed elite offensive blueliner Roman Josi on the COVID-19 list recently.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Leon Draisaitl, EDM at STL ($9,200): All three players who have separated themselves from the pack as the league scoring leaders are in action here, as Draisaitl and Connor McDavid ($9,800) will take on the Blues while Alex Ovechkin ($9,700) hosts the Predators. Draisaitl leads the league in both goals (23) and points (49) – sharing the latter lead with McDavid – yet he's the most affordable of the three superstars. If the Blues' defense is a step slow coming out of the holiday break, Draisaitl will almost certainly make them pay.
Ryan Strome, NYR at FLA ($5,800): Strome had a three-game point streak going before the holiday break, and he had eight shots on goal in the game before that streak started. All told, he has a 6-15-21 line through 26 games while sharing the ice with star winger Artemi Panarin ($7,400), both at even strength and on the top power-play unit. The center has a nice opportunity to build on his scoring totals against Panthers netminder Sergei Bobrovsky, who has looked vulnerable after a red-hot start, allowing at least three goals in six of his last seven outings.
Jordan Eberle, SEA vs. PHI ($5,600): Eberle has been the most productive scorer in the Kraken's brief history, leading the franchise with 21 points in 28 games while sharing the team goals lead with Jared McCann at 12 apiece. He'll have a golden opportunity to build on those totals against a Flyers team that's allowing the second-most fantasy points in the league to right wings, especially since Philadelphia plans to start struggling backup Martin Jones (3.33 GAA, .907 save percentage) in net.
Troy Terry, ANH vs. VAN ($5,000): The Canucks have been much better under Boudreau in general, but their penalty kill still ranks last in the league at just 67.0 percent. Terry is the Ducks player best positioned to capitalize on that weakness, as he leads the team with five power-play goals and shares the team power-play points lead with defensemen Kevin Shattenkirk and Cam Fowler at nine apiece. His power-play success is part of an excellent overall 18-12-30 line through 31 games, so Terry has significantly outproduced his middling $5,000 valuation.
Brock Boeser, VAN at ANH ($4,100): If the holiday break didn't cool the red-hot Boeser down, then he'll be a steal at just $4,100. In his last seven games prior to the break, Boeser produced a 5-3-8 line. He continues to occupy a top-six role for the surging Canucks while skating on the top power-play unit to boot.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Blues vs. Oilers
Robert Thomas (C - $3,300), Vladimir Tarasenko (W - $7,300), Pavel Buchnevich ( W - $5,800)
Tarasenko is the most notable name on this line, but he's skating alongside arguably two of the best values in this slate against an Oilers team that allowed 29 goals en route to a 2-6-0 record in its last eight games. The Russian sniper's 12-17-29 line through 31 games has him leading the team in goals, and Tarasenko shares the team points lead with his countryman Buchnevich, who has needed two fewer games to accrue his 11-18-29 line. Thomas is set to return from a lower-body injury that's kept him sidelined since Dec. 4, and he's a nice bargain at just $3,300 considering the 22-year-old center has accrued 22 points in 24 games.
Panthers vs. Rangers
Aleksander Barkov (C - $7,000), Anthony Duclair (W - $5,700), Carter Verhaeghe (W - $3,600)
The Rangers aren't the only team getting a significant Russian contributor back from injury, as the Panthers will counter New York's addition of Shesterkin by bringing back Barkov from his undisclosed injury. When available, Barkov has been unstoppable, as he's scored a point in each of his last 11 games played and boasts a 10-8-18 line in 16 games overall. The star center will be flanked by Verhaeghe and ex-Ranger Anthony Duclair. Verhaeghe has quietly put together a 7-15-22 line through 28 games, putting him on pace to top 60 points, while Duclair has a 9-8-17 line in just 21 appearances.
Flyers at Kraken
Kevin Hayes (C - $3,900), Joel Farabee (W - $3,400), Travis Konecny (W - $4,900)
Philadelphia's second line should deliver some nice bang for the buck against a Kraken team that's allowing 3.57 goals per game – third-most in the league. Hayes has missed extensive time this season but has crossed the 40-point threshold five times and has a 2-4-6 line in 11 appearances this season. Farabee's another player who has been in and out of the lineup, but he's been effective when available with four goals in his last five games played. The 21-year-old Syracuse native has one of the best wrist shots in the game and should find room to utilize it against the defensively challenged Kraken. Konecny's 5-12-17 line in 29 games leaves a lot to be desired, but he's been much better lately as the Flyers have turned over their coaching staff, producing at a point-per-game pace over his last seven.
DEFENSEMEN
Dougie Hamilton, NJ at BUF ($7,800): Only the Blue Jackets (34.8) and Flyers (34.6) allow more shots on goal than the Sabres (34.1), so Hamilton should be firing early and often in Buffalo. Only Josi (107) has more shots on goal among defensemen than Hamilton's 99, and Hamilton has amassed that total in three fewer games. Hamilton's 6-11-17 line through 27 games in New Jersey is no fluke, and his supplemental mix of shots and blocks should make him worth paying up for in this favorable matchup.
Evan Bouchard, EDM at STL ($5,500): Darnell Nurse's placement on the COVID-19 list should free up more opportunities for Bouchard to stuff the stat sheet. He can score, as evidenced by Bouchard's 5-13-18 line in 29 games, but Bouchard also chips in hefty shot and block totals on occasion. Just look at his totals from the last two games – one goal, two assists, seven shots and four blocks.
Rasmus Dahlin, BUF vs. NJ ($4,400): Dahlin was rolling prior to the break, with three goals on 11 shots in his last three games. The first-overall pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft will look to stand out against a Devils team that features the first-overall selections from 2017 and 2019 in centers Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes. None of the three have exactly taken the league by storm, but Dahlin's a nice pick here at $4,400.
Travis Sanheim, PHI at SEA ($3,100): Sanheim's a nice value play at just $3,100 considering he caught fire offensively just before the break with two goals and two assists in his last three games. Given Seattle's inability to keep the puck out of its own net, Sandheim will look to build on his recent success, which included the overtime winner against the Senators in the Flyers' most recent game on Dec. 18.
