This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's NHL slate includes four games after 7:30 p.m. EST. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
Two of the four games feature heavy favorites, and most lineups will likely be built around the Flames (vs. New Jersey) and Lightning (in Seattle). Bruins-Wild and Blue Jackets-Senators matchups round out the action. The Columbus-Ottawa matchup has Tuesday's highest over/under at 6.5 goals.
GOALIES
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at SEA ($8,400): After an uncharacteristically bad four-start stretch, Vasilevskiy got back on track with 35 saves on 36 shots Sunday in Vancouver. Look for the potential Vezina Trophy candidate to build on that performance and improve his 31-11-4 record, 2.40 GAA and .918 save percentage against a Kraken team that's averaging just 2.57 goals per game — third-fewest in the league.
Jacob Markstrom, CGY vs. NJ ($8,500): With Igor Shesterkin submitting two shaky starts in a row, Markstrom's excellent play of late has him back in the conversation for the Vezina Trophy. Markstrom picked up a league-leading ninth shutout in his last start and has allowed only two goals during his three-game winning streak to improve to 28-11-6 with a 2.07 GAA and .928 save percentage. The visiting Devils present a middling matchup, as they average 3.00 goals per game.
Jeremy Swayman, BOS at MIN ($7,600): Swayman's a riskier choice than the two above goalies against Minnesota's top-five offense, but he's been every bit as sharp as Vasilevskiy and Markstrom lately. An eight-start winning streak has improved Swayman's record to 17-7-3, along with a sparkling 2.06 GAA and .926 save percentage.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
David Pastrnak, BOS at MIN ($8,200): Pastrnak has been a force over the past three games, delivering a 2-2-4 line on a whopping 19 shots. The star winger should keep rolling against a Wild team that's struggled defensively of late, allowing 49 goals en route to a 3-7-1 record in its last 11 games.
Josh Norris, OTT vs. CLS ($5,700): The surging Norris has a pair of two-goal performances in his last three games and a 5-2-7 line over the past four. Ottawa's top-line center has an excellent opportunity to add to that recent success against a Blue Jackets team that's surrendering 3.67 goals per game — third-most in the league.
Matthew Boldy, MIN vs. BOS ($4,600): Boldy has taken the league by storm since being called up, yet he remains quite affordable at $4,600. The rookie winger has a 12-12-24 line through 27 games, and he's showing no signs of slowing down with three goals in his last three games and three-plus shots in nine of the past 11.
Yegor Sharangovich, NJ at CGY ($4,000): A byproduct of Jack Hughes' recent success has been improved production from his linemate Sharangovich. In fact, Sharangovich is above a point-per-game pace over the past 14 games, with a 6-9-15 line over that span. It's hard to justify paying $7,100 for Hughes against the stout Calgary defense, but Sharangovich's $4,000 valuation is much easier to stomach.
Yanni Gourde, SEA vs. TB ($3,000): Gourde will be motivated against his former team, and he's on a hot streak heading into this one. Seattle's affordable second-line center has a four-game point streak going and a 2-4-6 line in his last six games.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Flames vs. Devils
Elias Lindholm (C - $6,500), Johnny Gaudreau (W - $7,000), Matthew Tkachuk (W - $6,200)
Calgary's top line should thrive against a Devils team that's finishing up a back-to-back set. New Jersey deployed No. 1 goalie Nico Daws in Tuesday's 6-3 loss to the Canucks, so the Flames will get a juicy matchup against struggling backup Jon Gillies, who's 3-9-1 with a 3.70 GAA and .885 save percentage. All three of these forwards are above a point-per-game pace through 59. Gaudreau leads the Flames in points with a 26-52-78 line, Lindholm's the team goals leader with a 30-32-62 line, and Tkachuk's second in both at 27-41-68.
Lightning at Kraken
Steven Stamkos (W - $6,600), Nikita Kucherov (W - $8,000), Alex Killorn (W - $3,400)
Some recent line shuffling has Tampa Bay's leading scorer overall and top per-game performer skating on the same line, though it's worth noting that all three of these players are listed as wingers. Stamkos' 27-36-63 line in 58 games is good for the team lead in both goals and points, while Kucherov has mustered a 10-20-30 line in just 24 appearances. Killorn has quietly put together a strong campaign as well, ranking third on the team in both goals and points with an 18-29-47 line in 59 games. A Kraken team that's giving up 3.59 goals per game is unlikely to keep this trio contained.
Blue Jackets at Senators
Jack Roslovic (C - $3,100), Patrik Laine (W - $6,300), Gustav Nyquist (W - $2,700)
With Boone Jenner (back) on IR, it will be up to Laine to carry a pair of affordable linemates on the top line against the bottom-10 Ottawa defense. Laine's 23 goals in 41 games this season include 17 in his last 19 outings, making him one of the league's top threats to score on a nightly basis. Roslovic has a 2-5-7 line in his last 10 games and Nyquist's at 1-4-5 in his last five, so both are reasonably hot heading into what's expected to be a high-scoring game.
DEFENSEMEN
Victor Hedman, TB at SEA ($6,800): Hedman's putting together another excellent season. His 4-3-7 line in the past six games has Hedman just shy of a point per game with a 15-43-58 line in 59 games. He ranks third among defensemen in goals and fourth in points, so Hedman has substantial offensive upside against the defensively challenged Kraken.
Thomas Chabot, OTT vs. CLS ($6,400): Offense should be plentiful in this game, and Chabot's likely to generate a substantial chunk of it. In addition to a 3-6-9 line in his last nine appearances, Chabot has a trio of six-shot performances over that stretch and has blocked at least one shot in each game. The league leader in average ice time (26:42) isn't just skating around aimlessly while he's out there.
Charlie McAvoy, BOS at MIN ($5,600): McAvoy has been stuck on seven goals since Jan. 28, but he's still been an integral two-way player for the Bruins and has nine assists in his last 11 games. Given the poor play in Minnesota's net recently, perhaps this will be the night McAvoy finally gets back into the goal column. If not, you can still expect a solid all-around performance.
Rasmus Andersson, CGY vs. NJ ($4,300): Andersson has mustered double-digit fantasy points in each of his last four games thanks to five assists, seven shots and seven blocked shots over that span. He should continue to produce against a Devils team that's surrendering 3.50 goals per game.
