This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's NHL slate consists of five games after 7:00 p.m. EST. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective DraftKings DFS lineup. All game lines and odds used below come courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
SLATE PREVIEW
Wednesday's set of games is expected to be pretty competitive, though the Lightning in Vancouver and Bruins on Long Island are clear favorites in their respective games. Tampa Bay's game has a slate-high over/under of 6.5 goals, while Boston's has a slate-low 5.5.
GOALIES
Linus Ullmark, BOS at NYI ($8,200): Ullmark's 23-2-1 with a 1.92 GAA and .936 save percentage this season. He should continue to build on this extraordinary season in what's projected to be a low-scoring game against a bottom-10 Islanders offense that's scoring 3.02 goals per game.
Jake Oettinger, DAL at SJ ($8,100): Oettinger's coming off a shutout win in Vegas, with which he improved to 3-0-1 with just four goals allowed in his last four starts. The lone non-victory over that span was a 2-1 overtime defeat to the Rangers in which Oettinger was less than a second away from a shutout win in regulation. The red-hot Dallas netminder should keep rolling against a Sharks team that's tied with the Islanders at 3.02 goals per game.
Pavel Francouz, COL at CGY ($7,500): Francouz has won his last two starts, allowing a combined three goals over that span. If he gets the nod again over the struggling Alexandar Georgiev ($7,500), Francouz would be well positioned for another strong performance against a Flames team that averages the third-most shots (35.0) but the 20th-most goals (3.09).
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Brad Marchand, BOS at NYI ($6,500): Due to the predicted low-scoring nature of this game, Marchand's valuation is as low as it's been since his Oct. 27 season debut. Snag the star forward at $6,500 and watch him build on a 14-26-40 line through 35 games, which includes five goals and eight assists in Marchand's last nine appearances.
Drake Batherson, OTT vs. PIT ($6,100): The most affordable member of Ottawa's top line could be poised for a strong performance against a Penguins team that remains without starting goalie Tristan Jarry (lower body). Batherson snapped a three-game point drought with an assist in his last game, but this down stretch was preceded by a stretch in which Batherson scored at least one point 15 times in 16 games. He's one of the more underrated young forwards in the NHL, as the 24-year-old Indiana native has a 30-52-82 line in 89 games since the start of last season.
J.T. Miller, VAN vs. TB ($5,000): Miller has taken a predictable step back after last season's career-best 99-point output, but he's still enjoying a solid campaign with a 17-21-38 line through 43 games. It helps that the DraftKings format doesn't penalize his defensive liabilities on a Canucks team that scores plenty of goals but gives up even more. Miller has a 4-3-7 line over his last six games, and he'll be motivated to add to that output against one of his former teams.
Mikael Backlund, CGY at COL ($4,800): Backlund has quietly generated an impressive number of chances lately. In addition to notching a point in five of his last seven games, the veteran center has racked up 32 shots on goal. If he keeps putting the puck on net at such a high rate, Backlund should continue to outplay his sub-$5,000 valuation.
Tyler Seguin, DAL at SJ ($4,400): Seguin has capitalized on his promotion to the top line in Roope Hintz's (upper body) absence. He has at least one point in each of the four games since Hintz went down, totaling a 3-2-5 line and 14 shots over that span. At just $4,400, Seguin's the premier value play taking the ice Wednesday.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Lightning at Canucks
Brayden Point (C - $6,400), Nikita Kucherov (W - $7,800), Brandon Hagel (W - $5,600)
Tampa Bay's dominant top line should have no trouble scoring against a Canucks team that's allowing 3.93 goals per game – second-most across the NHL. When these teams faced off last week, each member of this line walked away with a multi-point performance. Overall, Kucherov is tied with David Pastrnak ($9,000) for third league-wide in points with a 17-45-62 line, Point has added a 25-20-45 line and Hagel's chipped in a 17-20-37 line through Tampa Bay's first 42 games.
Avalanche at Flames
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $8,900), Evan Rodrigues (W - $5,500), Artturi Lehkonen (W - $5,300)
It's hard to go wrong with MacKinnon, and the two mid-range forwards flanking him make for strong value plays as long as they're skating on the top line. During his current five-game point streak, MacKinnon has a 4-7-11 line to go with a whopping 32 shots, and he's averaging just a hair under 27 fantasy points over that span. Rodrigues has quietly compiled a nine-game point streak, and Lehkonen has a 3-1-4 line in his last two games heading into a matchup with a Flames team that's been burned for four-plus goals in three of its last five games.
Penguins at Senators
Sidney Crosby (C - $7,300), Jake Guentzel (W - $7,000), Bryan Rust (W - $4,800)
Crosby's in a bit of a slump, but a game against an Ottawa team that's been outscored 23-10 en route to a 1-4-0 record over its last five games could be just what Crosby and his linemates need to break out. The star center's still well over a point per game on the season with a 21-28-49 line in 43 appearances. Guentzel's second on the team in goals and is the only other Penguins player sustaining a point-per-game pace, with an 18-21-39 line in 39 games played. Rust remains a buy-low candidate on the basis of his 8.9 shooting percentage, which is way down from his 15.1 percent conversion rate over the previous three seasons.
DEFENSEMEN
Victor Hedman, TB at VAN ($5,700): After a stretch of four multi-point performances in eight games, Hedman finally potted his second goal of the season in Monday's win over Seattle. Despite the lack of goals, Hedman's still on pace to push for 60 points. He's likely been closer to his floor than his ceiling so far, and it wouldn't be surprising to see the floodgates open here against the league's second-worst defensive team.
Quinn Hughes, VAN vs. TB ($4,800): Hughes has a 2-5-7 line in his last four games, pulling him within one point of averaging a point per game, with 38 in 39. At his sub-$5,000 valuation, Hughes makes for a strong against-the-grain choice in what could turn into a track meet against the Lightning.
Devon Toews, COL at CGY ($4,700): Toews has dished three helpers in his last two games, and he has a 16-64-80 line in 106 appearances since the start of last season. The well-rounded blueliner is a strong source of offense from the back end relative to his middling valuation.
Ty Smith, PIT at OTT ($4,300): With Kris Letang (lower body) sidelined, Smith's expected to keep quarterbacking the top power-play unit. The 2018 first-round pick racked up six shots in Pittsburgh's previous game, and he should continue to get plenty of opportunities while sharing the ice with some of the league's best playmakers.
