This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
Happy Friday and welcome to the start of the long weekend. It's a light two-game slate, so here's the quick and dirty:
Bruins at Rangers (7:00 p.m. EST): The Bruins are really emerging as a powerhouse, going 9-1-2 thanks to a solid top-six and all-around awesomeness from Charlie McAvoy. The Rangers are banged up and may be without MVP finalist Artemi Panarin (lower body), who's scored 12 points in 13 career games against the Bruins.
Blues at Coyotes (9:00 p.m.): The Coyotes always play well when you expect them to lose. They took six of eight points in St. Louis and seem to be the Blues' kryptonite and since 2018, they've won nine of their past 12 regular-season meetings. The Blues are inconsistent and their special teams has been awful, while the Coyotes are getting very good production from their young players.
(All fancy stats courtesy Natural Stat Trick)
GOALIES
Tuukka Rask, BOS at NYR ($8,500): Expect Rask and Jaroslav Halak - who last played Feb. 1 - to split the back-to-back today and Saturday. Either goalie should be a good choice as Rask has won five of his last six games while only allowing six goals over his past three, while Halak continues to be one of the league's best backups at 3-0-1 on the season. The Bruins' strong possession game gives them the edge against a Rangers' defense that only really consists of two decent pairs.
Antti Raanta, ARI vs. STL ($8,100): I might just be insane, but I'm still pretty sure the Blues are the better team. After all, the Coyotes were outshot by an average of 7.5 shots (basically 5.6 fantasy points, nearly the same amount as a win) during the four-game series and needed last-second heroics and a shootout to win their last matchup. Both Raanta and Darcy Kuemper should be fine choices. Raanta has been slightly better despite the small sample size, but whoever starts will probably see a lot of rubber.
VALUE PLAYS
Nick Ritchie, BOS at NYR ($4,000): It's been two quiet games for Ritchie, who had been outperforming expectations this season. However, he's still on the second line and has remained with the top power-play unit.
Ivan Barbashev, STL at ARI ($3,400): Barbashev's playing on the top line with Ryan O'Reilly and David Perron and managed to collect an apple in 16 minutes of play. He's purely there to use his size and physicality to create some space because he offers little offensive upside, thereby giving Ivan the Terrible a new meaning. Still, playing on the top line definitely gives Barbashev a better chance to collect a point than playing in the bottom-six.
LINE STACKS
Bruins at Rangers
David Krejci (C - $5,700), Nick Ritchie (W - $4,000), Craig Smith (W - $4,300)
With Matt Grzelcyk out, look for head coach Bruce Cassidy to load up the top PP unit with five forwards – the Perfection Line with Krejci and Ritchie. That's two-thirds of this line, and Smith has been a 5v5 monster as usual and ranks third on the team with 32 shots.
Coyotes vs. Blues
Nick Schmaltz (C - $4,800), Conor Garland (W - $5,300), Clayton Keller (W - $6,200)
The chemistry on this line is certainly something else, and credit to head coach Rick Tocchet for trusting his two undersized wingers to overcome any concerns with their skill. The Blues haven't defended very well lately and this trio combined for 15 points in their four-game series with St. Louis.
Blues at Coyotes
Brayden Schenn (C - $6,400), Jordan Kyrou (W - $4,400), Jaden Schwartz (W - $5,800)
This group has been snakebit with no goals in two games, but they're still generating plenty of chances and shots. The dam should break sooner than later, and they have a slightly better chance if Kuemper starts. Also of note, the Coyotes have yet to record a shutout this season.
DEFENSEMEN
Charlie McAvoy, BOS at NYR ($5,500): Look for McAvoy to play big minutes again with Grzelcyk out and perhaps make a small appearance on the power play. He's riding an eight-game assist streak and he's a cut above the rest of the defensemen tonight.
Jakob Chychrun, ARI vs. STL ($4,800): Oliver Ekman-Larsson's return should not affect Chychrun's playing time or production, as it's becoming increasingly clear he's the Coyotes' best defenseman with four points in his past two games. And other than one goose egg against the Knights, he's managed to put at least two shots on net in every appearance.
Justin Faulk, STL at ARI ($4,300): Faulk's no Alex Pietrangelo, but he's been playing well for the Blues on both sides of the puck. He's contributed three points and 11 shots over the past five games and his pairing with Torey Krug is the only one that has yet to yield a goal at 5-on-5 with a minimum of 100 minutes played.
