This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's a light Friday slate with only four games before a busy Saturday. The key matchups will be Leafs vs. Hurricanes in a battle of Eastern Conference heavyweights, though both teams will be shorthanded as Toronto will be without Ryan O'Reilly for weeks while the Canes recently announced Andrei Svechnikov will miss the rest of the season and playoffs due to ACL surgery.
The remaining three games should be high-scoring affairs. The Blues visit the Caps and will be without Jordan Binnington, who was handed a two-game suspension following a fight against the Wild. The Flyers will host the road-savvy Sabres and the Ducks and Jackets will duke it out for basement honors.
GOALIES
Ilya Samsonov, TOR vs. CAR ($8,000): This matchups should be close, and note the Leafs (-130) are favourites according to FanDuel Sportsbook. What should tip the scales in Toronto's favor is Samsonov's strong recently play and Carolina reeling with two shutout losses in their past three games.
Darcy Kuemper, WSH vs. STL ($8,200): Kuemper's been uneven of late, but the Caps should still hold an edge against the porous Blues, who will likely go with backup Thomas Greiss with Binnington suspended. Greiss hasn't started in nearly a week and sports a below average .898 Sv% this season. Washington doesn't list any significant injuries except for Sonny Milano's day-to-day status due to illness.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, BUF at PHI ($8,300): UPL is 0-2-2 over his past four appearances, but his performance hasn't been as poor as his record suggests since he made at least 35 saves in three of those outings. The Flyers have lost four straight and eight of nine while providing poor goal support. Meanwhile, the Sabres have been excellent on the road all season.
VALUE PLAYS
Emil Bemstrom, CBJ at ANH ($3,700): Bemstrom has only tallied five goals this season, but he's got some skills. It's just hard to score when you don't get to play with top players, but that's changed recently with Bemstrom skating on the top line with Johnny Gaudreau. He's gone three games without a point, but has managed to direct seven shots on goal. The Ducks are also one of the worst defensive teams in the cap era.
LINE STACKS
Sabres at Flyers
Tage Thompson (C - $9,900), Jeff Skinner (W - $7,400), Alex Tuch (W - $7,800)
This contest shouldn't be close. Since returning to the lineup, Tuch has produced two goals on eight shots across two games. The Flyers' D will have their hands full with this line as Thompson and Tuch rank second and ninth in road scoring while Skinner sits 26th.
DEFENSEMEN
Cam Fowler, ANH vs. CBJ ($5,400): Fowler has notched five helpers during his three-game point streak and has been excellent in the second half with 16 points in 18 games. No one else on the Ducks is a threat to steal playing time from him, and the Jackets are expected to start Michael Hutchinson with his .873 save percentage in three appearances this year.
Rasmus Sandin, WSH vs. STL ($4,500): Sandin will continue to be a solid value play at this salary since he logs more minutes than any other Caps' blueliner and also quarterbacks their top power play. Though he didn't find the scoresheet last time out, he's reeled off nine points in six games since arriving in DC.
