This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are 14 games for Monday's slate, and the race for the final playoff spot in the Central and West Divisions are coming down to the wire. Predators at Blue Jackets (7 p.m. EDT) and Stars at Panthers (7 p.m.) highlight the key matchups in the Central while the West will feature Ducks at Blues (8 p.m.) and Kings at Coyotes (10 p.m.)
GOALIES
Philipp Grubauer, COL at SJ ($8,500): The Avalanche are so dominant in the puck possession game the Sharks managed to get only 21 shots on goal against Grubauer last time. It was an easy shutout and no reason to think this game would be much more different. A win is likely but the volume of shots will likely be low, so Grubauer may not be an ideal pick if managers are looking for a lot of saves.
Jack Campbell, TOR at MON ($8,100): Campbell's back to his winning ways, claiming four straight victories with just six goals allowed during that span. The Leafs are clearly the cream of the crop in the North and he should get plenty of goal support against the Habs, who are 2-4-1 with 24 goals allowed against the Leafs this season.
Mike Smith, EDM at VAN ($8,000): The Canucks may have a bit more jump after returning from their four-game road trip in which they failed to secure a single win, but the Oilers are a tough assignment with Connor McDavid leaving the competition in the dust. The Canucks offense just hasn't really been able to launch any sort of sustained attack and continue to play with a lack of urgency and pace.
Semyon Varlamov, NYI at BUF ($7,900): Varlamov has been brilliant and the best goaltender this past week, blanking the Rangers in a home-and-home series and allowed zero goals in regulation and overtime against the Capitals before succumbing in a shootout. The Isles rarely lose games they're supposed to win because they play such a structured, disciplined style, and they're 6-0 against the Sabres this season.
Tuukka Rask, BOS at NJ ($7,800): Rask has won five of his past six appearances and has kept his opponents to two goals or less in four of those games. The Devils are running hot with three straight wins, but all of them have come against the Flyers' atrocious goaltending, and while they're an impressive 4-0-2 against the Bruins this season, they have yet to face them with Taylor Hall in the lineup.
Juuse Saros, NSH at CBJ ($7,500): This should be one of the best value plays of the night. Saros has been very good in the second half of the season and he's allowed two goals or fewer in five of his past seven games. Of course, he has a tendency to really collapse sometimes, but the Jackets just don't have much firepower, anyway; they've scored just 11 goals in their past eight games.
VALUE PLAYS
Yegor Sharangovich, NJ vs. BOS ($4,400): He comes at a slight discount to his center, Jack Hughes ($4,800), but generally both are good value plays just in case the Bruins have trouble with the Devils again. Sharangovich is on a three-game point streak with four goals and an apple during that span.
Jordan Kyrou, STL vs. ANH ($3,400): Another goal against the Wild gives Kyrou two goals and five points in his past three games and he's shown good chemistry on a line with Robert Thomas. The Ducks defense and goaltending have been shaky all season and the Blues offense is coming alive at the right time, scoring 21 goals in their past five games.
Owen Tippett, FLA vs. DAL ($3,000): The Stars aren't an ideal matchup because they're so good defensively, but Tippett has been a nice addition to the second line and now has two goals and three points in his past three games.
Trevor Zegras, ANH at STL ($3,000): Zegras' upside is obvious and with zero playoff hopes, the Ducks are giving him all the ice time he can bear. He's averaging over 15 minutes in three games since getting called up and scored three points on eight shots in his past two games against the Kings.
LINE STACKS
Bruins at Devils
David Krejci (C - $5,400), Taylor Hall (W - $6,400), Craig Smith (W - $4,700)
Smith is coming off a hat-trick performance against the Sabres and this second line for the Bruins has been very effective. They're taking a lot of pressure off the Perfection Line, and this matchup probably won't Bruce Cassidy to lean on them, either.
Maple Leafs at Canadiens
Auston Matthews (C - $8,800), Mitch Marner (W - $7,600), Nick Foligno (W - $4,100)
Matthews and Marner have combined for 19 points in seven games against the Habs, and only seven of which have come on the power play even the Habs have historically been very good at even strength. A lot of it has to do with the mediocre goaltending the Habs are getting this season; neither Jake Allen nor Carey Price, who is expected to return soon, have been particularly strong this season.
Golden Knights at Wild
Chandler Stephenson (C - $4,600), Mark Stone (W - $7,700), Max Pacioretty (W - $8,300)
Pacioretty was injured Saturday and did not finish the game, so if he is unavailable then forget about this line stack. Otherwise, Stone and Pacioretty have been quite good against the Wild, scoring a combined 12 points while Stephenson has scored four in four games against them.
Oilers at Canucks
Connor McDavid (C - $9,300), Leon Draisaitl (C - $8,200), Kailer Yamamoto (W - $3,900)
No explanation needed for McDavid, though note that his linemates are subject to change as Dave Tippett has switched it up in the past depending on how many centers he has in the lineup. If McDavid and Draisaitl play together, pray for the Canucks defense and goaltending.
Avalanche at Sharks
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $9,000), Gabriel Landeskog (W - $7,000), Mikko Rantanen (W - $8,400)
Expensive, but worthwhile against a team they routinely outshoot and have combined to score 24 points against.
DEFENSEMEN
Tyson Barrie, EDM at VAN ($6,200): The Oilers have generally been a solid play against the Canucks this season. Barrie's fantasy value is derived only from the power play, and he should get plenty of chances. The Canucks are tired and they have a propensity to take penalties when they're hemmed in their own zone, which has been happening a lot these days.
Kris Letang, PIT at PHI ($6,100): Letang hasn't been as effective against the Flyers as he has against other teams this season, and it's also very surprising he has yet to score a power-play point against them this season. The Flyers PK continues to languish at 30th in the league. It would be an anomaly for Letang to note score at least one point on the man advantage against the Flyers this season, and a regression toward the mean perhaps means he'll snap his drought soon.
Cale Makar, COL at SJ ($5,700): When there's a ton of choices – as there are tonight – Makar's relatively low salary really sticks out because his offensive upside is as good as any defenseman's. He didn't register a shot against the Sharks last game but still managed to collect an assist in a game in which the Avs offense is expected to bury them.
Jakob Chychrun, ARI vs. LA ($5,600): He's been a good choice all season because of his offensive potential and his ability to get shots on net. Only Dougie Hamilton has more shots on goal than Chychrun's 156 among defensemen this season.
