This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's Martin Luther King Jr. Day so games will start at 1 p.m. EST, with Red Wings at Sabres and Wild at Avalanche part of the Early Only slate and the remaining six games on the Main slate.
With only one game on Sunday, all teams should be well rested and starting their No. 1 goalie. The Isles, in particular, are just playing in their 31st game of the season and seem to be turning it around. All salaries quoted below are from the All Day slate.
GOALIES
Ilya Sorokin, NYI vs. PHI ($8,300): It's a bit of a hefty price for Sorokin, who has won four of his past six starts and allowed four goals or more just once since Dec. 1. The Flyers have lost seven straight but scoring goals isn't their biggest problem. If the well-rested Isles can minimize their scoring chances, this should be an easy win. Sorokin is 5-0-1 with a .944 Sv% and 1.58 GAA in his career against them.
Marc-Andre Fleury, CHI at SEA ($7,500): The Kraken's 6-12-2 record at home is more worrying than the Blackhawks' mediocre 7-11-2 road record. To Fleury's credit, he's played very well lately with four straight wins and only five goals allowed, and in his last start made 37 saves against the struggling Ducks in a shutout win.
Alex Nedeljkovic, DET at BUF ($7,400): Buffalo's offense can pack a punch with Alex Tuch, so be careful. But Nedeljkovich has been very good lately, allowing three goals or less in five straight starts, and most recently made 22 saves in a shutout win against the Sabres.
Karel Vejmelka, ARI vs. MON ($6,600): It's either 40-plus saves or five-plus goals against for Vejmelka, and it'll be an interesting matchup. The Habs will still be missing key players due to injuries and COVID, so unless they really outplay the Coyotes, it's unlikely Vejmelka will see a high volume of shots. However, the Coyotes have a good chance of winning this game on home ice against the one team that is arguably worse than them.
VALUE PLAYS
Vladislav Namestnikov, DET at BUF ($4,400): Namestnikov is expected to skate on the top line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond, and you couldn't get better linemates in Detroit. Namestnikov's good future paid off with an assist in his last game, and it's unlikely the Sabres will keep them off the score sheet with Aaron Dell expected to start.
Kieffer Bellows, NYI vs. PHI ($4,300): Bellows' usage is frustrating because the coaches don't really trust him; otherwise, he's a second-line winger who can finish plays. He's averaging over 12 minutes in his past two games, and when given the opportunity, he's proven he can score. He has scored five points in five games dating back to Dec. 7.
Mikhail Maltsev, COL vs. MIN ($3,400): There should be quite a few goals in this one, and despite scoring zero points so far this season, Maltsev has at least been able to get a shot on net in every game. His cold streak should end soon, and despite the Wild's success, they don't always get good goaltending.
Samuel Fagemo, LA at SJ ($3,200): Fagemo is one of the Kings' top prospects and skated 11:54 and registered a shot in his NHL debut on a line with Anze Kopitar and Alex Iafallo. The Kings have a lot of young players in the lineup so Todd McLellan will juggle them quite a bit, which means Fagemo's ice time may be limited, though note he plays on PP2 while Alex Turcotte, a more highly-regarded prospect, currently does not.
LINE STACKS
Coyotes vs. Canadiens
Johan Larsson (C - $4,200), Lawson Crouse (W - $4,900), Phil Kessel (W - $5,100)
This definitely won't a stack on most fantasy managers' radar, but the Coyotes' top line comes cheap and it's a good matchup. They're all miscast in their roles, but Larsson's got some scoring ability despite being hampered by past injuries, Crouse has been effective with three points in five games and Kessel remains their top scoring option. Crouse and Kessel are possibly being showcased for trades, so they'll get their playing time.
Penguins at Golden Knights
Sidney Crosby (C - $7,500), Jake Guentzel (W - $9,400), Bryan Rust (W - $6,600)
The real gem is Rust, who is on a three-game multi-point streak. Evgeni Malkin's return was impressive initially, but it's clear the Pens will need to continue to rely on their top line, which is once again healthy. The Knights are getting healthy on the back end but their goaltending has been a problem.
DEFENSEMEN
Devon Toews, COL vs. MIN ($6,600): A lot of elite defensemen are available but Toews is a good option because he plays with Cale Makar, and offers up quite a lot of upside on his own even though he's priced in the tier below. There's a chance Toews and Makar also don't have to face Kirill Kaprizov's line. The last time they played, Makar faced Kaprizov head-to-head the most, but Kaprizov's linemates has since changed from Joel Eriksson Ek and Marcus Foligno to the more dangerous Ryan Hartman and Mats Zuccarello.
Shayne Gostisbehere, ARI vs. MON ($5,700): Gostisbehere and the power play could have a field day against the Habs, the only team worse in net than the Coyotes. He's been scoring at a healthy clip this season and leads all Coyotes defensemen with seven goals; no other defenseman has more than two.
Filip Hronek, DET at BUF ($5,000): Hronek's scored four points in his past four games and it's an enticing matchup against the Sabres, whose top four goalies are all unavailable. Dell, who's expected to start for them, has allowed 25 goals in nine games this season with a .889 Sv%.
