This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's a four-game Monday slate with a lot of tough tests for teams looking to extend their winning streaks. The Kings are going for their fifth straight victory against the Flames, who just snapped a seven-game winning streak and finally has some momentum going their way.
The Avalanche are also going for their fifth straight facing the Blues, who have now won two straight games after losing eight straight.
And the Senators are also hoping to string together wins having just snapped their seven-game losing streak, hosting the Islanders in an early evening matchup.
Teams have been very streaky this season.
GOALIES
Jonathan Quick, LA at CGY ($7,900): The Flames may have just snapped their losing streak but the Kings are coming in hot, and their offense has woken up lately with at least four goals scored against the Panthers and Wings. This will be the first time in three years Quick has faced the Flames; their last matchup was on Oct. 19, 2019, when Quick made 23 saves in a 4-1 win. Their matchups in Calgary have usually been close but the Flames are still struggling to score.
Antti Raanta, CAR at CHI ($7,300): Raanta is expected to start with Frederik Andersen still nursing an injury. Raanta has lost both of his recent games but faced tough opponents in Colorado and Florida, and remains one of the more reliable 1B goalies in the league. Stepping into his role as the interim starter is familiar territory for him. After winning four of their first six to start the season, the Hawks have lost six of their past eight and the scoring has dried up with only seven goals in their past four games.
VALUE PLAYS
Adam Ruzicka, CGY vs. LA ($4,300): Even with Jonathan Huberdeau back at practice and expected to play Monday, Ruzicka remained on the top line with Tyler Toffoli and Elias Lindholm. He's been an excellent fit with Lindholm and it looks like it might stay that way for a little longer. Ruzicka had two points in a big win over the Jets on Saturday.
Josh Leivo, STL at COL ($3,600): That's now an assist in two straight games for Leivo, who has been playing on a line with Ryan O'Reilly and Brandon Saad. O'Reilly struggled for most of the season but seemed to have snapped out of his funk during the Blues' two wins. At their best, the Blues' depth was one of their best attributes, and against the injury-riddled Avs, it might become an advantage again.
LINE STACKS
Hurricanes at Blackhawks
Sebastian Aho (C - $8,600), Andrei Svechnikov (W - $9,500), Stefan Noesen (W - $4,800)
Svechnikov is back on Aho's wing with Teuvo Teravainen out, and the good thing about Noesen is that he also plays PP1. He'll keep the cost of this stack down and the Hawks PK ranks 26th in the league.
Islanders at Senators
Brock Nelson (C - $7,100), Anders Lee (W - $7,400), Anthony Beauvillier (W - $4,500)
Beauvillier's far too unreliable, so the focus of this line stack is Nelson and Lee. They were split up briefly as Lane Lambert tried to spread out the offense, but they're back together again and will also play together on PP1. Nelson has the hot hand; he's scored eight goals in his past nine games including two goals on 10 shots Saturday against Columbus.
DEFENSEMEN
Brent Burns, CAR at CHI ($6,900): Burns can be stacked with the Canes' top line as their power play quarterback. He's a high-volume shooting machine with a team-high 61 shots and seven of his 10 points have come with the man advantage. Not only is the Hawks PK very poor, they're also allowing the fourth-most shots per game.
Jake Sanderson, OTT vs. NYI ($4,700): With Thomas Chabot out for at least a week with a concussion, look for Sanderson to take over a lot of his minutes, including on PP1. Sanderson had a fairly quiet start to the season but has racked up four helpers and 17 shots in his past seven games.
