This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
A new work week opens up with 12 NHL teams trying to take care of business. I've looked at the six games on the docket, and in doing so I've conjured up some recommendations for your DFS lineups. These are them.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are no teams on the second leg of a back-to-back to worry about Monday. You do need to worry about the Golden Knights, though, if you tend to like to use their players in your lineup. Vegas is visiting Boston, where the Bruins do not lose, and facing a team that ranks first in the NHL with a 2.13 GAA.
GOALIES
Igor Shesterkin, NYR vs. STL ($8,100): Shesterkin hasn't looked like the guy who won the Vezina last year, but he still has a 2.59 GAA and .913 save percentage. With a career .926 save percentage to his name, expect more from Shesterkin going forward. It helps that his defense has only allowed 29.2 shots on net per contest, and it also helps that the Blues have averaged 2.83 goals per game.
Dan Vladar, CGY vs. ARI ($7,500): Maybe Jacob Markstrom will be in net with the Flames hoping to get the Swedish goalie on track against a team that has averaged a mere 2.68 goals and 24.1 shots on net per contest. However, Vladar has started four of the last six games for the Flames. He has an 1.97 GAA and .940 save percentage in that time. If Calgary keeps riding the hot hand in net, I'd be more confident in Vladar than Markstrom right now.
VALUE PLAYS
Brock Boeser, VAN vs. MON ($5,900): Boeser had a point in his first nine games after returning from injury, and after a whole three games without a point he lit the lamp in his last outing. Jake Allen has a 3.51 GAA and .893 save percentage, and the Canadiens have allowed 33.0 shots on net per contest as well.
Sean Monahan, MON at VAN ($4,800): Monahan lost his game in Calgary, but getting to be the second-line center (and a staple on the top power-play unit) for a rebuilding Montreal team has helped him regain his form. Over his last 11 games, Monahan has 10 points and 26 shots on net. The Canucks, meanwhile, are bottom five in both GAA and penalty-kill percentage.
LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Flames vs. Coyotes
Elias Lindholm (C - $7,000), Tyler Toffoli (W - $6,400), Jonathan Huberdeau (W - $5,300)
OK, so maybe the Coyotes haven't been the total sieve many expected this year, in part because Karel Vejmelka has a .913 save percentage, but they still have a 3.45 GAA and have allowed 34.8 shots on net per game. It's a bad defense, and they are on the road visiting Calgary. The Flames have been tweaking the lineup a lot this year, but they have settled on a first line that seems to be panning out.
In each of his last two games, Lindholm has a goal and four shots on net. He's one year removed from having 42 goals and 40 assists, and he's up to averaging 3:13 per game on the power play this year as well. Toffoli has been shooting a ton, as his 74 shots on net in 24 games are second most on the Flames. That kind of activity – not to mention the face he's averaged 3:11 per game with the extra man – could pay off against the Coyotes. Huberdeau was a big trade acquisition, and it took him a second to get going. However, over his last 10 games he has three goals and four assists. The former Panther also has a 10.3 shooting percentage, which is enough below his career 12.5 number that some improvement is to be expected.
DEFENSEMEN
Devon Toews, COL at PHI ($6,400): Cale Makar is the superstar, but for a great option with a slightly-less-extravagant salary, there's Toews. Makar's defensive partner is no slouch, having notched 13 points in 20 games. That's with him only having one goal on 32 shots on net as well. Meanwhile, over his last 10 starts Carter Hart has a 3.55 GAA and .873 save percentage.
Mike Matheson, MON at VAN ($4,900): As soon as Matheson got healthy, the Canadiens placed him into the biggest role of his career. Over seven games the defenseman has averaged 24:19 in ice time, including 3:41 on the power play. Matheson has three points and 18 shots on goal thus far as a result. Now he gets to take on a team in Vancouver that is in the bottom five in GAA and penalty-kill percentage, and that is missing its top goalie Thatcher Demko as well.
