This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
FanDuel's main slate will be leaving out all four matinee games, which means you can fully enjoy the NHL Outdoors at Lake Tahoe between Vegas and Colorado without having to worry about your lineup. Here's a breakdown of some of the key matchups for an the eight games starting at 7:00 p.m. EST:
Maple Leafs at Canadiens (7:00 p.m.): A clash of the two best North Division teams, the Leafs are coming off dominant performances against the Senators while the Habs enjoyed a six-day break. The Leafs, who have scored 14 goals in three games, should be eager for revenge after losing 2-1 in their previous meeting.
Lightning at Hurricanes (7:00 p.m.): Both teams have lost only three times in regulation, but it seems like the Canes offer a little more depth with six players posting at least five goals compared to the Lightning's four. The only edge Tampa has is in net, but note that only this game and two others list an O/U at 6.5. Of note, this contest features the league's first and third-best offense by GF/GP.
Flames at Oilers (10:00 p.m.): The second half of a back-to-back, look for the Flames to return to Jacob Markstrom and the Oilers with Mikko Koskinen. Edmonton has not been swept in any back-to-back series this season having taken two of them and splitting one with the Canucks.
(All fancy stats courtesy Natural Stat Trick.)
GOALIES
Jordan Binnington, STL vs. SJ ($7,600): Binnington has only allowed four goals in his past three games and the Blues are back as a tough defensive team after an up-and-down start. The Sharks rank 25th in GF/GP despite filling a lineup with big names and they're just one of a handful of teams whose differential between GF/GP and GA/GP is more than one goal.
Tristan Jarry, PIT vs. NYI ($7,500): Jarry has been excellent over his past three starts by stopping 98 of 105 shots. His performance last season was no fluke and maybe it's just taken him a little longer to get back into the swing of things. The risk is that this matchup tends to be high-scoring, as five of their past six meetings featured seven goals or more.
Joonas Korpisalo, CBJ vs. NSH ($7,400): Korpisalo has been very shaky lately having allowed five goals or more in four of his past seven games. That could pave the way for Elvis Merzlikins to start again since he earned a shutout against the Preds the last time out, but either goalie should have a decent chance to win. The Preds just aren't very dangerous offensively (29th in GF/GP) and their goaltending has been suspect all season.
VALUE PLAYS
Jonathan Drouin, MON vs. TOR ($4,600): Something about the Leafs draws out the best from the Quebec native. Drouin has scored four assists in three games against the rivals, though admittedly his line with Nick Suzuki and Josh Anderson has gone a little quiet.
Kasperi Kapanen, PIT vs. NYI ($4,200): Bryan Rust getting moved to Evgeni Malkin's unit means Kapanen gets the plum assignment next to Sidney Crosby. Kapanen finished with an apple in 18 minutes of play and skating on the top line should help combined with his usual PP2 duties, although his offensive production is currently on the low side.
Mats Zuccarello, MIN at ANH ($3,800): Zuccarello registered an assist in only his second game and played on an effective scoring line with Kevin Fiala and Joel Eriksson Ek that generated a team-leading 10 CF, 0.79 xGF and four high-danger chances.
Zach Sanford, STL vs. SJ ($3,800): Sanford will move up to Brayden Schenn's line with Mike Hoffman given the Blues' slew of injuries. Sanford played 17 minutes last contest and did not register a shot on goal for the second straight game, although it's only the third time this season he's been blanked. Jordan Kyrou ($4,300) also represents a solid value play after being promoted to the top line, while both wingers play on PP2.
Gabriel Vilardi, LA at ARI ($3,300): Vilardi's an up-and-comer who's quickly become the No. 2 center behind Anze Kopitar and has collected three assists from his past five games. Don't let the Kings' reputation fool you, as this is an offense than ranks 14th in GF/GP, 12th on the PP and a five-game streak of at least three goals scored.
Sam Steel, ANH vs. MIN ($3,200): The Ducks carry plenty of young unproven talent, but Steel may be the best of the bunch. He's tallied two goals in his past two games and was long overdue after scoring none across his first 14 games. Steel also plays on the second line and on PP2.
LINE STACKS
Lightning at Hurricanes
Brayden Point (C - $7,800), Steven Stamkos (W - $8,400), Ondrej Palat (W - $5,800)
This should be a high scoring game and the Lightning have leaned on this trio heavily. Most entries may stack Auston Matthews' or Connor McDavid's line, but in both cases those two scorers face top-notch goalies in Carey Price and Jacob Markstrom.
Blue Jackets vs. Predators
Jack Roslovic (C - $5,000), Patrik Laine (W - $7,300), Cam Atkinson (W - $6,700)
Atkinson has scored in five straight and this line continues to generate a lot of offense. Roslovic's production has tailed off a little bit. But if it's not him, it's Atkinson or Laine, the latter who is on a four-game point streak. The Preds goaltending…well, you know.
Sharks vs. Blues
Ryan O'Reilly (C - $6,900), Jordan Kyrou (W - $4,300), David Perron (W - $7,200)
Perron's salary raises eyebrows, but this is an interesting group the Blues have put together. O'Reilly has long been a very strong two-way player and Kyrou has been their best forward at generating chances at 5-on-5. O'Reilly and Perron is already a reliable pairing, so adding a good shooter like Kyrou should definitely help.
DEFENSEMEN
Brent Burns, SJ at STL ($6,300): One game after getting blanked with no points or shots, Burns responded with four shots against St. Louis. He still plays a huge role on a blueline that is neither deep nor particularly talented. The only defenseman with more upside than Burns tonight is probably Victor Hedman.
Seth Jones, CBJ vs. NSH ($5,300): It's all about quantity for Jones, who does a little bit of everything. The more minutes he plays, the more chances he gets to pile up the shots and blocked shots. The points have been a nice bonus lately, with seven of his eight assists coming over the past seven games.
Mikhail Sergachev, TB at CAR ($4,700): Sergachev has scored six points in his past five games and I like the value proposition more than Hedman. Sergachev ranks slightly ahead of Hedman in 5v5 CF/60 (51.64 vs. 50.48), although he has the disadvantage of playing PP2.
Rasmus Andersson, CGY at EDM ($4,300): After temporarily losing power-play duties to both Mark Giordano and Juuso Valimaki, Andersson was once again the top dog with 2:54 PP TOI to lead all Flames' defenseman yesterday. The power play was shut out on three tries, but don't expect that to happen again against the Oilers' 22nd ranked PK.
