This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
What was supposed to be an 11-game slate has now been reduced to eight. So far, the only division that hasn't had any games postponed has been the Canadian division, which has three games tonight with Senators at Canadiens (7 p.m. EST), Canucks at Maple Leafs (7 p.m.) and Flames at Jets (8 p.m.).
The rest of the slate is dominated by the Central Division, highlighted by an intriguing affair between the Panthers (-118) and the Predators. Even the most optimistic Panthers fan would acknowledge that their 5-0-1 start is pretty incredible. A lot of metrics indicate the Panthers are no fluke — 3.50 GP/GP (t-5th), 36.8 PP% (4th), 53.5 5v5 CF% (7th), 52.97 5v5 xGF% (10th) — but also know that the combined records of the opponents they've played so far is 8-12-6 (excluding games vs. the Panthers).
(All fancy stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick)...
GOALIES
Anton Khudobin, DAL at CBJ ($8,100): Sure, the Jackets now have Patrik Laine, but who's going to set him up? The Jackets are 27th in GF/GP (2.36), 23rd on the PP (13.8%) and 22nd in Shots/GP (29.0). Head coach John Tortorella talked about the team's identity following another loss, which means their next game is going to a low-scoring grind. That's good for Khudobin.
Jordan Binnington, STL vs. ARI ($7,600): It was a close call last game but Binnington still managed to improve to 6-1-1 on the season with a 2.55 GAA and .917 Sv%. There's a common theme between these three goalie targets, and it's that they're all facing low-scoring teams. The Coyotes are 24th in GF/GP (2.56), 17th on the PP (20.6%) and 23rd in Shots/GP (28.9).
Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA vs. NSH ($7,300): The Preds are 2-4-0 when they have a higher CF% than their opponent. Go figure. Either way, their offense has been truly bad, ranking 28th in GF/GP (2.33) and 28th on the PP (11.1%). With the amount of goal support Bobrovsky is getting, this should be a win, especially if his play keeps trending up.
VALUE PLAYS
Max Domi, CBJ vs. DAL ($4,200): Head coach John Tortorella has done the unthinkable – he stacked a line. Domi, Alexandre Texier and Patrik Laine will all play together, and it's rare to see the Jackets load up because they usually spread their already-thin talent around. Domi is the stronger value play relative to Texier ($4,500) since both are expected to be on the ice at the same times.
Jordan Staal, CAR at CHI ($3,900): There's not much separating Staal and Vincent Trocheck ($4,800) other than Trocheck playing PP1 and Staal playing PP2. Staal, however, has the been more productive player of late with a four-game point streak, giving him six points in just five games this season.
Nils Hoglander, VAN at TOR ($3,900): Perhaps the Habs are just too tough of an opponent, but even though Hoglander was held to just two shots in two games, he's been very good at creating chances. Against a team whose goaltending and defense won't be nearly as stout, perhaps Hoglander will get luckier. He's playing on a line with franchise center Elias Pettersson.
Philipp Kurashev, CHI vs. CAR ($3,700): Who would've thought playing with Patrick Kane would boost your numbers? Kurashev has scored three points in his past two games as the top-line center and he gets some additional time on PP2.
Nick Cousins, NSH at FLA ($3,300): He's getting a free ride on the top line and he hasn't looked completely out of place. The Preds offense is struggling as a whole, but Cousins has done OK for himself, scoring three points in his past four games.
LINE STACKS
Canadiens vs. Senators
Nick Suzuki (C - $5,900), Josh Anderson (W - $4,300), Jonathan Drouin (W - $4,500)
Any line against the Sens will do, but I like how Anderson has played well against every team and not just Vancouver (ahem, Tyler Toffoli), and how Drouin has had some past success against them with 13 points in 17 games.
Maple Leafs vs. Canucks
Auston Matthews (C - $8,700), Mitch Marner (W - $7,600), Zach Hyman (W - $4,800)
Matthews has scored in five straight games, and it could be a sixth if the Canucks keep allowing a league-high 36 shots per game. They have a combined 18 points in 23 games against the Canucks over the past five seasons.
Blues vs. Coyotes
Brayden Schenn (C - $6,100), Jordan Kyrou (W - $4,300), Jaden Schwartz (W - $5,700)
They've been one of the best lines in the league ever since they were put together. They scored three points and registered three shots last game. The Coyotes do a pretty good job of limiting shots (28.1 SA/GP, 11th-lowest) but they don't get much goal support and the goaltending has been lackluster.
DEFENSEMEN
Jeff Petry, MON vs. OTT ($5,500): Petry is second (!) in scoring among defensemen with 13 points in 10 games. Only John Klingberg has a better point-per-game average (min. 5 GP) and, somehow, I don't think Petry's hot streak will suddenly run cold against the Sens.
Adam Fox, NYR vs. WSH ($4,300): Fox is the Rangers' most indispensable defenseman, leading them in pretty much every category, including points (6), power-play points (5) and ice time (24:16 TOI/GP). The Caps PK has not fared well, ranking 21st in the league and have the worst penalty differential in the league at minus-14.
Justin Faulk, STL vs. ARI ($4,100): He's actually been playing quite well this season despite scoring just three goals and four points. The Blues have been generating a lot of chances when he's on the ice, and he among Blues defensemen ranks first in both CF% (55.74%) and xGF% (61.44%) with a minimum of five games played. The drawback is that Faulk doesn't play much on the power play.
