This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are seven games for a rather light Thursday slate, but it's highlighted by a marquee matchup between the Lightning and Avalanche. The Leafs and Flames will battle for supremacy in Canada in what should be another close game.
Thursday will also see the debut of Hall of Famer Martin St. Louis behind the Habs bench, who was hired as the interim head coach following the firing of Dominique Ducharme on Wednesday. Perhaps St. Louis will give the Habs a jolt, but they have a long way to go before they start winning games again.
GOALIES
Frederik Andersen, CAR at BOS ($8,200): The Bruins will be without the injured Patrice Bergeron and the suspended Brad Marchand, and that pretty much tilts everything in the Canes' favor. The B's live and die with their top line, and not having their two best players will take a huge punch out of their offense.
Tristan Jarry, PIT at OTT ($7,900): Matt Murray is expected to start and he's been stealing games for the Sens, but the Pens should have no problems given their experience and offense. The Pens have lost to the Sens just twice in regulation over the past five years, and both losses occurred because the Pens' goaltending wasn't very good. Jarry is 2-0-0 with a .913 Sv% in his career against the Sens.
Jordan Binnington, STL vs. NJ ($7,800): It's highly unlikely the Devils get consecutive solid goaltending performances from Jon Gillies, which means this should be an easy assignment for the Blues. Both Binnington and Ville Husso should be good choices, though Husso should be the better choice since he's played better and on the verge of taking over the starting job.
Samuel Montembeault, MON vs. WSH ($6,800): This is a contrarian play, but it may not be as lopsided as everyone thinks. The Habs should be energized with a new coach, and the Caps are expected to start Ilya Samsonov, who has lost five of his past six decisions. The Caps have not been scoring at their usual pace, ranking 21st in GF/GP and 24th on the PP since Jan. 1. It's a risky play, but there's suddenly some hope with the Habs as they try to turn the franchise around.
VALUE PLAYS
Alex Newhook, COL vs. TB ($4,500): Scoring against Andrei Vasilevskiy will not be easy, but playing on the wing with Nazem Kadri at center should lessen the pressure on Newhook. He will have fewer responsibilities on defense, and with Andre Burakovsky on the other wing, it also gives Newhook another playmaker to generate offense. Newhook missed the last game due to illness but is expected to play.
Cole Caufield, MON vs. WSH ($4,000): Caufield has scored only one goal in an incredibly disappointing season, but a new coach might change that. It's not hard to see the similarities between Caufield and St-Louis – both are undersized scoring wingers from the NCAA, so who better to unlock Caufield's potential than the Hall of Famer? Caufield's even-strength play has been very uneven, but he remains a high-volume shooter.
Cole Sillinger, CBJ at BUF ($4,000): Sillinger will center the second line between Oliver Bjorkstrand and Jakub Voracek, and it should be a good matchup against the Sabres' mediocre goaltending. They are expected to start Craig Anderson, who has allowed five goals in two of his past five games.
Joe Snively, WSH at MON ($3,200): Snively remains in the top six even with the return of Alex Ovechkin, skating on the second line with Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson. The Habs should be tougher to play against following a coaching change, but the results are unlikely to be immediate. The Caps are slumping, but Snively's relatively unknown and a sneaky value play.
LINE STACKS
Blue Jackets at Sabres
Boone Jenner (W - $6,600), Gustav Nyquist (W - $5,200), Patrik Laine (W - $7,000)
Laine became the first Jacket to score two goals in three consecutive games, and despite a prolonged absence due to injury, has been very good all season. He's scored 12 goals in 25 games and Nyquist is working on a four-game point streak. Note Jenner is listed as a winger even though he centers this line, so if fantasy managers want to only pick two for their winger slots, it should be Nyquist and Laine.
Blues vs. Devils
Robert Thomas (C - $4,900), Jordan Kyrou (W - $7,900), Vladimir Tarasenko (W - $8,600)
The Blues have the advantage with their depth, but the Devils without Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton should make things even easier. This line was a combined minus-9 in their last game against the Jets, which is somewhat concerning, but it's also arguably the Blues' most dangerous offensive line. Tarasenko and Kyrou are both averaging a point per game or better, while Thomas isn't far behind with 32 points in 37 games.
DEFENSEMEN
Tony DeAngelo, CAR at BOS ($6,600): It should be an easy assignment for DeAngelo against a Bruins PK that won't have either Bergeron or Marchand, though the Canes generally don't draw many penalties. However, it shouldn't take the Canes many chances to get on the board, and DeAngelo has scored three points in his past two games.
Rasmus Dahlin, BUF vs. CBJ ($5,700): There's plenty of elite defenseman available, but this is a potentially high-scoring game and Dahlin has had a pretty good season, all things considered. He's been generating a lot of offense from the blue line and managed to get a shot on goal in all but four games this season. The Jackets have allowed at least three goals in five straight games.
Adam Boqvist, CBJ at BUF ($4,500): Boqvist doesn't get to play a lot, averaging just 17 minutes per game, but his offensive upside is hard to ignore. He scored two points in his last game and has managed to register a shot in three straight games, and it's a favorable matchup against the league's 26th-ranked PK.
