This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's a nine-game slate for Thursday and it will end slightly earlier than usual with the latest game being a 9 p.m. EST start. The marquee matchup will be Penguins at Lightning, where the two-time defending Cup champs take on a surprisingly strong and veteran-laden Pens squad. There should be plenty of lopsided matchups — Senators at Panthers, Oilers at Blackhawks, Avalanche at Coyotes and Canadiens at Flames among them — and these would be the games to target as they have the highest potential for high scores.
GOALIES
Frederik Andersen, CAR at WSH ($7,700): Andersen has quietly put together a Vezina-caliber season, and the Caps have been a bottom-10 team since the calendar flipped. Andersen is gunning for his fifth straight win and has allowed just seven goals in his previous four games. Goal support shouldn't be a problem either with the Caps struggling in their own end, allowing 3.40 goals per game since Feb. 1.
Kaapo Kahkonen, MIN at PHI ($7,500): Based on the Wild's rotation, Kahkonen should get the nod after Cam Talbot lost to the Flames in his previous start. Kahkonen hasn't been very sharp lately, allowing at least three goals in three of his past four starts, but he's also facing the league's fourth-worst team in GF/GP.
Thatcher Demko, VAN at NYI ($7,200): The fear for the Canucks is fatigue setting in for Demko, who has been brilliant but had his break cut short after he was forced to come in relief for Jaroslav Halak in their loss to the Devils. The Canucks offense should have enough firepower to support Demko, who faces an offense that ranks 27th in GF/GP.
VALUE PLAYS
Erik Haula, BOS at VGK ($4,200): Haula centers the second line and both Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak, and they seem to have established some good chemistry with each player working on their own multi-game point streaks. Haula is on a four-game burner with two goals and three assists, and the Knights are a vulnerable opponent without their top two wingers and Alec Martinez, and Robin Lehner has so far been very average this season.
Alex Newhook, COL at ARI ($4,500): Valeri Nichushkin's upper-body injury forced him to miss the previous game, and Newhook was moved up to the second line with Nazem Kadri and Gabriel Landeskog while Andre Burakovsky moved up to Nathan MacKinnon's line. Newhook has plenty of talent and over the past four games he has registered three helpers and 12 shots; his offensive opportunities should increase in a matchup the Avs should dominate. Note Newhook is listed as a center even though he's the right winger on Kadri's line.
Mason Marchment, FLA at OTT ($5,600): The constant on Aleksander Barkov's line has been Carter Verhaeghe, with a rotating cast on the right wing completing the line. Lately, it's been Marchment filling in. Though he didn't score a point, he finished with five shots in 18 minutes against the Oilers, and has scored five points in his past five games thanks to his hat-trick performance against the Wild.
LINE STACKS
Wild at Flyers
Frederick Gaudreau (C - $4,800), Matt Boldy (W - $6,300), Kevin Fiala (W - $6,100)
This line was shut out in their last game against the Flames but the Flyers will have a much harder time doing that. Their defense and goaltending have been weak points all season, and even if they manage to shut down Kirill Kaprizov's line, they lack the requisite depth to take on this speedy, dangerous line. It's a good value stack in a matchup that favors the Wild by a significant margin even though they're coming off two straight losses to the Flames.
Canucks at Islanders
Elias Pettersson (C – $6,000), Conor Garland (W - $5,500), Nils Hoglander (W - $3,600)
Pettersson is the preferred trigger man on the Canucks' top power play unit, which is a great sign as he turns his season around. Garland is a high-event right winger and very good at puck retrievals and isn't afraid to shoot the puck, and adds some value playing on the second power play unit. Hoglander's status is a bit more fluid, and he will be a game-time decision since he's been in Bruce Boudreau's doghouse recently. If Hoglander does not play, look for AHL call-up Phil Di Giuseppe ($3,100) to take his place, providing further savings for DFS managers.
DEFENSEMEN
Rasmus Andersson, CGY vs. MON ($5,700): Andersson scored three points in a home-and-home series against the Wild, including a power-play assist in their last game. He now gets to face the league's second-worst penalty kill to extend his point streak, and despite the Habs' improvement under Martin St. Louis, still have no immediate solution to their porous goaltending.
Jaccob Slavin, CAR at WSH ($5,600): Slavin's gone three games without a point but continues to quarterback the top power play unit and has logged a ton of minutes in Tony DeAngelo's absence. The Caps average penalty killing is likely no match for the Canes' 5th-ranked power play, and in their last meeting in November, Slavin led all Canes defenseman in ice time with 20:10 TOI.
