This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
With bubble teams across the league almost out of chances to impress their front office before the March 8 trade deadline, there are nine games on the docket tonight. The schedule includes the likes of Pittsburgh, New Jersey, the Islanders, St. Louis and Seattle, which all still have an outside hope of making the playoffs. The Kraken's management might have already decided to go the route of selling, though, given that Seattle, which also played Monday, held out Alexander Wennberg for "trade-related issues."
SLATE PREVIEW
Columbus, Florida, St. Louis, Boston and Chicago are all in the second half of a back-to-back in addition to the aforementioned Kraken, so fatigue might be a factor for those six squads. You should also keep an eye out for other trade candidates potentially scratched tonight.
GOALIES
Jake Oettinger, DAL at SJS ($8,200): Oettinger is having a rough campaign with a 2.89 GAA and a .903 save percentage across 39 games. However, he's getting plenty of goal support, which has resulted in an impressive 23-11-4 record, and the goaltender will be up against the lowly Sharks tonight, who rank 31st offensively with just 2.13 goals per game. To make Oettinger even more appealing, the 25-year-old has performed well recently, posting a 3-1-0 record, 2.21 GAA and .907 save percentage over his past four appearances.
Juuse Saros, NAS vs. MON ($8,000): Saros' 26-21-2 record, 2.82 GAA and .908 save percentage through 49 contests leaves a bit to be desired, but lately, he's been red hot, providing a 1.34 GAA and a .954 save percentage while winning his last six starts. Montreal, which ranks 27th offensively with 2.77 goals per game, should be a favorable matchup for him.
Ilya Sorokin NYI vs. STL ($7,700): If you're looking for a cheaper option, Sorokin is a strong selection. The Blues are 26th offensively with just 2.87 goals per game, so they're not well equipped to give the Islanders netminder a lot of trouble. Sorokin has also won his last three appearances while saving 74 of 80 shots (.925 save percentage).
VALUE PLAYS
Jack Roslovic, CLM at PIT ($4,700): Roslovic has four goals and 20 points in 37 outings this year, so he hasn't been the most productive of forwards, but a lot of those contributions have come in recent weeks. The 27-year-old has collected two goals and 10 points across his last nine contests. It helps that he's seen an uptick in responsibilities, averaging 18:43 of ice time over that nine-game span, compared to 15:33 during his first 28 contests. As long as he continues to be utilized like he has recently, his production remains noteworthy.
Matias Maccelli, ARI vs. CHI ($4,500): Among players who would qualify as value plays, Maccelli is about as hot as they come. The 23-year-old is on a six-game scoring streak and has provided three goals and 10 points over his past eight contests. He's having a productive season overall, supplying 11 goals and 44 points in 61 contests, which puts him on track to surpass his career high of 49 points, which was established in 2022-23.
Valtteri Puustinen, PIT vs. CLM ($3,700): With Jake Guentzel (upper body) on the shelf and Bryan Rust (upper body) potentially unavailable as well, Puustinen is projected to serve on the second line alongside Evgeni Malkin and skate on the first power-play unit. That's a great assignment for a player at Puustinen's price point. The 24-year-old as also been solid recently, providing a goal and five points across his past seven appearances.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Panthers at Devils
Aleksander Barkov (C - $8,000), Sam Reinhart (W - $9,400), Carter Verhaeghe (W - $8,600)
Reinhart had a stretch of seven games without a goal from Feb. 14-27, but he's ended that drought by providing three markers over his past two contests. That brings him up to 42 goals and 72 points in 61 outings, putting him second in the goal race behind just Auston Matthews.
Meanwhile, Verhaeghe has been a steady contributor, supplying at least a point in 11 of his past 13 games and 14 of his last 17 contests. He's collected 30 markers and 63 points through 61 outings this year. Barkov hasn't been quite as reliable, but he's hot with three goals and six points over his last four appearances and has a superb 60 points (15 goals) in 55 contests in 2023-24.
Kings vs. Canucks
Phillip Danault (C - $5,800), Kevin Fiala (W - $7,300), Trevor Moore (W - $7,200)
Fiala is what makes this line worthy of consideration. The 27-year-old is one of the hottest players in the league with six goals and 12 points across his last seven games. That gives him an impressive 55 points (19 goals) through 60 outings this year. He's not the only part of this unit worth selecting, though. Danault is coming off a hat trick Sunday, which brings him up to 14 goals and 36 points over his past 60 contests. Those overall numbers aren't great, but his price point is reasonable, and given what he just did, he's a solid addition.
To round out the line, Moore has supplied two goals and five points through four contests. He's up to 23 goals and 42 points across 60 outings. Moore and Faila are also part of the top power-play unit, which gives them further opportunities. Also part of the first power play is Anze Kopitar (C - $6,600), who has three goals and nine points over his last 10 contests, bringing him up to 18 goals and 51 points in 60 games this season. If you have room for Kopitar, you could consider adding him as well to double down on LA.
DEFENSEMEN
Roman Josi, NAS vs. MON ($7,700): Josi is entering Tuesday's action on a five-game scoring streak in which he's supplied four goals and nine points. He's having a fantastic campaign in 2023-24, contributing 15 markers and 61 points through 62 outings.
Brandon Montour, FLA at NJD ($6,100): Montour's 2023-24 campaign will go down as a decline from his 73-point showing last season, but we've been seeing shades of his past production recently. He's scored four goals and 13 points over his past seven games, bringing him up to six goals and 25 points through 45 appearances overall.
Ryan McDonagh, NAS vs. MON ($4,200): With three goals and 22 points in 55 contests in 2023-24, McDonagh isn't the same level of offensive contributor he once was. Still, he's a nice pickup at the point, given his recent success. The 34-year-old blueliner has two goals and 11 points across his past 12 games.
