This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are six matchups Wednesday, and they're all good – here's the rundown:
Maple Leafs at Oilers (8 p.m. EST): It can't happen a third straight time, can it? The Oilers have been shut out in back-to-back games by the Leafs' two backups. It's been the best defensive performance the Leafs have displayed in recent memory, and while a third straight shutout may be unlikely, it's clear the Leafs are the better team.
Blues at Ducks (9:30 p.m.): The Ducks are looking to avoid their eighth straight loss and they're coming close; their past four games have been decided by just one goal, and their scoring woes have somewhat dissipated. The Blues have allowed 10 goals in their past two games, both of which have been wins.
Wild at Golden Knights (10 p.m.): Mark Stone The Knights came back from a two-goal deficit to win a thriller in overtime, and the first meeting between the two scoring West teams didn't disappoint. In nine meetings all-time against each other, they've combined for less than five goals just once.
Avalanche at Sharks (10:30 p.m.): The Avs should bounce back after an embarrassing 6-2 loss to a team they should have no trouble beating. They simply allowed too many breakaways, and it's their second four-goal loss in four games.
GOALIES
Jordan Binnington, STL at ANH ($7,500): Binnington will likely draw the start after Ville Husso started last game and barely won. The Blues defense and goaltending have been uncharacteristically bad, and the Ducks are still very weak at scoring despite their recent outburst. This could be a value play since the Blues should be heavily favored.
Jonathan Quick, LA vs. ARI ($7,300): Quick will probably start after Cal Petersen lost his last start, even though Petersen put in a pretty good performance. Quick has been excellent lately, allowing just five goals in his past four games. The Kings have won both of their meetings this season.
VALUE PLAYS
Zach Sanford, STL at ANH ($4,100): Sanford scored three points on six shots after being moved to the top line with Jordan Kyrou. The Ducks weren't good, obviously, but it's still positive that Sanford is getting such a big responsibility. Sanford was part of head coach Craig Berube's best five-man unit, skating with Torey Krug and Justin Faulk roughly three-quarters of the time when his line was on the ice.
Gabriel Vilardi, LA vs. ARI ($3,400): The underlying numbers for Vilardi aren't good, but he's getting consistent top-six minutes and playing time on the power play. He posted a line of zeroes against the Wild, but prior to that had scored five points in seven games, including a goal and an assist against the Coyotes. It will be their third meeting this season and the Coyotes have allowed three or more goals in five straight games.
Trevor Zegras, ANH vs. STL ($3,200): The hotshot rookie tried the Michigan in just his fourth NHL game, and despite getting held off the score sheet finished the night with five shots. It's a matter of time for the talented playmaker, who's also been a fitting addition to the Ducks power play. The Blues have not been sharp on defense and the goaltending has been lackluster. Max Jones ($3,900) is another strong value player based on his underlying possession metrics.
Oskar Sundqvist, STL at ANH ($3,200): Sundqvist is a solid two-way player who can move up and down the lineup at even strength and has also become a fixture on the top power-play unit this season. The Blues power play is horrendous, so that's a downer, but at least Sundqvist is getting a lot of playing time and the Ducks shouldn't be difficult to score against. Sundqvist has two points in his past three games.
LINE STACKS
Bruins vs. Capitals
Patrice Bergeron (C - $7,600), David Pastrnak (W - $8,500), Brad Marchand (W - $7,800)
Charlie Coyle's really the only other forward who's been scoring consistently, otherwise the B's are again depending on the Perfection Line to provide most of the offense. Marchand has seven points in his past six games and Pastrnak is on a two-game, two-assist streak. They've combined for nine points in two games against the Caps.
Blues at Ducks
Ryan O'Reilly (C - $6,800), Jordan Kyrou (W - $4,300), Zach Sanford (W - $4,100)
Kyrou's been one of their best players all season and Sanford brings another dimension of offense to the Blues' top line. It's a relatively inexpensive stack against a team that has allowed 21 goals in their past five games.
Kings vs. Coyotes
Anze Kopitar (C - $7,000), Dustin Brown (W - $6,100), Alex Iafallo (W - $5,100)
This trio has combined to score exactly one-third of the Kings' 60 goals, and the Coyotes aren't exactly tough to beat right now, having allowed nine goals in their past two games and another six in two games against the Ducks before that.
Avalanche at Sharks
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $8,400), Gabriel Landeskog (W - $6,200), Mikko Rantanen (W - $8,000)
It was a bad game all-round for the Avs, but the big line is re-united and that bodes well for a potential revenge game. MacKinnon continues to be a machine, scoring a point in his third straight game and generated 13 shots, while Landeskog is starting to sizzle with two goals in two games after going five games without a point.
DEFENSEMEN
Shea Theodore, VGK vs. MIN ($6,200): Theodore has scored three points on seven shots in his past two games and continues to be a menace in transition. He led all Knights players with 26 scoring chances created and ranked second among defenseman with a 57.78 CF%, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Matt Dumba, MIN at VGK ($4,800): I like Dumba because even if he doesn't score a point, he can still provide fantasy points from other categories. Vegas might be tough to beat, but I prefer Dumba's consistency rather than hoping someone like Cam Fowler ($4,700) stays hot against a struggling team (Blues) even though he has just two primary assists this season.
Erik Karlsson, SJ vs. COL ($4,500): Karlsson's name hasn't appeared in this place for quite some time – for good reason – but if he can get pucks on net, he's a potential value play. He's registered 14 shots in his past four games, compared to 18 in his previous 10.
