This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
After a busy "welcome back" weekend from the NHL, Monday is a real step down in terms of action. There are only two games on the slate, with the first starting at 7:30 p.m. ET. You're not tired of the NHL, though, and certainly not of NHL DFS contests. Here are my lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
We do have one team on the second leg of a back-to-back, and it's good news for DFS players. The Sharks, perhaps the NHL's worst team, are on the road to face the Jets.
GOALIE
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG vs. SAN ($8,400): You could consider Adin Hill, coming off a strong start, against the Kings. However, that's only a decent matchup, especially on the road. Sometimes, though, it just makes sense to roster the reigning Vezina winner (who is also the expected Vezina winner) at home against one of the NHL's worst offenses. The Sharks are 31st in goals per game and on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back. Just go with Hellebuyck and roll from there.
VALUE PLAY/ONE-OFF
Alex Laferriere, LOS vs. VGK ($4,800): Spoiler alert: My stack is coming from the Jets. Double spoiler alert: No Sharks are making the cut in terms of recommendations this time around. That left the Kings and the Golden Knights, and the former has more offensive potential. Hill has not been as good as Darcy Kuemper, and the Kings have a top-eight penalty kill while the Golden Knights are hovering just above the bottom 10. Laferriere hasn't produced a ton on the power play, but he's averaged 2:04 per game with the extra man. Plus, over his last nine games he has five points and, significantly, 31 shots on target.
FORWARD LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Jets vs. Sharks
Vladislav Namestnikov (C - $4,500), Nikolaj Ehlers (W - $7,000), Cole Perfetti (W - $6,100)
You can afford to save some salary to splash elsewhere by stacking Winnipeg's second line instead of the first. The matchup delivers plenty of value. San Jose is battling Anaheim for last in shots on net allowed per game and is comfortably last in GAA. It is also on the road for the second game of a back-to-back. All 32 teams could be in action Monday and I would still be looking to the Jets for a stack in this matchup.
Namestnikov just earned himself a two-year extension and his recent run of play showcases why the Jets like having him around as a second-line center. He's on a five-game point streak and has three multi-point games in his last nine outings. Owing to the fact he's often struggled to play close to a full season, you may not realize that Ehlers has tallied 249 points over 284 games across the last five seasons. That includes 49 points in 48 outings this year. Perfetti is an erratic scorer, but one month ago (literally January 24) he scored a hat trick against Utah and that seemed to get him into gear. He's on a six-game point streak.
DEFENSEMEN
Neal Pionk, WPG vs. SAN ($5,200): I'll throw you a couple defensemen as not to boil this down to "Jets versus Sharks, do I need to draw you a map?" Also, I just realized this is the West Side Story matchup. Even if Josh Morrissey is good to go Monday, Pionk has 36 points in 57 games this year which is a strong number for a number-two defenseman. He's also put multiple shots on goal in eight of his last nine contests, and that's not the norm for the vast majority of blue liners.
Vladislav Gavrikov, LOS vs. VGK ($4,500): The return of Drew Doughty has not been to the benefit of Brandt Clarke or (especially) Jordan Spence, but Gavrikov is just fine. Even though he doesn't play on the power play the Russian has averaged a robust 24:07 per game in ice time. Ah, but what about in the seven games since Doughty returned? His ice time fell by…negative 1:10 (i.e. he's averaged 25:17 per game). Gavrikov may only have 19 points on the season, but in his last 10 games he has 25 shots on net and 23 blocked shots. He's not just skating in circle for 24 minutes a night.
