This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
The NHL taking Thanksgiving off (American Thanksgiving, I will specify, owing to the heavy Canadian element of the league) has led to some atypical scheduling this week. Monday is packed to the brim with 11 games on the slate. At least the common 7:00 p.m. ET beginning to said slate is in place. Here are some NHL DraftKings DFS lineup recommendations for Monday.
SLATE PREVIEW
There was only one game Sunday and there are only two games scheduled for Tuesday, so the goaltending situations are about as straightforward as they get Monday. No back-to-backs come into play at all.
GOALIES
Igor Shesterkin, NYR vs. STL ($8,400): From the "one man's trash, another man's treasure" department, the Blues were swift to ax Drew Bannister once Jim Montgomery became available. It's understandable, in a sense, given the fact the Blues have averaged 2.36 goals and 26.2 shots on net per game. Visiting the Rangers is not necessarily ideal for getting back on track, and Shesterkin has a .914 save percentage. The Rangers are surprisingly in the bottom five in shots on net allowed per game, but the Blues aren't primed to take advantage of that.
Ilya Sorokin, NYI vs. DET ($8,100): Sorokin has rebounded in a major way, especially when you account for the fact save percentages have been a bit low around the NHL to start this campaign, In general, they aren't what they used to be a few years ago (to the benefit of the goal-loving fan). These days, a .917 save percentage and a 2.52 GAA more than suffice for a No. 1 netminder. Detroit's offense, on the other hand, does not suffice. The Red Wings make it easy on opposing goalies by averaging 24.8 shots on net per contest.
Joey Daccord, SEA at ANA ($8,000): Daccord has given the Kraken reliable goaltending any expansion (or recent expansion) team desires. That makes it a lot easier to build franchise momentum. After having a .916 save percentage last season, Daccord has a .922 save percentage this year. A couple of recent good games have lifted the Ducks from the bottom of the league in goals per game to 24th. That's better, but still not terribly concerning.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Jared McCann, SEA at ANA ($6,400): McCann has had a seven-game point streak and a five-game point streak this season. He's also put 51 shots on net through 21 games, the most of any Seattle forward. The Ducks have allowed a league-high 34 shots on net per contest. I don't believe Lukas Dostal playing at a level not supported by his career .902 save percentage heading into this season is a recipe for long-term success.
Aliaksei Protas, WAS at FLA ($3,500): Is Protas Alex Ovechkin? Let me check… nope. Turns out he is not. Does Protas have 14 points in his last 13 games? Is he skating on the first line while Ovechkin is out with an injury? Yes to both. Meanwhile, the Panthers have been reeling defensively. Sergei Bobrovsky has allowed four goals or more in five of his last 10 outings.
Simon Holmstrom, NYI vs. DET ($2,500): What happens when a bad power play meets a poor penalty kill? Holmstrom has eight points in his last 11 games, with three of them coming on the power play. He is, unless I am mistaken, the only healthy Islanders forward with more than two power-play points on the season (Mathew Barzal, you are missed). The Red Wings have the league's worst penalty kill and Alex Lyon has drawn the Monday start. I'd roll the dice on Holmstrom at this salary.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Kings at Sharks
Anze Kopitar (C - $6,400), Adrian Kempe (W - $7,100), Alex Turcotte (W - $2,700)
I assume the Kings put these three together to call them the "Triple-A Line." That, or they wanted to get Turcotte going after he returned to the lineup, so they stuck him alongside the team's two best forwards. San Jose has been much of the same defensively this year. The Sharks have a 3.43 GAA and have allowed 33.3 shots on net per game. Both are in the bottom five in the NHL. While San Jose's penalty kill has been surprisingly good, there's still plenty of leeway for offensive success in this matchup.
Kopitar has continued a trend of not shooting much, but converting at a high rate when he does. He may only have five goals, but he has 18 assists. He's been held without a point only twice in his last 11 games. In a sense, Kopitar's role is to feed the puck to Kempe. The wing leads the Kings with 60 shots on net in 21 games, and he leads the team with 10 goals. The fifth overall draft pick in 2019, Turcotte has yet to find a regular role in the NHL. He has six points in 16 games this season, but his 5.9 percent shooting rate should improve. Plus, now he skates with Kopitar and Kempe. Maybe it'd help to change his last name to Kurcotte?
Golden Knights at Flyers
Jack Eichel (C - $9,000), Ivan Barbashev (W - $4,300), Alexander Holtz (W - $2,600)
Ivan Fedotov has been better than he was in his brief foray into the NHL last season. That means he has a .897 save percentage through five starts. I am not champing at the bit to back 27-year-old goalies who have allowed four goals in five of their eight NHL appearances. Vegas' top line is built upon Eichel, but he has that rising tide that lifts all boats quality and gives his wings boosted DFS upside.
Oh, and Eichel is also super good at hockey and produces plenty of points for himself. He has three three-point games in his last nine outings and has not had fewer than three shots on net in any of his last 10 contests. Barbashev is more mercurial on the ice than his center. However, he seems to be on an upswing, having multiple points in each of his last two games. Holtz had 16 goals for the Devils last season, but he got dealt nevertheless. Though the one-time seventh-overall pick only has eight points, his 3.1 percent shooting rate is unsustainably low for essentially any forward, much less one getting first-line minutes.
DEFENSEMEN
Brandon Montour, SEA at ANA ($6,900): I mentioned earlier McCann is the Seattle forward with the most shots on net, but Montour paces the team with 66 shots on net through 20 games. The defenseman also has a goal in each of his last two outings. All that shooting bodes well with a matchup against the team giving up the most shots on net.
Moritz Seider, DET at NYI ($5,800): Seider has 10 points in 20 games, but that includes four assists on the power play. I mentioned the Red Wings have the league's worst penalty kill. While true, the Islanders are just one spot above them. New York struggled on the penalty kill last year as well, so there is one area where Detroit might find some footing offensively.
J.J. Moser, TBL vs. COL ($3,300): Victor Hedman, unsurprisingly, has the most points among Lightning defensemen. Second, though, is Moser with eight through 19 games. That includes an assist in two of his last three contests. Though the Avalanche have been quite good at preventing shots on goal, they have a 3.57 GAA thanks to their goaltending.
