This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
If you like hockey, Saturday is your day with 30 NHL teams in action. Sorry, Buffalo and Carolina, you don't get to be part of the fun! Taking out the early starts, there are 11 games on this slate with the first one starting at 7 p.m. EST. Here are my lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
Though almost the entire NHL is in action Saturday, there were only two games on Friday so only two clubs are on the second day of a back-to-back with Vegas visiting Chicago and Pittsburgh going to Washington.
GOALIES
Logan Thompson, WAS vs. PIT ($8,000): Charlie Lindgren's injury put a damper on Washington's goaltending rotation, but Thompson hasn't skipped a beat with a 1.05 GAA and .961 save percentage over his last five games. While Pittsburgh's mediocre offense is better than its terrible defense, the aging team will be on the road for the second straight night and even Sidney Crosby is human.
Marc-Andre Fleury, MIN at NAS ($7,400): Though the Ducks have fallen below the Predators in offense, the latter still rank 31st at 2.45 goals per game. The Wild have decided to gift Fleury this matchup, and the veteran netminder enters with a 2.54 GAA and .910 save percentage.
Yaroslav Askarov, SAN at NYI ($6,800): The Sharks are easing Askarov into action, but he should be starting Saturday after sitting the last two. He's endured a couple subpar outings, yet maintains a .917 save percentage on the season through eight appearances. The Islanders have also averaged 2.61 goals, so I believe Askarov can handle this road matchup.
VALUE PLAYS
Tomas Hertl, VGK at CHI ($6,800): Hertl has tallied 10 points and 31 shots across 12 games. Though the Golden Knights are the team on the second leg of a back-to-back, this matchup is still worth considering as the Blackhawks are bottom-five in GAA and shots allowed.
Vincent Trocheck, NYR vs. CLM ($6,600): Trocheck has produced five goals and four assists over his last 10 outings alongside 33 shots with a sustainable 15.2 shooting percentage. Plenty of pucks go in against the Blue Jackets and their 3.42 GAA.
Max Domi, TOR at MON ($4,700): Stability hasn't really been a part of Domi's NHL career as he's moved from team to team and also tends to bounce around the lineup. But with John Tavares out, Domi logged 20:03 last time out as the second-line center next to William Nylander. He now returns to his former club to face a Montreal team carrying a 3.23 GAA.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Capitals vs. Penguins
Pierre-Luc Dubois (C - $5,700), Alex Ovechkin (W - $8,400), Aliaksei Protas (W - $6,300)
The Penguins carry the league's highest GAA, are bottom-five in shots allowed per game, and their penalty kill is average. With all that and being away for a second consecutive day, Washington's top line is primed to take advantage.
Dubois may only have one point during his last four games, but he notched 12 in 11 before that. He's also registered an 9.9 shooting percentage over, which is a number that should improve given his career 12.4. You think Ovechkin might be looking to take advantage of this opportunity? Since returning from injury, he's potted six goals on 42 shots and is set on getting closer and closer to breaking Wayne Gretzky's record. Ovi is also the only one of these three who's on the top power play. Protas is on a bit of a cold run, yet has 18 goals and 18 assists and facing the Penguins could get him back on track.
Hockey Club vs. Blues
Logan Cooley (C - $6,300), Clayton Keller (W - $7,100), Nick Schmaltz (W - $5,900)
Utah makes stacking straightforward when it faces a dodgy penalty kill as its first line features three players on the top man-advantage while the Blues have the 27th-ranked penalty kill. Jordan Binnington has posted a 2.79 GAA, but with a .900 save percentage. His defense has helped him out at even-strength, but clearly not when down a man.
Cooley has recorded 16 points over his last 16 games, with nine of those on the power play. Unsurprisingly, Keller has also been hot during that situation over that stretch with three goals and nine assists. Schmaltz is riding a four-game scoring streak with a PPP in each of his last two matchups to give him 12 overall.
DEFENSEMEN
Jake Walman, SAN at NYI ($6,500): Walman is the Sharks' defenseman on the top power-play unit and has averaged 2:48 with six points over 34 games. The Islanders list the worst penalty kill, so any PP time could pay off
Jakob Chychrun, WAS vs. PIT ($6,200): Chychrun has notched nine points in his last nine games alongside 33 shots. The Penguins give up plenty of pucks on net as they're one of five teams over 30 a night while listing the league's worst GAA.
Noah Dobson, NYI vs. SAN ($6,200): Even if Askarov has been better than the other Sharks' netminders, their defense isn't any better having surrendered 32.2 shots per outing. And getting pucks on target is Dobson's strong suit with 138 shots on the year.
