This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
Saturday was packed to the brim with NHL action. Sunday is only slightly less busy with eight games on the DFS slate starting at 6 p.m. EST or later. That's an hour earlier than usual, but that should be hopefully manageable on a Sunday. With that in mind, onto the recommendations!
SLATE PREVIEW
One need not be Sherlock Holmes to deduce a lot of teams are on the second day of a back-to-back Sunday. That is the case for all four teams playing in the afternoon before the DFS slate kicks in, and all but four for the evening schedule. Two of those clubs - San Jose and Calgary - face each other. So who are the lucky two that got to rest Saturday and face an opponent closing out a second straight day? The Islanders are only somewhat fortunate as they are home, though they'll be going up against the Stars who've saved Jake Oettinger for this matchup. So the Lightning, who host the Kraken, are the true winners on that front.
GOALIES
Dustin Wolf, CGY vs. SAN ($8,000): Wolf won't likely manage a real challenge of Macklin Celebrini for the Calder, but I'll take the rookie goalie against San Jose on Sunday. He was on a tough run before the break, yet he's still posted a .912 save percentage and 2.63 GAA overall. While the Sharks aren't last in goals per game, they are well in the bottom-five. They're also last in GAA, making it more likely Wolf picks up a home win.
Mackenzie Blackwood, COL at STL ($7,800): Scott Wedgewood started Saturday, leaving Blackwood to go Sunday. Since joining the Avs, Blackwood has registered a 2.13 GAA and .922 save percentage across 22 appearances. The Blues shouldn't prove too imposing, even if they're at home since they rank bottom-seven in goals and shots.
VALUE PLAYS
Lucas Raymond, DET vs. ANA ($6,300): Raymond picked up where he left off after returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off with a goal and assist against the Wild on Saturday. He's riding a four-game scoring streak that now has him up to 28 points over his last 22 outings. The Ducks are bottom-eight in shots allowed per game and penalty-kill percentage while Lukas Dostal has slowed down after a strong start with a 3.16 GAA and .900 save percentage from his last 14 games.
Matthew Knies, TOR at CHI ($6,300): Knies logs way more minutes and is skating with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, but he's already surpassed his point total from his rookie campaign and comfortably exceeded his goal total with 21 so far. Chicago is one of the teams you find in the bottom-five in both GAA and shots allowed, and Arvid Soderblom comes in with a career .891 save percentage.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Lightning vs. Kraken
Brayden Point (C - $7,200), Brandon Hagel (W - $6,800), Michael Eyssimont (W - $3,600)
It's not merely that the Kraken are on the road for the second day of a back-to-back and the Lightning are rested. Joey Daccord started Saturday, so his backup at present is Ales Stezka. The 28-year-old has never made an NHL start. Given the lengthy break in action, maybe the Kraken try and give Daccord a go Sunday. Either way, I'm happy to stack Tampa's second line featuring two top-level players and…a forward playing with two top-level players.
Point doesn't need to join forces with the likes of Nikita Kucherov or Steven Stamkos to produce points as he got to 90 points in each of his previous two seasons. And the same holds true this year with 30 goals and 27 assists through 50 games. It does help that Point has averaged 3:31 on the power play next to stars like Kucherov, yet he's still really good. Hagel has taken things to a new level this year as he's primed to beat his career-highs in goals and points with 26 and 62 and multiple points in three of his last six. As for Eyssimont, he offers upside skating beside two high achievers while carrying a reasonable salary. He's only produced a 4.5 shooting percentage, which is low for a forward. And his shooting percentage was only 7.4 last year, which is technically better.
Hockey Club vs. Canucks
Alex Kerfoot (C - $4,500), Clayton Keller (W - $7,600), Nick Schmaltz (W - $5,900)
After a visit to Vegas late Saturday night, the Canucks now find themselves in Salt Lake City. The Canucks are also once again finding themselves without a healthy Thatcher Demko. Arturs Silovs is back in the backup role and set to start Sunday. He's yet to stick in the NHL, and a career .877 save percentage through 16 games speaks to why. This trio is kind of like a lesser version of the previous offering. But while Keller and Schmaltz aren't Point and Hagel, Kerfoot is decidedly better than Eyssimont.
Kerfoot has only notched 16 points, yet was only in a supplementary role until the injury to Logan Cooley. And he posted 45 points last season, his fourth with at least 40. Keller soared past 40 points a while ago as his 61 have him on pace to once again be a point-a-game player. He's also directed 33 shots on net in his last eight outings. Schmaltz has yet to get his shooting percentage to where it usually is, and that bad puck luck has him sitting on 11 goals. That being said, he's been a 20-goal scorer during each of the last three years and already hit 30 assists for the fourth straight time.
DEFENSEMEN
MacKenzie Weegar, CGY vs. SAN ($6,400): These recommendations are practically saturated with Mackenzies. With good reason given the play of both Blackwood and Weegar, not to mention their Sunday opposition. In the five games before the break, Weegar tallied six assists and 14 shots. The Sharks have given up an average of 32.1 shots while struggling to a 3.72 GAA. After Pittsburgh gave up eight goals Saturday, they're 31st at 3.52. That's how bad San Jose has been at goal prevention.
Alexander Romanov, NYI vs. DAL ($5,300): Romanov picking up hits and blocked shots isn't unexpected, yet he did produced six points and 19 shots across nine games before the break. Every ounce of production he's managed has come without power-play time, which is good considering the Stars maintain a top-five penalty kill. Even with Dallas playing for a second straight day and the Islanders rested, I'm not going to reply on man-advantage success from the hosts. And that's why Romanov stands out to me.
