This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
Welcome back! The NHL returns from a three-day holiday break, and we have a hefty schedule as a late gift. There are 12 games on the slate. Here are the players to target, and to avoid, for your DFS lineups.
GOALIE
Jake Oettinger, DAL at NAS ($35): Oettinger had a bad start against the Oilers, which is understandable, but even so he has a 2.14 GAA and .929 save percentage over his last six outings. He returns to action against a Predators team that is 30th in goals per game. That could keep him hot to end 2022.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Ilya Sorokin, NYI vs. PIT ($37): Of the high-level goalies, Sorokin has the toughest matchup. The Penguins have averaged 3.42 goals and 32.8 shots on net per contest. While Sorokin has been excellent by and large, his team has given up 32.1 shots on goal per game.
CENTER
John Tavares, TOR at STL ($25): Tavares has picked up 31 points in 34 games, and that includes 16 points with the extra man. In this matchup, that's a selling point. The Blues have the 29th-ranked penalty kill.
CENTER TO AVOID
Aatu Raty, NYI vs. PIT ($29): This… is maybe a clerical error? Raty was called up from AHL Bridgeport, played in one game right before the break, and was then sent back down. As far as I know, he won't be playing in this game. And yet, here he is, at a higher salary than guys like Tavares and Evgeni Malkin. It just struck me as so strange that I had to call it out. Don't think you're missing anything. This genuinely makes no sense.
WING
Alex Tuch, BUF at CLM ($24): Tuch entered the break on a four-game point streak, and over his last 17 games he has 24 points. The Blue Jackets, meanwhile, have a 4.06 GAA and have allowed 35.5 shots on net per contest, both of which are 31st in the NHL.
Martin Necas, CAR vs. CHI ($22): Necas has been a 40-point player the last two seasons, but this year he should improve on that. He already has 33 points in only 34 games. That's on 11.8 percent shooting that is totally sustainable. Chicago, meanwhile, has a 3.75 GAA, which is fourth highest in the NHL.
WINGS TO AVOID
Alex Ovechkin, WAS at NYR ($32): Now that Ovechkin has passed Gordie Howe, will he take his foot off the accelerator? Also, quite a few of his goals have been of the empty-net variety, but on the road against the Rangers he might not get the chance. That's in part because Igor Shesterkin has a 2.26 GAA and .926 save percentage over his last 14 starts.
Brady Tkachuk, OTT vs. BOS ($26): The Bruins are quite definitively the top team defensively at this point. They have a 2.18 GAA, and the second-place team has a 2.41 GAA. On top of that, Boston has only allowed 29.4 shots on net per contest and has the third-ranked penalty kill (0.1 percent behind first place). All that doesn't bode well for Tkachuk.
DEFENSE
Erik Karlsson, SAN at VAN ($28): Karlsson is on a robust 10-game point streak. This year he's also averaged 3:22 per game with the extra man and has 13 power-play points. That's what I like best Tuesday, as the Canucks have the league's worst penalty kill.
Jaccob Slavin, CAR vs. CHI ($16): Slavin had three points in his three games before the break. He also plays on Carolina's top defensive pairing with Brent Burns, and he's averaged 22:44 per contest in ice time. All that ice time will be coming against a Chicago team with a 3.75 GAA that has also allowed 33.4 shots on goal per game.
DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID
Roman Josi, NAS vs. DAL ($29): Karlsson is a high-salary defenseman I like quite a bit. Josi? Not so much. Oettinger has a 2.45 GAA and .919 save percentage, and the Stars have the fourth-ranked penalty kill for good measure. With 24 teams in action, you have plenty of options.
Thomas Chabot, OTT vs. BOS ($20): I mentioned the Bruins have the league's lowest GAA already, plus the third-ranked penalty kill. On top of that, if Linus Ullmark is in net things look even worse for Chabot. Ullmark has an 1.94 GAA and .936 save percentage.
