This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
It's another busy Thursday in the NHL with 12 games on tap as the NHL gets ever closer to the All-Star break. There are three games in which a tired team is on the road versus a rested team. The Bruins are in New York to play the Rangers after Boston defeated the Islanders 4-1 on Wednesday. The Islanders are in Buffalo, while Tampa Bay travels from Vancouver to take on Edmonton. In other games involving two rested teams, Winnipeg travels to Toronto, Montreal hosts Florida, Chicago is in Philadelphia, Carolina is at home versus Minnesota, Nashville visits St. Louis, Washington goes to the desert to face Arizona, Detroit is in Vegas, New Jersey plays in Seattle and finally, LA hosts Dallas. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
GOALIE
Igor Shesterkin, NYR vs. BOS ($32): After a tough start to the season -– at least for him -– Shesterkin has turned his game around over the last six weeks, giving up only 30 goals on 444 shots. He is 10-3-1 over that span and will face a tired Bruins team. Shesterkin is 20-7-6 with a 2.43 GAA and a .918 save percentage this season as he has played well enough to return to being a top-five fantasy goaltender in 2022-23.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Martin Jones, SEA vs. NJ ($30): Jones has been helped out by the outstanding Seattle offense, as the Kraken are fourth overall in goals with 161. Jones is 21-6-3, but his peripherals are mediocre as he has a 2.84 GAA and .893 save percentage. Jones has given up five goals in each of his last two games and will face the Devils, who are seventh in NHL scoring with 156 goals. It will be a tough matchup for Jones on Thursday.
CENTER
Steven Stamkos, TB at EDM ($30): Stamkos is in the midst of a hot streak. He had a hat trick against the Canucks on Wednesday to push him past the 500-goal mark for his career, becoming only the 47th player in NHL history to reach that plateau. Stamkos has 21 goals and 52 points in 43 games and has a six-game point streak going, scoring four goals and adding six assists.
CENTER TO AVOID
Nick Suzuki, MON vs. FLA ($17): Suzuki is having a nice overall season with 16 goals and 37 points in 45 games, but a closer look shows that the center has only two goals and six assists in his last 19 games. Suzuki is only 23 and should return to form soon, but you should pass on him for now.
WING
Mitch Marner, TOR vs. WPG ($27): The Maple Leafs are at home against Winnipeg and Marner is on a 19-game point streak at Scotiabank Arena, breaking an all-time team record Tuesday. Marner has 16 goals and 54 points this season and is on pace to overtake his career high of 97 points set last season. Marner has three goals and 10 assists in his last nine games.
Pavel Buchnevich, STL vs. NAS ($19): Buchnevich has three goals and 10 points in his last nine games, giving him 15 goals and 37 points in 36 contests this season. He is seeing first line playing time alongside Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou and also sees first unit power play time, where he is averaging a career high 3:00. Buchnevich already has seven goals and 16 points with the man advantage, only three points shy of tying the career high he set last season.
WINGS TO AVOID
Alex Tuch, BUF vs. NYI ($28): Tuch is having a career year with 21 goals and 47 points in 43 games. His career best is 52 points set in the 2018-19 season with Vegas and he is going to smash that mark. He has three goals and an assist in his last six games but will have a very tough matchup Thursday, as the Sabres will face one of the top three goaltenders in the NHL in Ilya Sorokin. There are better choices, especially at this salary, than Tuch.
Martin Necas, CAR vs. MIN ($22): Necas has been slumping of late, as he has only one assist in his last five games. The 24-year-old has 17 goals and 39 points in 44 games, only two points shy of the career high he set two seasons ago, and already has a career high of 12 power play points, but his play of late suggests giving him a pass at this time.
DEFENSE
Aaron Ekblad, FLA at MON ($20): Ekblad went through a prolonged slump, with only two goals in 10 games –- both coming Jan. 6 against Detroit –- but he has turned things around of late with a goal and three assists in his last four games. The talented defenseman has seven goals and 20 points in 35 games, far short of last season's career-best mark of 57 points in 61 games, but he looks to be returning to form.
Erik Gustafsson, WAS at ARI ($17): Gustafsson has taken advantage of the injury to John Carlson and has seven goals and 26 points in 46 games. While Carlson is sidelined, Gustafsson is quarterbacking the first power play. He has all seven goals in his last 15 games (along with nine assists) and is a great play Thursday in Arizona.
DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID
Brent Burns, CAR vs. MIN ($23): Burns has been slumping of late with only one goal in his last six games. The defenseman has six goals and 29 points in 44 games but has been downgraded to the second power play unit, and that hurts his value. Burns is no youngster as he is 37, so reduced ice time as the schedule inches forward towards the All-Star break will help his game, but hurt his offensive output.
Hampus Lindholm, BOS at NYR ($20): Lindholm got off to a great start and has five goals and 29 points in 44 games, but he has not done a lot since Charlie McAvoy returned with only a goal and an assist in his last nine games. He has lost a lot of his power play time and did not see any action with the man advantage against the Flyers on Sunday, but rebounded to 1:50 on Wednesday. Don't be fooled by his point total for the season as McAvoy is the offensive star of the Boston blue line.
