This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
There are two matchups in the NHL on Sunday with the opening Round 2 games between Tampa Bay and Carolina along with Vegas and Colorado. The Hurricanes are short home-ice favorites, but it wouldn't be surprising if the odds flipped here before puck drop at 5 p.m. EDT. Colorado is also a notable home favorite. Here are picks and pans for each position for the featured contests at Yahoo.
All statistics from Natural Stat Trick and Hockey Reference.
GOALIE
Philipp Grubauer, COL vs. VGK ($29): This is a low salary considering Grubauer's excellent start to the playoffs (.934 save percentage 1.75 GAA) and Colorado being significant favorites on home ice. Vegas also only scored 14 five-on-five goals through seven games in Round 1.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at CAR ($32): Maybe the Russian netminder found something in his Game 6 shutout win over the Panthers. But with a contest-high salary, there's definite risk. Through the 18 previous outings dating back to the regular season, Vasilevskiy posted an underwhelming .913 save percentage and 2.89 GAA.
CENTER
Ross Colton, TB at CAR ($11): A low-salary candidate, Colton has registered a respectable two goals and 11 assists through six postseason games playing down the lineup. However, he's managed to register five individual high-danger scoring chances while pacing the Lightning in shots per 60 minutes during the regular season.
CENTER TO AVOID
Nathan MacKinnon, COL vs. VGK ($35): It's likely MacKinnon proves to be matchup proof, but this is definitely a tough draw. The Golden Knights held Minnesota to just 13 goals through seven contests in Round 1, while Vegas also finished the regular season atop the league in goals against and penalty-kill percentage.
WING
Steven Stamkos, TB at CAR ($28): A tier below the top options in salary, Stamkos is coming off a dominant opening series against Florida with three tallies, five helpers, 17 shots and 35 attempts. It'll be interesting to see how this series plays out because the eight regular season meetings only resulted in 35 total goals, but Stamkos is definitely going to have scoring chances.
Anthony Cirelli, TB at Car ($13): It's surprising to see Cirelli's salary remain so low. He finished Round 1 with two goals, two assists, 18 shots and a team-high nine individual high-danger scoring chances. Cirelli's also locked into a top-six role and receives power-play looks with the second unit.
WINGS TO AVOID
Max Pacioretty, VGK at COL ($34): While Pacioretty proved his health with the game-winning goal Friday, the veteran winger is still overvalued and draws a much tougher matchup in Colorado. The Avalanche paced the league in Corsi For percentage and allowed the third fewest goals per game.
Andrei Svechnikov, CAR vs. TB ($23): The third-year winger definitely was solid during Round 1 with three points and 23 shots through six games, but he definitely was also not spectacular. While Svechnikov's floor is high because of his shot volume, he hasn't translated it to fantasy results as consistently as needed to warrant his salary.
DEFENSE
Dougie Hamilton, CAR vs. TB ($27): While expensive, Hamilton was incredible to finish off the Predators with four points, 29 shots and eight blocks through the final five games of the opening series. He also finished seventh in points and second in shot attempts per 60 minutes among regular defensemen during the regular season.
Samuel Girard, COL vs. VGK ($14): Considering Girard finished 15th among all regular defensemen in points per 60 minutes during the regular season, this is a reasonable salary to take a chance on. He also picked up two assists, six shots, four blocks and a plus-2 rating while averaging 22:38 of ice time (1:18 with the man advantage) through four Round 1 games.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Alex Pietrangelo and Alec Martinez, VGK at COL ($21 and $20): Similarly, expect Pietrangelo and Martinez to be tasked with slowing down Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. Colorado's No. 1 line drove five-on-five possession with a 66.2 Corsi For percentage while scoring a high-end 4.14 goals and generated 13.71 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes during the regular season.
