This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
There will be no NHL games Thursday for American Thanksgiving, but Wednesday and Friday are stacked with games. Wednesday has a whopping 14 matchups, which means you have a ton of options for your lineups. Here are some players to target, and to avoid, for your last lineup before the holiday. Good luck!
GOALIE
Ilya Samsonov, WAS vs. MON ($30): After back-to-back shutouts, Samsonov has posted a 2.11 GAA and .924 save percentage. He also plays behind a defense that has only allowed 27.3 shots on net per contest. That really helps, especially against a Canadiens team that has only averaged 2.20 goals per contest.
GOALIE TO AVOID
John Gibson, ANA at COL ($29): Gibson has been in vintage form, as he has a 2.36 GAA and .925 save percentage. However, over the last two years he posted a .904 save percentage. Even with Nathan MacKinnon out, the Avalanche have climbed to where many of us expected them to be: The top of the goal-scoring mountain. Colorado has averaged 4.00 goals per game.
CENTER
Logan Couture, SAN vs. OTT ($20): Couture has slowed after a scorching start, but he has six goals and eight assists in 17 games. I'm concerned that he's struggling on the power play again, but at least Timo Meier is healthy and back on his wing. The Senators have been maybe the worst defense in the NHL. They have a 3.69 GAA and have allowed 34.6 shots on net per contest. Both are bottom-two in the league.
CENTER TO AVOID
Anze Kopitar, LOS vs. TOR ($23): Kopitar's 17 points in 18 games is impressive, although when you recall that he had five points in the season opener it changes things. Twelve points in 17 games is good, but now as enticing. If you thought Jack Campbell was going to come back to earth after managing a 2.11 GAA and .921 save percentage last season, think again. This year he has a 1.66 GAA and .944 save percentage.
WING
Jake Guentzel, PIT vs. VAN ($24): Guentzel is happy to have Sidney Crosby back by his side. He has a six-game point streak that includes five goals. The 27-year-old has also put 25 shots on net in that time. What I'm most interested in, though, is the 3:48 per game he's averaged on the power play. Vancouver has the league's worst penalty kill.
Lawson Crouse, ARI vs. EDM ($16): Yes, dipping into the Arizona offense is always a risk. However, Crouse does have four points in his last six games. Additionally, he's put 47 shots on goal in 19 games, most amount Coyotes forwards. The Oilers are in the bottom five in shots on net allowed per contest, and they are one of two teams on the second leg of a back-to-back. Right now, they are relying on Stuart Skinner – a rookie who began the year as a third stringer – to bail out the defense, and Skinner started Tuesday.
WINGS TO AVOID
Mark Stone, VGK at NAS ($25): Stone has three assists in five games since returning from injury, but he's yet to score a goal. The Predators' team GAA is an unremarkable 2.70, but you can blame the backups for that. Juuse Saros has a 2.42 GAA and .920 save percentage. Also, at home those numbers improve to 1.75 and .939 respectively.
Claude Giroux, PHI at FLA ($18): The Flyers are the other team on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back Wednesday. That's one strike against Giroux. Secondly, the Panthers have a 2.50 GAA as a team. Sergei Bobrovsky has enjoyed quite the turnaround, as Bob has a .937 save percentage.
DEFENSE
Tony DeAngelo, CAR at SEA ($20): It is kind of annoying that DeAngelo fell into a cushy situation basically by being a terrible teammate and all-around unpleasant person to deal with, but here we are. He's now a Hurricane with 16 points in 17 games and has averaged 3:46 per contest on the power play. Seattle hockey fans are probably thankful they have an NHL team, but the fact remains they have a league-high 3.78 GAA.
Erik Karlsson, SAN vs. OTT ($16): Karlsson, once the best offensive defenseman in the NHL, has become kind of forgotten. However, he has eight points in 12 games this season, including five on the power play. His former team in Ottawa has a 3.69 GAA and have given up 34.6 shots on goal per game. On top of that, they have a bottom-five penalty kill.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Quinn Hughes, VAN at PIT ($18): This matchup is on the extremes. I mentioned the Canucks have the league's worst penalty kill. Guess what? The Penguins have the best. Hughes has been a power-play specialist since he entered the league, but this is not a matchup where he can exploit that.
Jeff Petry, MON at WAS ($11): You might have assumed with Shea Weber not around Petry would take on an even bigger role for the Canadiens. Indeed, he has averaged 23:50 in ice time, a new personal high. However, after four-straight seasons with at least 40 points he only has two points in 20 games this year. Petry has fallen off a cliff, and now he's facing a Capitals team with a 2.32 GAA.
