It’s a busier Wednesday than usual for the NHL, with six games on the slate. Not only that, but there are a litany of bad defenses that are going to be on the ice. That bodes well for selecting a DFS lineup. Here are some players to target, and to avoid, for your lineups.
GOALIE
Ilya Samsonov, TOR vs. CHI ($31): This is an easy call, and when I saw this matchup I was all in, regardless of Samsonov’s salary. The Russian goalie has a 2.32 GAA and .917 save percentage, and he gets the Blackhawks at home with the Blackhawks on the second leg of a back-to-back. That’s a Blackhawks team, by the way, that is battling the Ducks to try and avoid being last in goals per game.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Marc-Andre Fleury, MIN vs. COL ($27): Fleury has already been pegged for a start Wednesday instead of Filip Gustavsson, and he does get the Avalanche on the second leg of a back-to-back. Colorado is also, surprisingly, below average in goals per game. However, the Avalanche are in the top 10 in shots on net per game, and also are healthier now, which makes the offense look different. Having Nathan MacKinnon around changes things, you know? Plus, while Fleury is a big game, he has a .902 save percentage on the season.
CENTER
Dylan Cozens, BUF at ANA ($19): The Sabres have recently shifted things a bit, moving Tage Thompson to centering the second line in order to try and boost Cozens’ old wings, while letting Cozens play with Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch. Cozens has a point in each of his last two games, and it is easy to envision him making that three games in this matchup. The Ducks have a 4.07 GAA, highest in the NHL.
CENTER TO AVOID
Elias Pettersson, VAN vs. NYR ($29): Pettersson has stayed productive even with Bo Horvat an Islander, but this matchup is daunting on paper. Igor Shesterkin has a 2.48 GAA and .916 save percentage, but he’s actually been a real road warrior this year. The Russian has a 2.12 GAA and .931 save percentage in away games.
WING
Mats Zuccarello, MIN vs. COL ($21): Minnesota’s top line is pretty much the only one in a groove right now, and Zuccarello has at least one point in six of his last seven games. Granted, the power play has been a big part of that, with four of his points in that time coming with the extra man. Pavel Francouz is banged up right now, so it is possible Jonas Johansson may be called upon to start Wednesday. He has a career .883 save percentage.
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Chris Kreider, NYR at VAN ($21): The Rangers are a team that relies heavily on their first power-play unit, and the Canucks are a team that has the worst penalty kill in the NHL by a wide margin, so I wanted to grab somebody from that power play. A big drop in shooting percentage means Kreider won’t score 50 goals again, but he has 21 goals in 50 games. He’s also averaged 3:39 per contest with the extra man, and has 13 power-play points.
WINGS TO AVOID
Patrick Kane, CHI at TOR ($19): Kane only have nine goals through 49 games definitely has something to do with bad puck luck, but over the prior five seasons he had a 10.5 shooting percentage, so he has been more about quantity shooting to score goals for a while. Chicago is on the second leg of a back-to-back, as I noted, and the Maple Leafs have only allowed 29.0 shots on net per game. This matchup is not up Kane’s alley.
Andrei Kuzmenko, VAN vs. NYR ($14): Kuzmenko came over from the KHL and hit the ground running, with 22 goals and 23 assists through 53 games. However, coaching changes can lead to lineup changes, and Rick Tocchet may not be enamored with his rookie. Kuzmenko is down on the third line these days, and over his last six games he’s averaged 13:42 in ice time, and 1:30 on the power play. Oh yeah, and the Rangers are in the top five in GAA as well.
DEFENSE
Morgan Rielly, TOR vs. CHI ($19): It’s an exciting time for Rielly. Not only is he on a four-game point streak, but in that time he picked up his first two goals of the season. He still only has a 2.6 shooting percentage, so more goals could be on the way. The Blackhawks could help on that front, ranking 26th in both GAA and shots on net allowed per game.
Mikhail Sergachev, TAM at ARI ($19): Sergachev started the season hot, cooled down, but seems to be on an upswing again. He has three points in his last five games. While the Lightning are on the second leg of a back-to-back, the Coyotes have a 3.50 GAA and have allowed 35.0 shots on net per contest. Also, the Coyotes aren’t hiding their future plans, as they have key players sitting out before the trade deadline to avoid injury risk.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Quinn Hughes, VAN vs. NYR ($20): With Hughes, it’s all about the power play. Half of his 50 points have come with the extra man. The Rangers have a top-10 penalty kill, though, and are better when Shesterkin is in net of course. Shesterkin, as I noted, has a 2.48 GAA and .916 save percentage.
Seth Jones, CHI at TOR ($19): Jones has shouldered the load while healthy on the Chicago blue line, but all those minutes can add up for a guy on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back. Then, throw in the fact Samsonov has a 2.32 GAA and .917 save percentage, and there’s even more reason for concern about Jones being in your DFS lineup.
