The NHL’s Christmas break is nearing. In a few days we will be sans hockey for the long weekend. Wednesday, though, we have seven games on the slate. Here are a handful of guys to target, and to avoid, for your DFS lineups.
GOALIE
Logan Thompson, VGK vs. ARI ($34): Thompson has slowed down a smidge after a hot start, but he still has a 2.64 GAA and .917 save percentage. This is the kind of matchup that can help boost his numbers, though. The Coyotes rank 26th in goals scored, which is actually kind of a surprise given that they’ve put a mere 24.5 shots on net per contest. That’s last in the NHL.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Jake Oettinger, DAL vs. EDM ($33): This should be an exciting one. We have two of the top first lines in the NHL, and two teams that have scored 3.58 goals per game, putting them both in the top five of the NHL on that front. Of course, that doesn’t bode well for goalies, and Oettinger is the likely starter Wednesday that tends to have more cache on the DFS front.
CENTER
Dylan Larkin, DET vs. TAM ($23): Larkin has cooled down a bit, but he picked up his 28th point in his last outing, and he’s done that in 30 games. It helps that he’s averaged a robust 4:08 per game on the power play, of course. The Lightning are on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back, and while Brian Elliott has a 7-1-0 record, he has a 3.09 GAA and .902 save percentage across his eight appearances.
CENTER TO AVOID
Nick Suzuki, MON at COL ($19): Suzuki only has one goal in his last seven games, but he still has a 23.8 shooting percentage this season. Odds are that will regress further, perhaps significantly so. Moving to Colorado is working out well for Alexandar Georgiev, as he has a 2.46 GAA and .923 save percentage.
WING
Matthew Boldy, MIN at ANA ($19): What could be better than getting the team that is last in GAA, shots on net allowed per game, and penalty-kill percentage in a matchup? Getting them on the second leg of a back-to-back. That’s what Boldy and the Wild get in this Ducks squad, and Boldy has 11 goals and 11 assists in his sophomore campaign.
Nino Niederreiter, NAS at CHI ($15): The Predators have juggled their lines a bit recently to try and get their offense going, and Niederreiter has an assist in each of his last two games. He also has 10 goals in 30 contests. What could help Nashville more than lineup changes is this matchup. The Blackhawks have allowed 33.4 shots on net per contest, and Petr Mrazek has a 4.24 GAA and .872 save percentage.
WINGS TO AVOID
Jesper Bratt, NJD at FLA ($23): Bratt was scorching to start the season, but he’s cooled down a bit, and he only has one point, an assist, in his last five games. The Devils are on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back here. Sergei Bobrovsky’s overall numbers aren’t good, but he has a 2.27 GAA and .923 save percentage in seven December appearances. That combined with the Devils on a back-to-back is why I am down on Bratt.
Patrick Kane, CHI vs. NAS ($18): Kane just can’t get his offensive game on track. He has four goals all season with a 3.8 shooting percentage. Over his last seven outings all he has is two assists to his name. Juuse Saros got off to a slow start, but over his last 13 starts he has a 2.37 GAA and .926 save percentage.
DEFENSE
Alex Pietrangelo, VGK vs. ARI ($23): Since returning to the lineup, Pietrangelo has two assists and seven shots on goal in two contests. He seems right back in the swing of things. The Coyotes have a 3.63 GAA, but they have also allowed a whopping 35.0 shots on net per game, and Pietrangelo is well equipped to take advantage of that.
Jared Spurgeon, MIN at ANA ($17): I’ve got to dip into this matchup again. The Ducks are, after all, the worst defensive team in the NHL, and also on a back-to-back. Spurgeon happens to be on a three-game point streak as well, and he’s put 56 shots on net in 31 games.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Cam Fowler, ANA vs. MIN ($15): Well, the Ducks are on the second leg of a back-to-back, though they were in Los Angeles on Tuesday so it’s not like they were on a trek. However, it still plays into my decision making. On top of that, Marc-Andre Fleury has only allowed one goal in each of his last two starts. Yes, that’s only two starts but, again, it plays into my thought process a bit. The Wild have only allowed 29.4 shots on goal per game this season, and that’s a number with some more track record added into the mix as well.
Evan Bouchard, EDM at DAL ($14): Last season Bouchard broke through with 12 goals and 31 assists, but it seems like the Oilers coaching staff might be feeling a little down on him. He averaged 19:48 per game last year, but is down to 18:18 this year. In fact, over his last nine games he only has two points, both assists, and has averaged 17:14 a night on the ice. That is discouraging as Bouchard heads into this road matchup with the Stars.
