With only a couple days left until the NHL's Olympic break, it's a much busier Wednesday than usual. A whopping 10 games are on the schedule for the NHL, with the first starting at 7 p.m. ET. While you will have some Olympic DFS opportunities, make the most of the NHL opportunities while you can. Here are my NHL DFS lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
Three teams are on the second day of a back-to-back. Columbus is at home against Chicago, and it did save Jet Greaves for this game. The Oilers are on the road in a Battle of Alberta matchup with the Flames, and the Kraken close out the Ducks and Kings double in Los Angeles.
GOALIES
Mackenzie Blackwood, COL vs. SAN ($8,300): Blackwood's first two starts back were brutal, but since then he's been back in form. Over his last four outings he has a .953 save percentage. The Sharks have enjoyed good puck luck offensively, but they have managed a mere 25.5 shots on net per game. Plus, with San Jose's porous defense, there's a good chance Blackwood gets a win against his former team.
Jake Oettinger, DAL vs. STL ($8,200): Oettinger himself hasn't played all that well, but over his last eight starts he has a 2.49 GAA and six wins thanks to the team around him. There's a good chance he gets a win Wednesday against the Blues, and he might have decent numbers as well. St. Louis is 31st in both goals and shots on net per game.
Darcy Kuemper, LOS vs. SEA ($8,000): Even with a .902 save percentage, Kuemper has a 2.55 GAA over 35 appearances. There's a good chance he won't be too busy Wednesday. Seattle is in the bottom six in shots on net per contest, and it is on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back as well.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Kevin Fiala, LOS vs. SEA ($5,000): Fiala has 15 power-play points through 54 games, which is not surprising. He's had at least 24 points with the extra man in every season with the Kings prior to this one. Seattle has the 31st-ranked penalty kill, and it played Tuesday night. It should be great opportunity for Fiala to operate on the power play.
Tyler Bertuzzi, CHI at CLM ($4,800): Bertuzzi is currently on the top line next to Connor Bedard, and on the top power-play unit as well. He's got three assists in his last two games to go with his 25 goals on the season. The Blue Jackets are in the bottom five in penalty-kill percentage and shots on net allowed per contest, and as noted they are on the second game of a back-to-back.
Matthew Coronato, CGY vs. EDM ($4,400): Coronato has been absolutely throwing pucks at the goal as of late. He has 19 shots on net over his last four games. That's good, because the Oilers are above average in preventing shots on goal, but the goaltending is highly questionable. Of course, being on the road for the second day of a back-to-back, the Oilers' defense may be less stingy.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Golden Knights vs. Canucks
Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, Pavel Dorofeyev
The Canucks have a 3.63 GAA, which is highest in the NHL. As such, it is not surprising that they are also last in penalty-kill percentage. Vegas, once again, has shaken up its lines, but even if these three don't play together at even strength Wednesday, I feel much more confident they will all be on the top power-play unit.
Here we go! Marner is on a three-game goal streak, which will help quell any lingering murmurs. He's had no issues on the power play, as he has 17 points with the extra man in 55 games. Stone's power-play production has been truly incredible. He has a whopping 21 points with the extra man, but that's in only 39 contests. Dorofeyev has 21 power-play points as well. That's in 55 games, of course, but there is no quibbling with that.
Stars vs. Blues
Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson, Mavrik Bourque
The Stars have two lines with two high-level forwards who are on the top power-play unit, plus a third guy. I have opted for this trio in that vein. The Blues are in the bottom four in both GAA and penalty-kill percentage, something they share with the Canucks and no other team.
Hintz has been between 65 and 75 points in each of the last four seasons, and this year he has 43 points in 51 games. The Finn has 19 power-play points, though, so he will likely set a new personal high on that front. It's only been 56 games, but it's already a 30-goal season for Robertson. It helps that he's already put 199 shots on target, and this is a player who once put more than 300 pucks on net in a year. The 24-year-old Bourque is a solid complementary player. He has 21 points in 56 games, including six points in his last eight contests.
DEFENSEMEN
Rasmus Andersson, VGK vs. VAN ($5,500): Andersson has a lesser role with Vegas than with Calgary, which makes sense given he's gone from a bad team to a Cup contender. That being said, through six games, he has three points, 19 shots on net and 12 blocked shots. Even though Andersson's power-play time is limited, the Canucks don't have the league's highest GAA just because they struggles to kill penalties.
Brandt Clarke, LOS vs. SEA ($4,400): Clarke has eight points in his last 15 games. Four of those have come on the power play, and in that time he's averaged 2:45 per game with the extra man. He hasn't always been on the top power-play unit – Los Angeles tried the five-forward thing for a while – but he's there now, and the Kraken have the 31st-ranked penalty kill.
Josh Manson, COL vs. SAN ($3,700): Manson has 23 points and 83 shots on net through 54 games. Sure, Devon Toews missed some time, and he's now back, but Manson didn't rack up the bulk of his points in Toews' absence. San Jose has allowed 30.4 shots on net per game, which has played a role in the team having a 3.48 GAA.
