This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
We end the weekend with a mere two NHL games Sunday. Hey, Saturday saw 30 teams in action, so a breather is understandable. Don't miss a chance at DFS hockey action, though! Especially since the first World Cup game will be over well before the first puck drops Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. Plus, do you really want to watch Qatar play? Here are my NHL DFS recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
Only two NHL teams didn't play Saturday and, oddly, neither plays Sunday either. That means all four teams are on the second leg of a back-to-back. Florida and Pittsburgh are both on the road again, Columbus is sticking at home, and Chicago has flipped from the road to being at home.
GOALIE
Casey DeSmith, PIT at CHI ($8,200): DeSmith is the only goalie I want Sunday. Full stop. No question about it. He has a .910 save percentage this season and a .915 save percentage in his career. I find him the most-reliable goalie slated to start, and also he has clearly the best matchup, as the Blackhawks are bottom three in both goals and shots on net per game.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Jake Guentzel, PIT at CHI ($7,300): Guentzel is pouring pucks on net. He has 48 shots on goal, even though he's only played in 14 games. Not only that, but he's racked up 10 goals. Of course, playing on Sidney Crosby's wing helps. While Arvid Soderblom has a .918 save percentage, he has a 3.03 GAA because the Blackhawks have allowed so many shots on net. Plus, in his career, the Swedish rookie has a .901 save percentage because he was so poor in a cup of coffee last season.
Boone Jenner, CLM vs. FLA ($6,700): Jenner has been firing on all cylinders, racking up nine points in his last seven games. He may not have Patrik Laine, but he does have Johnny Gaudreau. Jenner and the Jackets also didn't have to travel after Saturday, while the Panthers are on the road for the second game in as many days. Also, Sergei Bobrovsky has a 3.46 GAA and .895 save percentage.
FORWARD LINE STACK
Panthers at Blue Jackets
Sam Bennett (C - $5,200), Matthew Tkachuk (W - $8,600), Eetu Luostarinen (W - $3,700)
Sure, the Jackets get to be at home two days in a row while the Panthers have been traveling, but that only goes so far. Columbus is battling Anaheim for the title of worst defensive team in the NHL. Those are the bottom-two teams in GAA and shots on net allowed per game. Daniil Tarasov will be starting Sunday. He has a 3.57 GAA and .893 save percentage. I'm not expecting a goaltending duel here. This trio, by the way, are all in the top four in offensive start zone percentage for the Panthers.
Bennett has revved things up recently, tallying four multi-point games in his last five outings. That includes his first three power-play points of the season. Tkachuk was Florida's big add this offseason, and he's paid off big time with 24 points in 16 games. That's with bad puck luck too. The former Flame has only seven goals on 74 shots on net, and he has a career 13.2 shooting percentage. Luostarinen is the surprise here with six goals and four assists in 18 games. However, you stick a guy with strong linemates and things can happen. Just look at Michael Bunting in Toronto as an example.
DEFENSEMEN
Gustav Forsling, FLA at CLM ($5,100): Forsling has his defensive partner back in Aaron Ekblad, and he also has an assist in four-straight games. On top of that, he's put 56 shots on net. The Blue Jackets have allowed the second-most shots on goal per contest, and with Tarasov and his .893 save percentage in net, that could pay off for Forsling.
Jeff Petry, PIT at CHI ($4,500): Petry has three goals and five assists this season. He's tallied two power-play points, though Kris Letang gets the bulk of the minutes with the extra man on the Pittsburgh blue line. To try and save a little salary, though, you can go with Petry. He'll get some time against Chicago's bottom-10 penalty kill, and he'll get a porous defense missing its best player (Seth Jones) as well.
