This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Tuesday's NHL slate features seven games after 7:00 p.m. EDT. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
In what's expected to be another tightly contested slate, an Avalanche team that recently got a number of important pieces back will be the night's largest favorite at home against the injury-riddled Golden Knights. Tuesday's highest-scoring games are projected to be Lightning-Penguins in what will be Tampa Bay's second game in as many nights, as well as Calgary-New Jersey — with the Flames finishing off a back-to-back — Minnesota-Vancouver and the aforementioned Vegas-Colorado matchup, all of which come in at an over/under of 6.0 goals.
GOALIES
Darcy Kuemper, COL vs. VGK ($8,500): Vegas has been the most fantasy-friendly opponent for goalies in the early going, averaging just 2.0 goals on a robust 35.8 shots per game. Without the playmaking of Mark Stone (lower body), nor the finishing ability of Max Pacioretty (lower body), the Golden Knights will likely continue to post low shooting percentages. Kuemper's 3.51 GAA and .894 save percentage have left a lot to be desired, but he should start rounding into form before long.
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG at ANH ($8,300): Hellebuyck's the primary alternative to Kuemper if you go with the chalk play in net. He gave up 14 goals en route to an 0-2-1 start but has stacked up a pair of wins since while allowing five goals over those two games. This will already be Hellebuyck's third meeting with the low-octane Ducks offense; he struggled on Opening Night but will be looking to replicate his more recent performance, in which Hellebuyck set aside 38 of 39 shots.
Cam Talbot, MIN at VAN ($7,700): Talbot's a perfect 4-0-0 to open the season to go with solid ratios (2.68 GAA, .904 save percentage). There's nothing unsustainable about Talbot's level, and his team should continue to play well in front of him against a Canucks team whose 3-2-1 record has been built up against an easy early schedule.
James Reimer, SJ at NSH ($7,300): Reimer has been excellent early in his Sharks tenure, setting aside 50 of 51 shots faced through a little more than a game and a half of action. He's a nice bargain option against a 2-4 Predators team, especially given San Jose's surprisingly strong 4-1 start.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Andrew Mangiapane, CGY at NJ ($5,700): Mangiapane is one of the league's most underrated shooters, and he's putting that skill on display early by averaging a goal per game through five. He also closed last season with five goals in his final four games, so Mangiapane's sizzling hotter than the Flames logo on his chest heading into a matchup with a Devils team that's battling injuries to its top two goalies.
Logan Couture, SJ at NSH ($5,500): The Sharks have looked revitalized early in the season, and Couture has been a big part of that success. The lifelong Shark has had quite the bite early in the campaign, mustering a 3-5-8 line with at least one point in each of the team's first five games. A Predators team that's been slow out of the gate will have a tough time cooling Couture off.
J.T. Miller, VAN vs. MIN ($5,900): Miller continues to fly under the radar despite having more than two seasons of consistent top-line caliber production since joining the Canucks. With eight points through six games, Miller has comfortably outperformed his sub-$6,000 salary to date and should continue to do so.
Mike Hoffman, MON at SEA ($4,800): It took Hoffman a couple games to get his feet wet after a lower-body injury delayed his Canadiens debut, but he lit the lamp to go with four shots in Montreal's last game and should continue to be a reliable source of offense moving forward. The five-time 25-goal scorer's a solid value pick against a Kraken team that looks like what we had come to expect from expansion teams before the Golden Knights subverted those expectations — a bottom-feeder that's doing more sinking than swimming.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Avalanche vs. Golden Knights
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $8,100), Mikko Rantanen (W - $8,000), Gabriel Landeskog (W - $6,800)
This line took a few games to become fully formed, but it has looked as good as any line across the league since its most prominent member made his season debut. MacKinnon has a 1-4-5 line in three games since clearing COVID protocols, having marked the scoresheet in every game. Rantanen has scored a goal in all three games since MacKinnon's return, while opening the season on a five-game point streak, and Landeskog has a 2-2-4 line through three appearances. With Vegas allowing 3.80 goals per game, Colorado's top line has a nice opportunity to exact some revenge on a depleted version of the Golden Knights team that ended Colorado's season in the playoffs last year.
Penguins vs. Lightning
Evan Rodrigues (C - $3,900), Jake Guentzel (W - $7,200), Kasperi Kapanen (W - $4,400)
Lightning netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy has struggled early in the season, as he's learning that life isn't as easy without Nikita Kucherov when you can't circumvent the salary cap to replace him. A Penguins team that's done a better job overcoming some major absences in the early going should help continue Vasilevskiy's slow start — 2-2-1 with a 3.12 GAA and .893 save percentage. Guentzel is easily Pittsburgh's best healthy forward, and the former 40-goal scorer has a solid 1-2-3 line through four games played this season. Kapanen's coming off his first multi-point game of the season and has four helpers through five games. Rodrigues offers nice value as the fill-in first-line center, especially considering he's off to a terrific start, with a 3-2-5 line through five games.
Jets at Ducks
Pierre-Luc Dubois (C - $5,000), Kyle Connor (W - $7,500), Evgeni Svechnikov (W - $2,700)
Winnipeg's makeshift current top line has a little bit of everything. Connor's the star of this line, with a 6-3-9 output through five games this season, including 5-3-8 in the last three. Dubois has a four-game goal streak going, as the 23-year-old former 60-point scorer is thriving while filling in for Mark Scheifele, who's in COVID-19 protocols. Svechnikov brings some affordability to this group and has chipped in an assist in each of the past two games. This trio's recent success should continue against a Ducks team that's allowed 15 goals en route to a 0-2-1 record over its last three games.
DEFENSEMEN
Roman Josi, NSH vs. SJ ($7,400): Josi's one of the few defensemen who can completely take over a game, as he did with a goal and three assists in Minnesota last time the Predators took the ice. He has a robust 3-4-7 line through six games, not to mention excellent secondary stats in the form of 22 shots and six blocks. If the Sharks' strong start turns out to be a mirage, Josi could post another performance similar to his previous one here.
Bowen Byram, COL vs. VGK ($3,200): Whether you're stacking Avalanche players or just searching for value on the blue line, Byram's a low-risk, high-reward option at $3,200. The fourth-overall selection in the 2019 draft has a 1-3-4 line through five games and should continue to play an outsized role as long as Devon Toews (undisclosed) remains unavailable.
Kevin Shattenkirk, ANH vs. WPG ($4,800): Shattenkirk has stuffed the stat sheet in the early going, with a 3-3-6 line, 10 shots and 12 blocks through six games. The five-time 40-point scorer was actually on pace to challenge for that mark again as recently as 2019-20, when he finished with an 8-26-34 line over 70 games for the Lightning, so the 32-year-old Shattenkirk seems to have more offensive juice left than he's being given credit for.
Damon Severson, NJ vs. CGY ($3,900): New Jersey's offseason acquisitions of Dougie Hamilton and Ryan Graves have allowed Severson to take on a more fitting role after he was miscast as the team's top defenseman in recent seasons. Without the pressure of defending the opposition's top players, Severson has put his underrated offensive game on display, opening the season on a three-game point streak, including one on the power play. If the Flames are a step slow in their second game in as many nights, look for Severson to take advantage.
