Thursday is the first day of February, and the NHL is kicking off the month with 12 games on the docket. Your choices are abundant, so here are some recommendations…
GOALIE
Carolina Hurricanes, CAR vs. MON ($16,300): The Canadiens are 8-14-1 on the road, and their offense has really struggled this season. Montreal has only averaged 2.56 goals per game. The Hurricanes, meanwhile, have allowed a league-low 29.2 shots on net per contest. Cam Ward looked impressive in his first start back from the All-Star break, and in his last five starts he has a 2.54 GAA and a .916 save percentage.
CENTER
Mika Zibanejad, NYR vs. TOR ($11,700): Zibanejad has notched 14 goals and 14 assists in 41 games. He's also tallied six goals and six helpers with the extra man. The Maple Leafs are going to be on the road of a second night of a back-to-back, and Toronto has given up 33.8 shots on net per game.
Ryan O'Reilly, BUF vs. FLA ($10,900): In his last 10 games, O'Reilly has tallied nine points, and he's put 36 shots on net. That latter number is notable, because the Panthers have given up a whopping 35.3 shots on goal per tilt, the most in the NHL. Florida also has a 3.25 team GAA, which is bottom five in the league.
WING
Taylor Hall, NJD vs. PHI ($14,700): The Flyers are on the second night of a back-to-back on the road for this one. More than that, since Brian Elliott is hurt, third-string goalie Alex Lyon may need to start in this one. Regardless, Hall has been outstanding this year and that makes him enticing enough on his own. One of the things Hall has done is tally 17 power-play points in 44 games. Philly has the 28th-ranked penalty kill, so that bodes well for Hall.
Evgenii Dadonov, FLA at BUF ($11,500): It took Dadonov a little time to recover from his injury, but recently he's been playing some fine hockey. The Russian has four goals and five assists in his last nine games, and he's registered 29 shots in that time as well. Buffalo has a 3.30 team GAA, and it has a .899 save percentage on top of that.
Ondrej Kase, ANA at OTT ($8,300): Kase has started 54.6 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, most among Anaheim's regular forwards. The 22-year-old has also showed some offensive promise this year, as he's notched 12 goals and 10 assists in 35 games. The Senators have a team GAA of 3.40, and that number was up to 3.64 in the month of January. Also, Ottawa allowed a stunning 39.9 shots on net per contest in January.
DEFENSEMEN
John Klingberg, DAL at ARI ($13,700): Klingberg has been a playmaking machine. The Swedish defenseman has 42 assists in 51 games, but he has six goals to boot. He actually has a career-low 4.8 shooting percentage, so don't be surprised if he starts scoring more. Maybe that will happen in this one, as the Coyotes have a 3.36 team GAA and a bottom-10 penalty kill.
Tyson Barrie, COL at EDM ($10,000): Barrie just returned from a hand injury, and it has come at a great time for daily fantasy players. The defenseman has averaged 3:57 per game on the power play, and he's notched 12 points with the extra man. That's significant, because the Oilers are dead last in penalty-kill percentage. If Colorado gets some power-play chances, Barrie could pay off in a big way.
