This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
An extensive Christmas break is around the corner for the NHL, so make the most of these next few days. Saturday, for example, features eight games on the slate for DFS purposes starting at 7:00 p.m. ET or later. That's fewer than usual, but Sunday and (especially) Monday are busier than usual, which is playing a role in that I imagine. Here are my NHL DFS lineup recommendations.
SLATE PREVIEW
Several teams are on the second leg of a back-to-back Saturday, but that includes a home-and-home between Detroit and Montreal, so there is little, if any, advantage to be had. Toronto is at home against the Islanders and saved Joseph Woll for this matchup. That leaves Buffalo in Boston and Minnesota in Winnipeg for the enticing options.
GOALIES
Adin Hill, VGK vs. SEA ($8,400): Other than a bad day on the road against the Oilers (one of the more understandable scenarios for poor numbers), Hill has been playing some stellar hockey. Even with that bad game against Edmonton, he has a 2.08 GAA and .923 save percentage over his last 11 contests. Seattle is a fringe bottom-10 team in goals per game, but has only managed 27.1 shots on net per contest, which is decidedly in the bottom 10.
Joseph Woll, TOR vs. NYI ($8,100): Yes, even though his teammates will be playing their second game in as many days, I'd still roster Woll. He's at home and is having an excellent season. In 13 appearances, Woll has a 2.30 GAA and a .918 save percentage. The Islanders offer little threat offensively. New York has managed only 2.55 goals and 28.2 shots on net per contest. Mathew Barzal's time out of the lineup can't fully explain those numbers away.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Travis Konecny, PHI vs. CBJ ($7,000): John Tortorella may have some trust issues with a few of his players, but not Konecny. He's a forward who has averaged 21:06 per game in ice time. Konecny has also paid that trust off to the tune of 27 points over his last 21 games. Both of these teams are in the bottom five in GAA, but Columbus is slightly worse at 3.58. Also, while Philly has allowed 27.5 shots on net per game, Columbus has given up 29 per game.
Ondrej Palat, NJD vs. PIT ($3,200): Playing alongside Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt should be conducive to offensive success. That hasn't always been true for Palat, but "always" is the key qualifier. He has five points over his last five games, and this is one of the best matchups a player can find. With a 3.68 GAA and 31.8 shots on net allowed per contest, the Penguins stand as the worst defensive team in the NHL.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Jets vs. Wild
Mark Scheifele (C - $7,300), Kyle Connor (W - $8,900), Gabriel Vilardi (W - $4,700)
With Nikolaj Ehlers healthy, I considered Winnipeg's second line to save salary, but the production drop between the top line and that second unit is stark enough that I feel the salary outlay is worth it. Either way, clearly I wanted a piece of this matchup. The Wild are on the road for the second leg of a back-to-back, but Filip Gustavsson is out with a lower-body injury. Jesper Wallstedt is all of 22 and is considered the goalie of the future for Minnesota, but he has not shown it yet. The big Swede has made four NHL appearances and has a 3.05 GAA and .895 save percentage.
Yes, Scheifele's 18 goals come with a 23.4 percent shooting rate, which is high, but he's got a track record of success. Over the previous eight seasons, he had an 18.4 percent shooting rate. Scheifele also has 14 power-play points and the Wild have a bottom-five penalty kill. Connor has three two-point games in a row. He has 19 goals in 34 games, but he shoots so much that he has a 16.1 percent shooting rate that is entirely sustainable for him. Vilardi has 11 points over his last eight outings. Five of those have come with the extra man.
Blue Jackets at Flyers
Sean Monahan (C - $6,000), Kirill Marchenko (W - $5,500), Dmitri Voronkov (W - $4,000)
The Jackets have been slightly worse than the Flyers defensively, but the Jackets also have a line I like as a whole for a stack more than any line the Flyers have to offer. Plus, the fact Philly has a 3.55 GAA having only allowed 27.5 shots on net per game speaks in part to how bad the goaltending has been. With a .884 save percentage, Samuel Ersson has been the best of Philly's trio of netminders. He's allowed at least three goals in every start he's made since returning from injury. Columbus' top line has offered more upside than I would have expected, but it's been going on for long enough to feel good about it at this point.
After a few games without a point, Monahan had two goals and an assist in his last outing. He's also put 90 shots on net through 33 games. Marchenko has also put 90 shots on target through 33 contests. He's on a four-game point streak, including two in each of his last two games. Vorokov is, unsurprisingly, on a three-game point streak as well. It's also worth noting all three of these guys are on the top power-play unit.
DEFENSEMEN
Charlie McAvoy, BOS vs. BUF ($4,600): McAvoy has an assist in four of his last five games. He's also put at least two shots on net in each of his last 10 contests, remarkable for a defenseman. The Sabres, as noted, are on the second leg of a back-to-back. They are also in the bottom seven in GAA and James Reimer has a .901 save percentage over the last five seasons.
Nick Seeler, PHI vs. CBJ ($3,400): Seeler usually isn't an offensive dynamo, but he has five points over his last eight games. Twice in that time, he's put three shots on net. At home against a team with a 3.58 GAA, Seeler may be able to stretch out this fertile patch for one game.
Luke Hughes, NJD vs. PIT ($3,000): Hughes has taken a step back offensively this year, largely because Dougie Hamilton has a stronghold on the top power-play unit. However, he's on a three-game point streak, and he put a whopping six shots on net in his last outing. The Penguins have the league's highest GAA, giving Hughes an opportunity here even without much power-play time.
