This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are six games on the NHL slate Friday. Detroit visits Washington, Winnipeg plays in New Jersey, Utah travels to Chicago, Anaheim hosts St. Louis, Vancouver entertains Minnesota and Vegas is home to Pittsburgh. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
GOALIES
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG at NJ ($7,500): Hellebuyck should start Friday as Eric Comrie went on Thursday. Since Jan. 7, he's gone 12-2-1 with an eye-popping 1.86 GAA and .927 save percentage. And Hellebuyck should win another Vezina Trophy. Just pick him on Friday and relax.
Logan Thompson, WAS vs. DET ($8,300): Thompson is also likely to garner some Vezina consideration at 26-4-5 with a 2.32 GAA and .918 save percentage across 35 appearances. He'll be facing a Detroit team on Friday with a mediocre offense who just played on Thursday.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Timo Meier, NJ vs. WPG ($5,700): Meier now has Nico Hischier as his center after Jack Hughes was sidelined for the rest of the year. He tallied a goal and assist on Tuesday with his new linemate to give him 41 points overall.
Marco Kasper, DET at WAS ($4,400): Kasper has gone scoreless from his last four games, though is currently on the top line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond. As a former first-rounder who's shown flashes of brilliance, he's worth considering if you need a talented player at a low salary.
FORWARD LINE STACK
Utah at Blackhawks
Logan Cooley (C - $5,500), Clayton Keller (W - $7,700), Nick Schmaltz (W - $5,300)
Utah's top trio is headlined by Keller with his 70 points, 13 of those coming in his last eight outings - including five against the Wild last week. Cooley has recorded 17 goals and 30 assists across 55 appearances with four points in four after missing seven with a lower-body injury. Schmaltz is up to 48 points, with seven from the last six games. All three also appear on the first power play.
DEFENSEMEN
Filip Hronek, VAN vs. MIN ($4,600): Hronek's selection is contingent on Quinn Hughes remaining out of action as he would take over quarterbacking the lead man-advantage. He managed two assists on Wednesday - one on the PP - as Hughes was sidelined. On the season, Hronek has notched 20 points over 40 games.
Jackson LaCombe, ANA vs. STL ($4,800): LaCombe has been hot of late with two goals and seven assists from his last seven appearances. He potted both goals at home while registering all seven helpers on the road. LaCombe also leads all Ducks' defensemen with 33 points.
