This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
There are four games today with two set to begin at 7:30 p.m. ET (Predators at Maple Leafs and Bruins at Blackhawks) as well as two 10:00 p.m. starts (Golden Knights at Ducks and Stars at Kings). Here are my FanDuel lineup recommendations for this relatively light night of hockey.
SLATE PREVIEW
Boston and Vegas are on the second half of a back-to-back, so fatigue could be a factor for those two squads. The other six teams playing are entering the night rested, though Nashville will be playing again tomorrow, which might influence its lineup decisions tonight.
GOALIES
Jeremy Swayman, BOS at CHI ($8,000): Betting on a team to win on the road on no rest isn't ideal, but the Bruins' adversary is the 8-15-2 Blackhawks, who rank 31st in goals per game with 2.44. Boston is also 5-2-0 since Joe Sacco took over as the bench boss and, importantly, the defense has been much better since the coaching change, as evidenced by Boston allowing just 1.86 goals per game over its past seven outings. That will hopefully help Jeremy Swayman rebound after a difficult start to the campaign – he has a 7-9-2 record, 3.09 GAA and .892 save percentage through 18 appearances.
Anthony Stolarz, TOR vs. NAS ($7,700): Inking Stolarz to a two-year, $5 million contract over the summer has proven to be a fantastic investment for Toronto. He's posted an 8-4-2 record, 2.23 GAA and .924 save percentage across 14 outings in 2024-25. Nashville ranks last in goals per game with 2.32, so this is a rather favorable matchup for a goaltender who's already having a strong campaign. Be sure to verify Stolarz is getting the start, though. If it turns out Joseph Woll ($7,700) starts instead, then employ the 26-year-old netminder, who has a 6-2-0 record, 2.13 GAA and .923 save percentage across eight appearances this campaign.
VALUE PLAYS
Pavel Zacha, BOS at CHI ($4,900): Zacha has had a rough season, but there have been some hot streaks sprinkled in there. He's in the midst of one such positive stretch, providing three goals and five points across his past four outings. Perhaps there's a little bit more to this run of production given that it started not long after Boston's coaching change. Although Zacha's limited to six goals and 12 points through 27 appearances in 2024-25, he did record 57 and 59 points in 2022-23 and 2023-24, respectively, so he's certainly shown he can do better.
Fraser Minten, TOR vs. NAS ($4,500): Toronto's mountain of forward injuries led to them recalling Minten, and the 20-year-old has shown promise at the top level. He's collected two goals and four points across five appearances while averaging 14:02 of ice time. His play has been good enough that he's remained in the lineup despite Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews returning from their respective injuries. Minten probably will still be sent down eventually – Toronto is still missing Bobby McMann (lower body), Max Pacioretty (lower body), Max Domi (lower body), Calle Jarnkrok (groin) and David Kampf (lower body) – but he's not a bad value play in the meantime.
FORWARD LINE STACK
Maple Leafs vs. Predators
Auston Matthews (C - $8,400), William Nylander (C - $8,000), Matthew Knies (W - $5,900)
Matthews missed nine games due to his upper-body injury, but he seems fine now, providing a goal and three points across two outings since returning. The star sniper tends to score goals in bunches, so it wouldn't be surprising to see him find the back of the net again tonight after scoring a marker Monday.
Knies has been great since returning from injury, collecting two goals and three points over his past two outings. That gives him 10 goals and 15 points through 22 appearances in 2024-25.
Then there's Nylander, who has a fantastic 15 goals and 26 points through 24 outings, including three goals and six points over his past five games. The only downside is that FanDuel lists him as a center, which might complicate your lineup construction. If it does, consider subbing out Nylander for Mitch Marner (W - $7,900), who has nine goals and 33 points through 24 appearances in 2024-25 and is riding a seven-game scoring streak (five goals, 13 points). Marner is projected to be on the second line, but he should join Matthews, Nylander and Knies on the top power-play unit.
DEFENSEMEN
Miro Heiskanen, DAL at LAK ($6,400): There isn't much in the way of hot defensemen available tonight, but Heiskanen fits the bill. He has two goals and seven points across his past six appearances. That helps partially make up for a slow start to the campaign – he's at four goals and 13 points through 24 outings after finishing the 2023-24 regular season with 54 points.
Morgan Rielly, TOR vs. NAS ($5,800): Rielly isn't an exciting pick, but he should provide decent value on a night where the options are limited. Although he's not hot, he has exceeded the 40-point mark in each of his previous three campaigns and has a solid four goals and 14 points, including seven on the power play, through 24 outings. There's a good chance he'll show up on the scoresheet against Nashville, who is tied for 22nd in goals allowed per game with 3.16. He's also a solid source of shots (47) and blocks (40), which leads to him providing some value even on nights when he fails to record a point.
