This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
We have a busy night ahead of us with 10 games scheduled. Half of those matches (Nashville at Boston, San Jose at Buffalo, Carolina at Detroit, Columbus at Tampa Bay, Calgary at Philadelphia) are set to begin at 7:00 p.m. EST, followed by one game at 7:30 (Winnipeg at the Islanders), one at 8:00 (New Jersey at Dallas), two at 9:00 (Pittsburgh at Colorado, Anaheim at Edmonton) and one at 10:00 (Minnesota at Seattle). Here are my FanDuel lineup recommendations for Tuesday's action.
SLATE PREVIEW
Buffalo, Tampa Bay, San Jose and the Islanders all played Monday, so fatigue might be working against them tonight. Meanwhile, Anaheim is on the first half of a back-to-back, which might influence the Ducks' lineup decisions.
GOALIES
Mackenzie Blackwood, COL vs. PIT ($8,000): Blackwood has played like an elite goaltender ever since he was acquired by Colorado from San Jose, posting a 16-7-2 record, 2.12 GAA and .921 save percentage across his past 25 outings. Without much hope of a playoff berth left, the Penguins have dropped six of their past seven games (1-5-1), so Blackwood is in a strong position to pick up a victory tonight.
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG at NYI ($7,700): That's a great price for a netminder with a sub-2.00 GAA through 46 appearances. In addition to his league-leading 1.99 GAA, Hellebuyck also has a .927 save percentage and a 36-7-3 record. He's allowed just one goal in each of his past three starts. The Islanders rank 27th in goals per game with 2.72, and they've gone 2-5-0 dating back to Feb. 7. As noted above, the Islanders are also likely to be tired after playing Monday.
Jeremy Swayman, BOS vs. NAS ($7,600): Swayman has been underwhelming this campaign with an 18-20-6 record, 2.95 GAA and .898 save percentage in 44 appearances and he's in the midst of a five-game losing streak (0-3-2). The silver lining is his last two losses haven't been his fault -- he stopped 39 of 42 shots (.929 save percentage) across those outings. Nashville has been one of the easier assignments in the league, and the Predators are 21-32-7 with an absolutely abysmal 6-20-4 record on the road while being tied for 31st in goals per game with 2.53. On top of that, Nashville traded Gustav Nyquist to Minnesota on Saturday, making its already thin offense a little worse.
VALUE PLAYS
Will Smith, SJS at BUF ($4,900): Smith has provided two goals and five points across his past four outings as well as four goals and 13 points over 14 appearances dating back to Jan. 20. The 19-year-old's cold start to the season will keep him out of the Calder Trophy conversation, but Smith still has a good shot of ending his rookie campaign on a positive note.
Frederick Gaudreau, MIN at SEA ($4,700): Gaudreau typically isn't much of an offensive force, but he's been chipping in on a fairly regular basis recently, providing six goals and nine points across his past 13 outings. That run includes him supplying the lone goal in Minnesota's 1-0 victory over Boston on Sunday.
Mavrik Bourque, DAL vs. NJD ($4,500): The 23-year-old Bourque has demonstrated some of his offensive upside recently, supplying three goals and six points across his past seven appearances. It helps that he's averaged 14:22 of ice time across that span, up from 12:12 across his opening 47 games of 2024-25.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Stars vs. Devils
Roope Hintz (C - $7,300), Jason Robertson (W - $8,200), Logan Stankoven (W - $5,300)
This is arguably the hottest line in the league. Hintz has been an absolute monster recently, supplying two goals and 11 points in four appearances this campaign, including back-to-back four-point outings. He's up to 24 goals and 47 points in 56 games this season.
Robertson has been a big factor recently as well, contributing five goals and nine points over his past four appearances. That's pushed him up to 25 markers and 60 points in 60 outings overall.
The 21-year-old Stankoven rounds out this unit with a comparatively quiet nine goals and 29 points in 57 appearances in 2024-25, but even he's been hot lately. He'll enter Tuesday's action on a three-game scoring streak (two goals, four points).
So, if you want a trio firing on all cylinders, this is it.
Avalanche vs. Penguins
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $9,100), Martin Necas (W - $8,000), Artturi Lehkonen (W - $6,500)
This line isn't as hot as the Dallas unit, but it's hard to go wrong with MacKinnon. He's in the running to win the Hart Trophy for the second straight year thanks to his 23 goals and league-leading 91 points through 61 appearances. Necas has proven to be a great co-star for him, supplying four goals and 13 points in 12 outings since being acquired by Colorado from Carolina. Necas is up to 20 goals and 68 points through 61 appearances this season.
Lehkonen rounds out this unit, and he's held his own when healthy this campaign, providing 24 goals and 35 points in 49 outings. That includes three goals and five points over his past six appearances.
They'll be up against the Penguins, who rank 31st in goals allowed per game with 3.62, so it wouldn't be surprising if Colorado has a good night offensively.
DEFENSEMEN
Cale Makar, COL vs. PIT ($7,100): Makar has three goals and nine points across his past six games, but more importantly, he's been fantastic all season. The 26-year-old has 22 goals and 67 points in 61 outings overall. That gives him a three-point lead in the blueliner scoring race. It doesn't hurt that he's up against Pittsburgh -- as noted when discussing the MacKinnon line, the Penguins have left plenty to be desired at their own end of the ice.
Thomas Harley, DAL vs. NJD ($5,800): Harley has recorded three goals and nine points in his past seven outings while being held off the scoresheet only once in that span. He's found success with the man advantage recently, providing five of those nine points on the power play, more than doubling his four power-play points over his first 52 appearances in 2024-25.
Jackson LaCombe, ANA at EDM ($5,700): LaCombe found the back of the net against Chicago on Saturday to extend his scoring streak to five games (two goals, six points). The 24-year-old has jumped up significantly from his 17-point rookie campaign, supplying 11 goals and 30 points through 52 outings as a sophomore this season.
