This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Tuesday's NHL action consists of four Stanley Cup playoff Game 1s after 7:00 p.m. EDT. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective DraftKings DFS lineup. All game lines and odds used below are pulled from DraftKings Sportsbook.
SLATE PREVIEW
The Avalanche are Tuesday's largest favorites, as the reigning Stanley Cup champs open the postseason at home against the Kraken, who are in the playoffs for the first time after making it as a wild card. The Maple Leafs are favored at home against the Lightning, as are the Golden Knights against the Jets, and the Devils vs. the Rangers. Kraken-Avalanche and Lightning-Maple Leafs have over/unders of 6.0 goals while the other two games come in at 5.5.
GOALIES
Alexandar Georgiev, COL vs. SEA ($8,200): Georgiev's coming off a successful first regular season in Colorado, as he tied Linus Ullmark for the league lead with 40 wins. This is his first time entering a postseason as a team's No. 1 goalie, but the dominant group of skaters in front of Georgiev should help him build on his strong regular season.
Laurent Brossoit, VGK vs. WPG ($7,800): Brossoit was unbeaten in regulation this season, going 7-0-3 with a 2.17 GAA and .927 save percentage. Like Georgiev, Brossoit isn't an established playoff goalie but plays behind a stout defense. The Golden Knights led the Western Conference with 111 points, while the Jets snuck into the postseason with 95.
Igor Shesterkin, NYR at NJ ($7,600): Shesterkin was hot down the stretch, going 11-3-1 with a 1.98 GAA and .934 save percentage in his last 15 outings while looking like the best goaltender in the world again. On paper, the Rangers team in front of him is better than the one Shesterkin carried within two games of the Stanley Cup Final last year, but a Devils team that had 112 points this season won't make life easy for the starvgialie.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at TOR ($7,200): If this were Game 7, Vasilevskiy would be a no-brainer, as Toronto always loses those and Vasilevskiy's historically great in elimination games. Even in the series opener on the road, Vasilevskiy's a nice value at $7,200 given his career 63-38 record, 2.30 GAA and .923 save percentage in the postseason.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Jack Hughes, NJ vs. NYR ($8,100): Hughes finally stayed healthy this season and enjoyed a breakout campaign, finishing eighth in goals (43) and 12th in points (99). While the increased physicality of postseason play may give Hughes trouble, his elite mix of speed and hands should allow him to keep generating numerous chances for both himself and his linemates in his first taste of playoff hockey.
Mitchell Marner, TOR vs. TB ($6,100): Like Hughes, Mariner's coming off a 99-point season. He's a nice value at $6,100 while skating on the top line and No. 1 power-play unit against a Lightning team that's still dangerous but far less intimidating with a roster that isn't boosted by exploiting salary cap loopholes.
Kyle Connor, WPG at VGK ($6,000): Connor at $6,000 is a nice deal, even against the tough Vegas defense. In what was regarded as a down year, Connor still posted a 31-49-80 line. In the preceding campaign, Connor contributed 47 goals and 93 points.
Jared McCann, SEA at COL ($5,900): McCann outplayed his valuation throughout the season en route to an even 40 goals and 70 points. If anyone's going to lead the underdog Kraken to victory in the franchise's first playoff game, McCann's the likeliest candidate to do so.
Jonathan Marchessault, VGK vs. WPG ($4,900): Marchessault's a bargain at his sub-$5,000 valuation for the favored Golden Knights. The top-line winger's 28-29-57 line this season included six goals in his last 11 games. Marchessault also has a history of postseason success for the Golden Knights, with a 21-25-46 line across 66 playoff games in a Vegas uniform.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Avalanche vs. Kraken
Nathan MacKinnon (C - $9,800), Mikko Rantanen (W - $8,500), Evan Rodrigues (W - $4,600)
MacKinnon and Rantanen should pick up where they left off to finish the regular season. A hat trick in the finale gave MacKinnon 10 goals in his last eight games, while Rantanen finished third in the NHL with 55 goals. Rodrigues will be worth a flier at his sub-$5,000 valuation as long as he's sharing the ice with these two star scorers.
Lightning at Maple Leafs
Brayden Point (C - $7,200), Nikita Kucherov (W - $7,500), Steven Stamkos (W - $7,000)
It appears the Lighting will start the postseason with the team's top three scorers all skating on one line. Point finished fifth with 51 goals, while Kucherov's 113 points tied for third in the NHL. Stamkos is no slouch, either, as the six-time 40-goal scorer posted a 34-50-84 line. Rehashing Toronto's recent postseason failures would take quite a while, but suffice to say the Leafs haven't won a playoff series since 2004 despite ample opportunities.
Rangers at Devils
Filip Chytil (C - $4,700), Alexis Lafreniere (W - $3,400), Kaapo Kakko (W - $2,800)
New York's "kid line" broke out last postseason, and this trio's another year wiser and stronger heading into this playoff run. After scoring seven goals last postseason, Chytil notched career highs in goals (22) and points (45) this season. Lafreniere had nine points last postseason and 39 this season, while Kakko scored six goals in his last 12 games to reach the 40-point mark in 2022-23. Locking in some or all of this line can provide cap relief as you build around the robust selection of pricey stars in this slate.
DEFENSEMEN
Cale Makar, COL vs. SEA ($7,600): Makar's good to go for the playoffs after missing the past seven games due to a lower-body injury. He had a 17-49-66 line in 60 games this year and was even more impressive last postseason, capturing the Conn Smythe Trophy thanks to an 8-21-29 line in 20 games.
Alex Pietrangelo, VGK vs. WPG ($6,400): Pietrangelo's an established playoff performer known for stuffing the stat sheet in the postseason. He lays a nice base of shots and blocks, and Pietrangelo was hot to finish off the regular season, averaging a point per game in his last 14.
Victor Hedman, TB at TOR ($5,400): Hedman's coming off a lackluster regular season, but this could be a buy-low opportunity on the star blueliner heading into the postseason. Over the Lightning's last three playoff runs, Hedman has a 15-44-59 line in 71 games.
Ryan Graves, NJ vs. NYR ($3,800): Graves had a nice finish to the season, topping 11 fantasy points in five of the last six games while compiling a 2-2-4 line, 16 shots and 14 blocked shots. He should continue to contribute on both ends in the playoffs.
