This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
Sunday's NHL main slate begins at 7:00 PM Eastern time and features just three games. Below, you'll find an overview of the matchups and suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
SLATE PREVIEW
The Blackhawks will be this slate's biggest favorites at home against the Red Wings, while the Flames travel to Minnesota and the Predators visit Anaheim. The Wild and Predators are both finishing up back-to-back sets.
GOALIES
Corey Crawford ($7,300) should get the start for Chicago with Robin Lehner battling a knee injury. He'll bring a 3.20 GAA and .905 save percentage into a matchup with a Red Wings team that's scoring a league-low 2.14 goals per game.
Juuse Saros ($7,300) is another affordable netminder with a favorable matchup. He's likely to get the start for Nashville after Pekka Rinne got the nod Saturday in Los Angeles, and Saros will face a Ducks team that's scoring 2.49 goals per game — second-fewest in the league.
David Rittich ($7,500) of the Flames has been more reliable than the two netminders listed above, with a 2.63 GAA and .913 save percentage. He'll look to improve those numbers against the league-average Wild offense.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Stacking Blackhawks will be the chalk strategy in this slate, and such a move should include center Jonathan Toews ($6,100), whose 30 points are second on the team. He should add to that total against the league-worst Red Wings defense.
Jakob Silfverberg ($6,000) has been Anaheim's best source of offense this season, leading the team in both goals (15) and points (28). He has a nice opportunity to add to those totals against Saros (3.23 GAA, .890 save percentage).
Robby Fabbri ($3,800) has played well since being traded to the Red Wings from the Blues earlier this season, producing a 9-9-18 line in 25 games with Detroit. If you're going to use any Red Wings in this one, the affordable Fabbri should be among them.
Luke Kunin ($3,700) is another affordable player who's primed to provide strong bang for the buck. The 2016 first-rounder looks to be finding his stride at the NHL level with a 2-3-5 line over his past five games. If he continues to produce, it won't be long before the Wild winger's price climbs.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Blackhawks vs. Red Wings
Ryan Carpenter (C - $3,500), Patrick Kane (W - $8,400), Dylan Sikura (W - $3,000)
Kane should be well worth paying up for as this slate's most expensive player. His 4-2-6 line in the past two games has Kane up to a 24-29-53 line through 42 contests, and he should add to those totals against Detroit's league-worst defense (3.81 goals allowed per game). Locking in Kane's cheap pair of linemates can help amplify his effect on your lineup while using little additional cap space. Carpenter has an assist and seven shots in his last two games, while Sikura has two assists through five NHL appearances this season.
Flames at Wild
Sean Monahan (C - $7,100), Johnny Gaudreau (W - $7,100), Tobias Rieder (W - $3,100)
Monahan has three goals and an assist over a four-game point streak, bringing his season line to 14-20-34 through 43 games following last year's 82-point campaign. Gaudreau is likely to pick up the pace from his current 11-22-33 line considering he finished with 84 points in 2017-18 and 99 last season. Rieder's just a cheap filler hanging out on this line with two of the team's top forwards. This line should find success against a tired Wild team that ranks among the league's 10 worst defensively.
Predators at Ducks
Nick Bonino (C - $3,600), Craig Smith (W - $4,400), Rocco Grimaldi (W - $3,700)
Nashville's affordable third line should provide strong bang for the buck against a Ducks team that's won only 16 of 41 games. With 13 goals, Bonino is just one behind the team goal lead shared by Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi. Smith's a five-time 20-goal scorer who has heated up recently with a 3-2-5 line and 19 shots over his past five games. Grimaldi's producing at above a 40-point pace and just notched a goal and an assist Saturday night.
DEFENSEMEN
Roman Josi ($6,800) is on a tremendous hot streak, with a 7-10-17 line and 33 shots over an active nine-game point streak. He's often the cream of the crop in much larger slates, and the standout Nashville blueliner stands head and shoulders above all the other defensemen in this small slate.
Erik Gustafsson ($4,800) has just 17 points in 41 games after breaking out with 60 points in 79 games last season, but he seems to have found his form with a 2-5-7 line over his past 11 games. The offensively gifted Blackhawks blueliner should stay hot against the league-worst Red Wings.
Anaheim's top producer from the blue line is Cam Fowler ($4,900), who sits just eight points off the team lead with an 8-12-20 line. He has a nice opportunity to add to that total against Nashville's tired, bottom-10 defense.
