This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's a 10-game slate for Tuesday, providing plenty of options in every category. The winter months are when injuries tend to pile up, and a number of younger players have been asked to play larger roles. Goaltending also remains an issue for a few teams. Let's dig in.
GOALIES
Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA at STL ($8,400): The Blues will surely put up a fight, but they'll likely be without top-six forwards Robert Thomas and David Perron, defenseman Justin Faulk, and Ville Husso is expected to start. Bobrovsky has just one (!) loss in regulation this season, and the Panthers' offense deserves some credit. Aleksander Barkov may be available for this game, which further tips the scales in their favor.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at MON ($8,300): Vasilevskiy will be a very popular pick. Jake Allen continues to struggle as the starting goalie, and the Habs offense has suddenly dried up again, scoring five goals in their past three games. The Habs have plenty of good wingers, but short on centers and defensemen who can move the puck up the ice. The Lightning should be able to keep scoring chances and goals to a minimum in this matchup.
Jack Campbell, TOR vs. CBJ ($8,100): The Leafs may have lost two straight but there's no panic at all. One loss came in a shootout against the Wild, and the Leafs showed a lot of fight – literally – in an out-of-control game that featured bad hits, fights and suspensions. The Jackets snapped their four-game losing streak but their goaltending hasn't been particularly sharp, allowing four goals against the Sharks despite the win.
John Gibson, ANH at BUF ($7,500): Gibson has struggled lately but he's faced very tough opponents: Flames, Leafs, Avs, Canes and the Caps twice. Even if Gibson isn't sharp, the Ducks offense should be able to take advantage of the Sabres' poor goaltending and provide plenty of goal support.
Filip Gustavsson, OTT vs. NYI ($6,700): The Sens are on a mini-heater with three straight wins, even though two of them needed extra time, and all of them were earned by Anton Forsberg. Gustavsson gets a chance to keep the streak going, and even though the Sens are playing back-to-back, no team is arguably worse than the Isles right now. At some point, the Isles' luck should turn, but this is a potential value play in a matchup with teams trending in very opposite directions.
VALUE PLAYS
Michael Bunting, TOR vs. CBJ ($5,300): As long as Bunting rides shotgun with Auston Matthews, he'll also be a good value play. He scored a goal against the Jets after his five-game point streak was snapped, and his role on the power play gives him additional value.
Dryden Hunt, NYR at CHI ($3,900): Hunt has scored four points in four games as "that guy" playing on a line with Artemi Panarin and Ryan Strome. He hit the lottery with that assignment, and while we don't expect highlight-reel stuff from Hunt, playing with such talented players make it easy to pick up assists.
Gabriel Fortier, TB at MON ($3,200): Through four games Fortier has scored zero points on seven shots, but he remains a fixture on the second line with Anthony Cirelli and Alex Killorn. He's not considered a particularly talented player, but with high-quality linemates and a chance to be put in scoring situations in front of his home crowd, he's a sneaky value play.
Maxim Mamin, FLA at STL ($3,200): The possible return of Barkov might bump Mamin from the lineup, but he's been playing quite well lately and scored two goals on five shots last game against the Blues. If Barkov doesn't play, Mamin is an excellent value play on a scoring line with Carter Verhaeghe, and if Barkov plays, Mamin can still be a good value play on the third line.
LINE STACKS
Lightning at Canadiens
Steven Stamkos (C - $8,500), Mathieu Joseph (W - $4,000), Ondrej Palat (W - $5,800)
Joseph keeps the cost of this stack low, and last game he scored a goal and an assist in 15 minutes of ice time. He's definitely a third wheel on this line with Stamkos and Palat doing a lot of the heavy lifting; Stamkos is on a seven-game point streak and Palat has scored two goals in his past three games. The Habs are allowing the fourth-highest GF/GP at 3.58.
Senators vs. Islanders
Josh Norris (C - $6,400), Drake Batherson (W - $6,200), Brady Tkachuk (W - $7,300)
It's a costly stack for a very young and sometimes inconsistent trio, and they'll be playing the second game of a back-to-back. However, they're a speedy line and the Isles are having trouble containing faster teams with a depleted blue line. Norris just had his four-game point streak snapped while Batherson and Tkachuk have managed to keep their multi-game point streaks going following Monday's win against Jersey.
Ducks at Sabres
Trevor Zegras (C - $6,000), Sonny Milano (W - $5,000), Rickard Rakell (W - $5,200)
Milano's play this season has defied logic; he's an "old" 25-year-old prospect suddenly six points away from tying his career high of 23 points even though he's played in 35 fewer games. His career 14.4 S% suggests he should've broken out long ago but he hasn't really been given a chance, and his partnership with Zegras continues to pay huge dividends. Milano and Zegras have combined for 13 points in their past three games.
DEFENSEMEN
Thomas Chabot, OTT vs. NYI ($5,100): Chabot has looked really good over the past little stretch, and with an assist against the Devils has now scored a point in consecutive games for the first time all season. With plenty of options on a packed Tuesday, Chabot can provide surplus value considering how much the Sens lean on him.
Josh Morrissey, WPG vs. CAR ($4,100): With Neal Pionk suspended, look for Morrissey and Nate Schmidt to see increased roles on the power play. Morrissey should be the better play because he tends to get more shots on net and plays slightly more minutes.
Jamie Drysdale, ANH at BUF ($4,100): It just seems too easy to pick on the Sabres. Drysdale's role remains limited because the Ducks have several veterans ahead of him on the depth chart, but he's consistently getting around 20 minutes per night and none of them feature the same offensive upside as Drysdale. He's scored three points in three games and he's also registered a shot on goal in every game this season.
