This article is part of our FantasyDraft NHL series.
The weekend is near, but first there are four NHL games to get through Friday. To kick things off right, here are some players I recommend for your daily fantasy lineup.
GOALIE
Columbus Blue Jackets, CLM vs. DET ($16,800): Both the Blue Jackets and Red Wings are on the second night of a back-to-back, but the Jackets are the ones who get to be at home. Detroit is also a team that has only scored 2.59 goals per game. Additionally, since Joonas Korpisalo started Thursday there's a good chance Sergei Bobrovsky (2.44 GAA, .920 save percentage) will be in net for this one.
CENTER
Mikko Koivu, MIN at VAN ($11,200): Koivu is enjoying a five-game point streak wherein he has totaled seven points. The Canucks have a 3.22 GAA, bottom five in the NHL, and have allowed 32.5 shots on net per contest. Vancouver also has the 26th-ranked penalty kill and Koivu has 14 power-play points in 67 games.
Matt Duchene, OTT vs. CGY ($11,100): Even with Ottawa's myriad struggles, Duchene has tallied seven goals and nine assists through his last 15 games. Mike Smith is getting closer to returning for the Flames, but he hasn't yet. Largely due to that fact, the Flames have a 3.42 GAA since the All-Star break. Even if Smith does return, it wouldn't be surprising to see him struggle on the road in his first outing after missing 12 contests.
WING
Matthew Tkachuk, CGY at OTT ($13,700): Tkachuk has 13 points in his last 14 games and even though he has zero points in his last two, he put 10 shots on net in those contests. In fact, Keith's son has 36 shots in his last eight games. Meanwhile, the Senators have a 3.40 GAA and will be on the second night of a back-to-back.
Artemi Panarin, CLM vs. DET ($13,600): Panarin has been on a tear, notching six goals and seven assists in his last 10 games. He's also started 66.1 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, second highest on the Blue Jackets. The Red Wings have no good options in net, as they have to choose between a struggling Jimmy Howard and Jared Coreau, who allowed four goals on 16 shots and got pulled in his one start this season. Either way, it bodes well for Panarin.
Daniel Sedin, VAN vs. MIN ($10,600): There's life left in this old Swede yet. Sedin has eight goals and six assists in his last 12 games, and he's actually crossed the 20-goal mark through 66 contests. He's also still a power-play weapon, as he's tallied 20 points with the extra man. The Wild, on the other hand, have been terrible on the road; they have a 3.59 GAA in away games, highest in the NHL.
DEFENSEMEN
Seth Jones, CLM vs. DET ($12,400): Jones has been one of the most prolific shooters among defensemen in the NHL this season. He's put 227 pucks on net through 68 games, which tends to yield good fantasy results. Detroit has a 3.00 GAA, but a lot of that is from when Petr Mrazek was still on the team. Heading into Thursday's game Jimmy Howard had a 3.13 GAA and a .901 save percentage in his last 16 outings, and Jared Coreau has struggled in his very limited minutes as well.
Mark Giordano, CGY at OTT ($11,700): Giordano has 12 goals on 183 shots through 68 games and in his last six contests he has three goals on 28 shots. As previously mentioned, Ottawa has a 3.40 GAA, which is second highest in the league. The Senators have also given up 33.1 shots on goal per game and have the 28th-ranked penalty kill. All of these are great reasons to buy into Giordano on Friday.
