This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
There are only four games on the NHL slate Sunday, with the first one set to go off at 7 p.m. Eastern. When the slate is small, concentrate your funds on just a couple big guns and supplement those with much lower-priced picks. Here are players to target Sunday.
GOALIE
Jonathan Quick, LAK vs. SJS ($40): Quick is the most exciting goalie play of the night. He enters with an impressive 9-3-1 record, 2.29 GAA and .932 save percentage but has played poorly lately, giving up 14 goals in his last four games, including five Thursday against Tampa Bay. However, he should have little trouble against a tired Sharks team, which is on the back end of a back-to-back.
Goalie to Avoid:
Martin Jones, SJS at LAK ($33): Jones has played well this season, but he has a tough road matchup against the Pacific-leading Kings. The Sharks just do not have enough firepower to get the job done.
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CENTER
Evgeny Kuznetsov, WSH vs. EDM ($23): Kuznetsov has been on fire with 19 points in last 17 games. New linemate Devante Smith-Pelly has been a revelation for the Capitals, as his physical play has opened a lot of ice for Kuznetsov. Of course, when your other linemate is Alexander Ovechkin, your line is more often than not in for a good night. This should be a wild, open contest against the road-weary Oilers, the very sort of match in which this line excels.
Center to Avoid:
Jonathan Toews, CHI vs. NJD ($20): Back-to-back games have been difficult for the Blackhawks this season, and that goes double for Toews, who still leads Chicago forwards in taking the most demanding shifts every night (against opponents' top lines, defensive zone face-offs, penalty kill, etc.). He has been cold lately with just two points in his last seven games.
WING
Alexander Ovechkin ($34), Devante Smith-Pelly, WSH vs. EDM ($13): Ovechkin (19 points in last 17 games) and Smith-Pelly (two points in last three games) along with D-men John Carlson and Christian Djoos complete your Capitals stack. Linemates of Evgeny Kuznetsov, these three have played particularly well together and should have little trouble in what should be a fun affair in Washington D.C.
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Wings to Avoid:
Patrick Sharp ($10), Brandon Saad, CHI vs. NJD ($23): Saad started strongly enough but has slumped lately with no points in his last six games and is overpriced at $23. More concerning, Sharp has only four points in 16 games since being back in a Blackhawks jersey. It is starting to look like the beginning of the end for Saad.
DEFENSE
Christian Djoos ($11), John Carlson, WSH vs. EDM ($23): Carlson and Djoos are Washington's first line of defense and have shown great chemistry already. Djoos has three points in 14 games and a plus-4 rating. Carlson has been hot with four points in his last three games. They also both see significant power play time as well, especially Carlson who anchors the top unit.
Defensemen to Avoid:
Brent Seabrook CHI vs. NJD ($14): Seabrook has had a lot of trouble finding the scoring sheet lately with no points in his last seven games. Give him a skip on the back end of this back-to-back set against the swift Devils.
Brent Burns SJS at LAK ($32): Burns is not off to as bad a start as the numbers look as he is on a 346-shots pace for the season. So some of his lack of production might merely be a case of bad luck. Still, with all the shooting Burns has just seven points in his last 14 games and a minus-8 rating, which is not enough to justify his high price.
