This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
GOALIE
Jonathan Quick, LA vs. CLS ($7,900) – Quick has a career 15-6-0 record with a 2.14 GAA against the Jackets and historically been a better performer at home than on the road. Columbus is also without top goal-scorer Josh Anderson and Nick Foligno.
CENTER
Eric Staal, MIN at ARI ($7,300) – He's scored 10 points in his past three games on the NHL's hottest line with Mikael Granlund and Jason Zucker, and the Coyotes are an easy target. Even though the Coyotes have won six of their past 10, their goaltending remains unreliable. The Wild are unlikely to win the Central but may want the second seed to get home-ice advantage against the Jets, so there's plenty to play for and they're rolling on all cylinders with five straight wins. Other than Derek Stepan, who's much smaller than Staal, there's really no other Coyotes pivot who can prevent Staal from creating havoc around the net.
Anze Kopitar, LA vs. CLS ($6,400) – The Kings' captain is quietly putting together his best ever season statistically, and he's scored six points in his past three games, including five in a home-and-home series against the Knights. He's been averaging over a point per game in the past two months, and in his only other appearance against the Jackets this season, he scored two goals and an assist with a plus-5 rating. Kopitar has been frightening consistent this season and has a very high ceiling with a very high floor as well, making him a rare commodity.
WING
Claude Giroux, PHI vs. CAR ($7,000) – Giroux's four-game point streak was snapped in a shutout loss to the Habs on Monday, but he gets a chance to get back on track against a team that's not consistent and doesn't have very good goaltending. He's scored 29 points in 33 games against the Hurricanes in his career, and they've lost six straight with 13 goals allowed in their past three games. Petr Mrazek's strong play for the Flyers should allow their offense to take more chances.
Evander Kane, SJ vs. CHI ($6,600) – Kane's physical style of play really makes him better suited for the Western Conference, and he had a strong Sharks debut with two assists against the Oilers. The Blackhawks will be starting Jean-Francois Berube, which will make scoring a little easier for the Sharks, who are finding their groove with six wins in their past 10 games. The Sharks have been dominant at home with 18 wins, while the Blackhawks are two games below .500 on the road. Also, Kane is a multi-category fantasy player who doesn't always have to score to provide value.
Calle Jarnkrok, NSH at EDM ($3,700) – With four points in his past three games, Jarnkrok has been on a roll despite playing on the third line with Nick Bonino and Scott Hartnell, neither of whom are able to generate much offense on their own. However, with the Oilers' lack of defensive depth, the Predators may be able to use that to their advantage and get Jarnkrok on the ice against much weaker defensemen.
DEFENSE
Brent Burns, SJ vs. CHI ($7,400) – Burns has just one assist in his past six games with four shots on goal in his past two games, but that should change against a Blackhawks team that's starting a career minor-league goalie. There should be plenty of chances to get shots on net because the Blackhawks aren't very good at getting in front of them, managing to block just 873 shots so far this season, which ranks 27th in the league. The only real reason to stay away from Burns in this matchup are his pedestrian numbers against them (17 points in 42 career games).
P.K. Subban, NSH at EDM ($6,000) – Both Subban and Roman Josi are good picks against the Oilers, who have allowed the fourth-most giveaways (763). Subban's ability to change the direction of the play with a single pass or spin-o-rama will come in handy against a young Oilers team that doesn't defend very well, and the Predators are on a five-game winning streak. They pumped six goals against the Jets on Tuesday, so scoring is clearly not a problem for them.
