This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are six games on the NHL slate Friday. Buffalo hosts Philadelphia, Washington travels to Carolina, the Rangers are in Detroit, Edmonton hosts Colorado, Seattle plays in Anaheim and Arizona hosts Vegas. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
GOALIES
Pyotr Kochetkov, CAR vs. WAS ($8,400): Kochetkov was perfect in his last outing, stopping all 26 shots in a 3-0 win over Montreal on Saturday. He has been sharing the net with Frederik Andersen since Feb. 24, alternating starts, so look for Kochetkov to be between the pipes Friday. He is 20-13-4 with four shutouts, a 2.38 GAA and a .911 save percentage in 39 appearances this season. He is 1-0-1 versus the Capitals this season and will attempt to make amends Friday at home, as he gave up six goals on 25 shots in a 7-6 shootout loss in Washington on March 22. I think he will do it.
Logan Thompson, VGK at ARI ($7,900): Thompson has won his last six starts in a row, giving up only eight goals on 178 shots. He has regained his hold on the No. 1 job with the Golden Knights, wresting it from the injured Adin Hill (lower body). Thompson is 23-12-5 with a 2.64 GAA and a .911 save percentage in 42 appearances this season. He will face the Coyotes, who have lost two straight games.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Mika Zibanejad, NYR at DET ($5,700): Zibanejad is a nice price Friday. He has slumped a bit this season, as he has only 24 goals and 64 points in 75 contests, after picking up 91 points last year. Zibanejad had two assists in a pair of games versus Detroit this season. He plays on the top line, as well as the first power play, where he has 11 goals and 15 assists.
Alexis Lafreniere, NYR at DET ($5,000): Lafreniere is finally showing why he was selected first overall in 2020. After three mediocre campaigns, Lafreniere has been on fire of late, scoring eight goals and adding seven assists in his last 11 games. He has crushed his previous career highs, as he has 26 goals and 28 assists in 76 games this season. Lafreniere should be a definite consideration on your DraftKings team Friday.
Troy Terry, ANA vs. SEA ($4,700): Terry snapped a five-game pointless drought Tuesday with a three-point performance in a 5-3 win over Calgary. He picked up his 20th goal in the contest and has 52 points in 70 games this season. He has a ways to go to manage his third straight 60-plus point season as he has only six games remaining in the schedule.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Golden Knights at Coyotes
Jack Eichel (C-$8,600), Jonathan Marchessault (W-$6,700), Ivan Barbashev (W-$3,600)
The Golden Knights top line features the talented Eichel, who has seven goals and 15 points in his last 12 games. The center has 59 points in 56 outings this season, the first time in four years that he is averaging more than a point a game. Marchessault is coming off a three-point night Tuesday against Vancouver, giving the 33-year-old, a career high 41 goals. He has 66 points, equaling his second-best season (he had 75 points in his first season with the Golden Knights) in his career. Barbashev is quite inexpensive and has been producing of late, scoring four times while adding two assists in his last six games. He has 18 goals and 26 assists in 75 appearances this season. All-in-all, the trio make a nice stack Friday.
Kraken at Ducks
Matty Beniers (C - $4,300), Eeli Tolvanen (W -$4,000), Oliver Bjorkstrand (W - $4,900)
This top line is so inexpensive. Beniers has regressed this season, after winning the Calder Trophy in 2022-23. But he has started to come around, as he has three goals and five points in his last five games. Beniers has 13 goals and 33 points in 70 appearances this season, including 10 points on the power play. He has been explosive versus the Ducks this season, scoring twice and adding four assists in three games. Tolvanen had a goal and two assists on March 26 against the Ducks. He has 16 goals and 41 points in 75 games to date, smashing his career high in points set last season by 14. Bjorkstrand has two goals this season versus Anaheim. He hit the 20-goal mark for the third straight season on Monday, and has 53 points, just four points away from equalling his career high set two seasons ago. The Ducks have a tendency to give up a lot of goals – they are 31st in the NHL. Allowing 275 goals – and that should make selecting the Kraken's top line an easy sell.
DEFENSEMEN
Evan Bouchard, EDM vs. COL ($6,600): Bouchard is tied for third place in NHL scoring among defensemen with 76 points, including 16 goals. His 35 power-play points rank in a tie for second place, one behind Colorado's Cale Makar, heading into action Thursday. Bouchard has really taken a huge step forward this season, becoming one of the NHL's top offensive defensemen. Playing with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl certainly doesn't hurt his cause, especially with the man advantage.
Vince Dunn, SEA at ANA ($4,700): Dunn was hurt this season by an upper-body injury that caused him to miss 12 games. He returned to action Monday and has a point in two games this week. Dunn has 11 goals and 46 points in 59 appearances, including 16 points on the power play. He had a goal and two assists in his only game versus Anaheim on Dec. 23 in a 3-2 win.
Travis Sanheim, PHI at BUF ($4,200): Sanheim is having a career year as he has 10 goals and 32 assists in 75 games. The only bad news is that he has seen his power-play time curtailed since mid-February, but since he has only five assists with the man-advantage, it hasn't hurt him as much as other players. Sanheim is an inexpensive choice to fill out your roster.
