This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
The month of March saved some of its best hockey for last, with seven exciting games in store Friday. Titanic Penguins-Rangers and Blue Jackets-Blackhawks clashes will get plenty of attention, but the most promising fantasy values for both daily and season-long owners can be found elsewhere. All four teams with fewer than 70 points in the standings will be in action, providing plenty of subpar competition to be exploited. This preview reveals which players are best positioned to take advantage of these favorable matchups, from obvious choices like Alex Ovechkin to more obscure selections such as David Perron.
Featured Matchups
Blues (PP:7, PK:7) at Avalanche (PP:30, PK:29), 9:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Jake Allen (30-19-4, 2.42, .914), Calvin Pickard (13-28-2, 2.94, .906)
Key Injuries:Semyon Varlamov (groin), Nikita Zadorov (ankle), Robby Fabbri (knee), Jori Lehtera (concussion), Paul Stastny (lower body)
St. Louis can clinch a playoff spot here with a win or Kings loss. The Blues' easy schedule has played a major role in their recent success, as they'll be looking for their third March win over Colorado after having already beaten Arizona three times in the past two weeks. Blueliner Alex Pietrangelo has racked up three goals and nine assists in 15 games sans Kevin Shattenkirk, while David Perron ranks second on the team to only Vladimir Tarasenko with 11 goals and 28 points on the road. Nathan MacKinnon's highlight goal Wednesday gave him five points in the past four games, but even the 2013 first overall
The month of March saved some of its best hockey for last, with seven exciting games in store Friday. Titanic Penguins-Rangers and Blue Jackets-Blackhawks clashes will get plenty of attention, but the most promising fantasy values for both daily and season-long owners can be found elsewhere. All four teams with fewer than 70 points in the standings will be in action, providing plenty of subpar competition to be exploited. This preview reveals which players are best positioned to take advantage of these favorable matchups, from obvious choices like Alex Ovechkin to more obscure selections such as David Perron.
Featured Matchups
Blues (PP:7, PK:7) at Avalanche (PP:30, PK:29), 9:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Jake Allen (30-19-4, 2.42, .914), Calvin Pickard (13-28-2, 2.94, .906)
Key Injuries:Semyon Varlamov (groin), Nikita Zadorov (ankle), Robby Fabbri (knee), Jori Lehtera (concussion), Paul Stastny (lower body)
St. Louis can clinch a playoff spot here with a win or Kings loss. The Blues' easy schedule has played a major role in their recent success, as they'll be looking for their third March win over Colorado after having already beaten Arizona three times in the past two weeks. Blueliner Alex Pietrangelo has racked up three goals and nine assists in 15 games sans Kevin Shattenkirk, while David Perron ranks second on the team to only Vladimir Tarasenko with 11 goals and 28 points on the road. Nathan MacKinnon's highlight goal Wednesday gave him five points in the past four games, but even the 2013 first overall pick will have trouble beating Allen given the surging netminder's 4-0-1 record, 1.38 GAA and .950 save percentage over his past five starts.
Sharks (PP:24, PK:18) at Flames (PP:13, PK:13), 9:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Aaron Dell (10-6-1, 2.09, .928), Brian Elliott (25-15-3, 2.51, .911)
Key Injuries:Ladislav Smid (neck), Logan Couture (mouth)
While the Sharks can rest a bit easier after having clinched a playoff spot Tuesday, this is no time to relax. Each of the top four teams in the Pacific Division sit within five points of each other, including a Calgary squad that's just 4-4-0 since having a 10-game winning streak snapped. Dell will be looking to snap a personal three-game losing streak after watching Martin Jones battle the Oilers on Thursday, while Elliott will hope to improve on his 17-3-1 record since Jan. 26. Flames winger Michael Ferland could well capitalize on his first-line role against the struggling Sharks defense, while Tomas Hertl finds himself on San Jose's highly skilled top power-play unit in the wake of Couture's injury.
Kings (PP:16, PK:2) at Canucks (PP:29, PK:26), 10:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Jonathan Quick (5-4-1, 2.19, .922), Ryan Miller (18-25-6, 2.80, .915)
Key Injuries:Matt Greene (undisclosed), Jacob Markstrom (knee), Jayson Megna (upper body)
One day after it was announced the Kings and Canucks will play each other in China next preseason, the pair face off in Western Canada. Quick is 0-3-0 over his past three starts despite allowing two goals in each, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him snap that skid against a 29th-ranked Canucks offense that has managed just 2.22 goals per game. The Kings have managed just 2.41 goals per game themselves, but get the benefit of facing a goalie who's 1-6-1 with 28 goals allowed over his past six starts in Miller. While Jeff Carter had gone eight games without a goal before lighting the lamp Wednesday in Calgary, he still comfortably leads Los Angeles with 32 goals. He and Tanner Pearson (23) are the only Kings to top even 15 goals, so the rest of their teammates remain longshots to score despite this inviting matchup.
Other Matchups
Penguins (PP:6, PK:16) at Rangers (PP:14, PK:23 ), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Matt Murray (28-10-4, 2.40, .923), Henrik Lundqvist (30-18-3, 2.74, .911)
Key Injuries:Kevin Klein (back), Ryan McDonagh (undisclosed), Trevor Daley (knee), Jake Guentzel (concussion), Carl Hagelin (lower body), Ron Hainsey (upper body), Kris Letang (upper body), Olli Maatta (hand), Evgeni Malkin (upper body)
Lundqvist has surrendered 10 goals in two starts since returning from a hip injury, and will have his work cut out for him against Pittsburgh's top-ranked offense in this battle of banged-up blue lines. First-line right winger Bryan Rust scored the lone Penguins goal in Wednesday's loss to Chicago, and will look to take advantage of his prominent spot in the lineup once again.
Devils (PP:18, PK:21) at Islanders (PP:26, PK:12), 7:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Keith Kinkaid (7-11-3, 2.73, .914), Jaroslav Halak (7-8-5, 3.21, .906)
Key Injuries:Mikhail Grabovski (concussion), Ryan Strome (wrist)
New York remains on the wrong side of the playoff bubble, but has an excellent chance to pick up two valuable points against a Devils team that has won only two of its past 18 games. Halak beat the Penguins on Mar. 24 in his first start since Dec. 29, and should give Thomas Greiss the chance to sit for just the second time since Feb. 19 in this second night of a back-to-back set for the Islanders.
Blue Jackets (PP:9, PK:8) at Blackhawks (PP:17, PK:25), 8:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Sergei Bobrovsky (41-13-5, 1.97, .935), Corey Crawford (31-16-3, 2.53, .919)
Key Injuries:Artem Anisimov (lower body), Ryan Murray (hand)
Vezina Trophy favorite Bobrovsky has gone 12 starts without a regulation loss, but faces a stiff road test against a Blackhawks team that's 7-2-1 in its past 10 games. DFS owners will likely be better off leaving Chicago's expensive stars out of daily lineups.
Capitals (PP:3, PK:6) at Coyotes (PP:27, PK:24), 10:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Braden Holtby (40-11-6, 2.04, .926), Mike Smith (18-25-8, 2.96, .913)
Key Injuries:Shane Doan (lower body), Brad Richardson (leg)
Washington's top line of Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie has a combined 13 goals and 33 points over the past eight games, making all three strong daily investments against a Coyotes team that has allowed 3.18 goals per game.
Recommended Pickup
Tomas Hertl, LW/C, SJ - Hertl picked up an assist against the Rangers in the first game following Couture's mouth injury, and contributed two shots while taking a team-high 15 faceoffs Thursday in Edmonton. With Couture ruled out through at least the end of the week, the Czech forward has a tremendous opportunity to assert himself even further offensively after being inserted into Couture's usual spot on one of the league's most dangerous power-play combinations. The other four members of that unit each have at least 16 points with the extra man, and the two-time 15-goal scorer has some skills of his own to contribute. Hertl's season ice time average of 17:09 also raises his floor by not hurting owners in that category while allowing him to rack up extra counting stats.
