Welcome to March! Sunday's hockey action starts a bit earlier, but hopefully you'll be able to get your NHL DFS lineup recommendations in by 4 p.m. EST with five games on the slate. Here are my suggestions for your selections.
SLATE PREVIEW
There are quite a few teams on the second leg of a back-to-back Sunday. It's also kind of fascinating as each matchup features a rested side against one that played on Saturday. The Islanders and Sharks will get to be at home while Chicago, St. Louis, and Calgary are all on the road.
GOALIES
Lukas Dostal, ANA vs. CGY ($8,100): Dostal has struggled since returning from the Olympics, yet both outings resulted in wins. In fact, he's come out on top during 10 of his last 11 starts. There's a good chance Dostal will pick up another W on Sunday as the Flames are on the road for the second straight night and are bottom-five in goals per game.
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG at SAN ($7,800): Gold Medal aside, this hasn't been a great season for Hellebuyck. I don't worry too much about him given his excellent track record. The Sharks are below-average offensively and bottom-10 defensively and also were in action Saturday. At this salary, taking someone with multiple Vezinas feels like a good move.
VALUE PLAY/ONE-OFF
JJ Peterka, UTA vs. CHI ($4,200): In Peterka's first season with the Mammoth, he's potted 20 goals and only two of those have come on the power play. Why is that important? Because the Blackhawks are hovering around the bottom-10 in GAA and shots allowed, but are also tops in the league on the penalty kill. Even with that unit likely less formidable on the second day of a back-to-back, I'd rather have somebody like Peterka who's proven he can get it done at even-strength.
FORWARD LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Jets at Sharks
Adam Lowry (C - $3,100), Cole Perfetti (W - $4,900), Alex Iafallo (W - $3,400)
I recommended Winnipeg's second line the other day and it went well, so I'm doing it again. This is another favorable matchup and you can save enough salary compared to the top trio. In addition to being on their second consecutive day, the Sharks are also bottom-four in GAA and shots allowed. Hopefully this unit can continue its fine form.
Lowry is the one of these three players who's performing decidedly better of late having notched five assists from his last seven matchups, with a helper last time out that was paired with three shots. Perfetti was also being hindered by poor puck luck for much of this season and also missed time, though he's rebounded with six points over his last five outings and multiple shots in each of his last nine. Iafallo is the one who's recently been cold, yet registered a goal and assist on Friday while working on the Jets' second power play.
DEFENSEMEN
Brock Faber, MIN vs. STL ($5,300): Even with Quinn Hughes taking nearly all the man-advantage minutes, Faber has thrived since the former joined the Wild. He's also racked up 17 points and 39 shots across 18 appearances and is still averaging 26:14 during that run. And Faber still gets to team up with Hughes during five-on-five. The Blues are bottom-four in penalty-kill percentage and GAA while on the second day of a back-to-back.
Jackson LaCombe, ANA vs. CGY ($5,100): LaCombe didn't get the Olympics ice time someone like Quinn Hughes did, but he's basically the Quinn Hughes of the Ducks for minutes as he's averaged over 24, including three-plus on the power play. He also logged 28:44 with an assist, six shots, and four blocked shots on Friday. The Flames carry two netminders who's performed well this year, yet are still below-average for allowing shots on the road for the second straight night. LaCombe should be heavily involved against a defense fighting fatigue.
