It's New Year's Eve! Owing to the holiday, there's afternoon hockey on a Wednesday, but there's still enough hockey for the evening as well. There are six games on the slate starting at 6:30 p.m. ET or later. Yes, a 6:30 starting time is a bit odd, but the Red Wings are the team doing that, and I will brook no argument against my beloved Wings (as long as they are playing well, at least). Here are my NHL DFS lineup recommendations. Hopefully they will take you into 2026 on a high note.
SLATE PREVIEW
One team is on the second leg of a back-to-back, as the Devils have to visit the Blue Jackets. A few teams are on the first leg, and starting goalie decisions will alter how some of those matchups look. Nobody has helped us out on that front by getting their starters announced early. The one team to do that, Vegas, isn't playing Thursday.
GOALIES
Dustin Wolf, CGY vs. PHI ($7,800): Wolf has some wild home/road splits. He's played 15 games at home and 15 on the road. In away outings, Wolf has a 3.97 GAA and .865 save percentage. That's bad! At home, Wolf has a 2.00 GAA and .928 save percentage. That's good! This game is in Calgary, and the Flyers have only managed 25.7 shots on net per contest.
Jet Greaves, CLM vs. NJD ($7,400): Greaves is cooking right now. He has a 2.20 GAA and .923 save percentage over his last nine starts. Columbus even had Greaves play both legs of a back-to-back, and it worked out. The Devils are in the bottom 10 in goals scored, and they are also the sole team on the road for the second day of a back-to-back Wednesday.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Zach Hyman, EDM vs. BOS ($6,400): It took Hyman a second to find his form after returning from injury, but he's gotten there. Over his last 15 games he has 19 points and 48 shots on net. The Bruins are in the bottom eight in shots on goal allowed per game, which may be wearing on Jeremy Swayman. Swayman has an .870 save percentage over his last 10 contests.
Adam Fantilli, CLM vs. NJD ($5,900): Fantilli is on a three-game point streak; all assists. He should start scoring more goals, given that he has a 5.7 shooting percentage over his last 16 outings. Jake Allen is one of the better backup goalies in the NHL, but the fact remains the Devils are on the road playing their second game in as many days. I wouldn't stack a Blue Jackets line, but I am down to roster Fantilli.
FORWARD LINE STACK TO CONSIDER
Avalanche vs. Blues
Brock Nelson (C - $4,800), Artturi Lehkonen (W - $4,900), Valeri Nichushkin (W - $4,700)
The Blues have a 3.38 GAA, which is bottom five in the NHL. That's with Joel Hofer playing better as of late. Jordan Binnington, ostensibly still the No. 1 goalie in St. Louis, has an .870 save percentage on the year. Even if Hofer does draw another start, he has a .901 save percentage on the year, and a .906 save percentage in his career. Now, these days a .906 save percentage isn't too shabby, but Hofer (or Binnington) will be on the road against the Avalanche. Rostering Nathan MacKinnon's line would be tough from a salary perspective, but, fortunately, the Avalanche also have an impressive second line.
Nelson, who was a regular 30-goal scorer with the Islanders, had 15 goals through 38 games this year. He's also the only one of this trio on the top power-play unit, and the Blues have a bottom-10 penalty kill. Lehkonen usually has issues staying healthy, but he's played in every game this year. He's tallied 31 points, including 12 in his last 16 contests. The Finn also has put multiple shots on target in 11 of his last 12 games. Nichushkin has missed time, as per usual, but he's been playing strong hockey since his latest return to action. He has 11 points and 36 shots on net in 13 games.
DEFENSEMEN
Evan Bouchard, EDM vs. BOS ($6,800): There are those who like to rag on Bouchard, but from a DFS perspective he's a font of production. He has 37 points in 40 games, including 13 on the power play. Bouchard is nearly a point-per-game defenseman! On top of that, he's tallied 102 shots on net, you can all lock him in for more than 200 shots on net again if he stayed healthy. As previously noted, Swayman has an .870 save percentage over his last 10 outings.
Denton Mateychuk, CLM vs. NJD ($3,800): Zach Werenski has largely stayed healthy the last couple seasons, but he's been placed on injured reserve with his return date unknown. The next man up is Mateychuk, who was the 12th-overall pick in 2022. He's on a four-game point streak, and notably he's averaged a whopping 5:19 per game with the extra man in his last three games. The Devils, who are closing out a back-to-back, have a bottom-eight penalty kill.
