This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
There are nine games in the NHL on Thursday. Boston hosts Vancouver, Washington plays in Florida, Calgary travels to New Jersey, Winnipeg takes on Philadelphia, Carolina is home to Colorado, Tampa Bay plays the Islanders and Arizona is home to Vegas. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
GOALIE
Thatcher Demko, VAN at BOS ($39): Demko has won nine straight games, giving him a 27-8-1 record. He has five shutouts – second to only Tristan Jarry, who has six – as well as a 2.43 GAA and a .920 save percentage. Demko has been a top-three goaltender all season. He will face the Bruins, who were 4-1 losers to Calgary on Tuesday.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Nico Daws, NJ vs. CGY ($20): Daws has been bad in his last two starts, giving up nine goals on 48 shots. He was pulled early in the second period in a loss to Carolina on Jan. 25, his last start. Daws has lost four games in a row, and is 3-5-0 with a 3.43 GAA and an .895 save percentage. He had a chance to win the starting job in New Jersey as the Devils have been hamstrung by poor goaltending from Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid, but Daws has not played well in his latest stint with New Jersey. The Flames have won two straight, including a big victory over Boston on Tuesday.
CENTER
Nazem Kadri, CGY at NJ ($26): Kadri had a big night in Boston on Tuesday, assisting on the first three goals in a 4-1 win. The 33-year-old has 16 goals and 42 points in 50 games as he has become the Flames' best center with the trade of Elias Lindholm to Vancouver. Kadri has 164 shots on goal, and is right on pace to equal last season's total of 267. He is well worth the price Thursday.
CENTER TO AVOID
Adam Lowry, WPG at PHI ($11): Lowry has moved down from the first line to the third unit due to Mark Scheifele's return from a lower-body injury and the trade for Sean Monahan from Montreal. Lowry is stuck in a five-game point drought and saw only 91 seconds of power-play time over his last two contests after averaging 3:28 over his prior six. He has eight goals and 23 points in 48 games this season.
WING
Jonathan Drouin, COL at CAR ($18): Drouin has made the most of playing once again with Nathan MacKinnon. The duo were a great pair in 2012-13 with Halifax of the QMJHL, leading them to the Memorial Cup. Drouin has floundered in his NHL career since he was taken third overall in 2013, but he has revived his career of late as he has seven goals and 22 points in his last 23 games. He has averaged 4:30 of power-play time over the 23 contests, scoring three times and adding six assists. He plays on one of the top lines in the NHL and he has amazing value Thursday.
Nikita Kucherov, TB at NYI ($36): Kucherov is having another fabulous season with 32 goals and 86 points in 50 games to lead the NHL in the Art Ross Trophy race. He has 11 points in his last five games and 19 points in his last nine contests. Kucherov has 13 games with at least three points this season and should be considered one of the favorites for the Hart Trophy. He had two goals and four points in three games versus the Islanders last season.
WINGS TO AVOID
Alex Ovechkin, WAS at FLA ($32): Ovechkin has two goals and four points in his last three games, but the 38-year-old has had a bad year this season. He has only 10 goals and 32 points in 45 games, well below his pace of any of his previous 18 seasons. Ovechkin has had only one season before this one in which he had a shooting percentage that was under 10 percent (8.7 percent in the 2010-11 season), but this season he is at 6.4 percent while on pace for a career low in shots on goal. It adds up to not taking him.
Nikolaj Ehlers, WPG at PHI ($21): Ehlers was a stud while playing on the top line with Mark Scheifele, scoring eight times while adding nine assists in 14 games. But with the return of Kyle Connor (knee) to the lineup, Ehlers value has dropped. He does have 16 goals and 35 points in 48 games, but do not expect his scoring prowess to continue on the second line.
DEFENSE
Noah Dobson, NYI vs. TB ($24): Dobson saw his five-game point streak come to an end Monday in Toronto. He had nine assists during the streak, boosting his point total to a career-high 52 in just 51 games. Dobson is one of the NHL's top offensive defensemen and has been a pillar of strength on the power play with a goal and 19 helpers.
Josh Manson, COL at CAR ($16): Manson has only six goals and 18 points in 46 games this season, but he has been very hot of late. He had a goal disallowed Tuesday in a 5-3 loss to New Jersey, but he had four goals and 11 points in his previous 15 contests. Manson is well priced to fill out your fantasy roster.
DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID
Charlie McAvoy, BOS vs. VAN ($23): McAvoy has only seven points in his last 12 games. The 26-year-old blueliner does have seven goals and 33 points in 42 contests, but his recent slump makes him an iffy choice Thursday.
MacKenzie Weegar, CGY at NJ ($23): Weegar has not picked up a point in his last two games after scoring in each of his previous three outings. He has 12 goals and 29 points in 50 games and while he could set a career high in points, his shooting percentage is at an all-time high at 9.8 percent. That is unlikely to continue the rest of the way.
