Written by Hunter Skoczylas of DraftKings Network

This article originally appeared on DraftKingsNetwork.com!

The Boston Bruins ended a rough month of December with back-to-back wins over the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks. Boston now finds itself in sixth place in the highly competitive Atlantic Division with a 22-18-2 record, 46 points, and a -3 goal differential.

Both the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference grow tighter each week, and the Bruins must be locked in for this week's slate of games, which includes four matchups. Boston will conclude its five-game road trip on Tuesday, January 6, against the Seattle Kraken, and then begin its five-game homestand, featuring matchups against the Calgary Flames, New York Rangers, and Pittsburgh Penguins.

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Boston Bruins' upcoming schedule for the week of January 6

• Tuesday, January 6 at Seattle Kraken
• Thursday, January 8 vs. Calgary Flames
• Saturday, January 10 vs. New York Rangers
• Sunday, January 11 vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

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Bruins' DraftKings Fantasy Preview

Tuesday, January 6 at Seattle Kraken

• The Seattle Kraken are in third place in the Pacific Division and sixth place in the Western Conference with a 19-14-7 record, 45 points, and a -8 goal differential.
• Seattle enters the week having won seven of its last eight games. The bottom line is that the club lacks superstar talent, but its goaltending has been strong enough to secure wins. The Kraken have allowed the ninth-fewest goals per game, but they also average the sixth-fewest goals per game. Seattle doesn't draw many penalties, so it lacks sufficient power play opportunities, and when it commits penalties, its goaltenders are in trouble, considering the club ranks dead last in PK%. Ranking inside the bottom five in both xGoals% and Corsi% is a recipe for inefficient offensive production.
• The Kraken deploy some nice, young pieces, but overall, the lack of superstars is apparent. Veteran Jordan Eberle (14G, 13A) leads the team in points, with Chandler Stephenson (11G, 15A) and Eeli Tolvanen (7G, 18A) rounding out the top three. Only Eberle and Stephenson have eclipsed double-digit goals, and the club is looking for any sparks from young guys such as Matty Beniers (7G, 17A) or Shane Wright (7G, 8A) as the season progresses. Seattle's saving grace has been its goaltending, which has seen three different starters between the pipes thus far. All three goaltenders –– Joey Daccord (2.77 GAA, .903 SV%), Philipp Grubauer (2.21 GAA, .926 SV%), and Matt Murray (2.21 GAA, .922 SV%) rank inside the top 32 in goals saved above expected. Daccord is the primary starter and has averaged a healthy 11.9 DK FPTS per game across 25 starts this season.

Thursday, January 8 vs. Calgary Flames

• The Calgary Flames are in seventh place in the Pacific Division and 14th place in the Western Conference with an 18-20- 4 record, 40 points, and a -14 goal differential.
• The Flames have gone 9-6-0 since the start of December and enter the new week having won three of their last five games. The club has averaged the third-fewest goals per game this season, but puck luck has certainly played a factor in most of these games. Calgary's underlying metrics when playing 5-on-5 look rather good, with the club ranking ninth in 5v5 Corsi% and 12th in 5v5 xGoals%. Additionally, the Flames rank dead last in PP%, which is rather interesting considering that they’ve drawn the fourth-most penalties.
• Offensive consistency and production have been hard to come by, especially for the club's leading point-getter, Nazem Kadri (8G, 24A), who has recorded just one point in his past seven games. 11 different skaters have eclipsed the double-digit point mark, but just three of them have scored double-digit goals. The Flames’ goaltending duo of Dustin Wolf (2.99 GAA, .900 SV%) and Devin Cooley (2.40 GAA, .914 SV%) is a big reason for the club’s success, particularly Cooley, who ranks 15th in goals saved above expected and fourth in SV% above expected. Their records are a bit misleading, given the club’s frequent offensive struggles, but both Wolf and Cooley have averaged at least 9.5 DK FPTS per game this season.

Saturday, January 10 vs. New York Rangers

• The New York Rangers are in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division and 13th place in the Eastern Conference with a 20-18-6 record, 46 points, and a -4 goal differential.
• The Rangers have dropped four of their past five games in what has been a very confusing season for the club. They've been shut out a whopping seven times already this season, but they only sport a -4 goal differential. For whatever reason, the club cannot find consistency at Madison Square Garden this season, averaging a league-low 1.89 goals per game, which increases to 3.12 goals per game on the road. While New York ranks 10th in PP%, it draws the fewest penalties in the league, so the opportunities have been hard to come by, and the club could afford some luck here and there.
• It's hard to imagine a club filled with this much star talent struggling as much as the Rangers are. Artemi Panarin (16G, 30A) and Mika Zibanejad (15G, 32A) unsurprisingly lead the club in points, with Adam Fox (4G, 24A) ranking third. Panarin is averaging 11.9 DK FPTS per game, and he has eight points across his last eight outings. 10 different skaters have eclipsed double-digit points, while five of them have eclipsed double-digit goals. J.T. Miller (10G, 12A) has had an odd season and is currently on Injured Reserve with an upper-body injury. Igor Shesterkin (2.45 GAA, .913 SV%) has logged the most starts in the NHL and ranks second in goals saved above expected. His 12.7 DK FPTS per game average leads all goaltenders.

Sunday, January 11 vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

• The Pittsburgh Penguins are in fifth place in the Metropolitan Division and eighth place in the Eastern Conference with a 20-12-9 record, 49 points, and a +4 goal differential.
• While the Penguins went on an eight-game losing streak from Dec. 7 to Dec. 20, they've won seven of their past eight games, while averaging 4.6 goals per game. Pittsburgh has been very well-rounded this season, ranking ninth in goals per game, second in PP% and ninth in PK%. The club also ranks eighth in xGoals% and 14th in Corsi, all while dealing with injuries to key players, such as Evgeni Malkin (8G, 21A) and Rickard Rakell (6G, 9A).
• He may be 38 and a half years old, but Sidney Crosby (24G, 23A) has not missed a step whatsoever, with 12 points in the past eight games. 13 different Penguins' skaters have eclipsed the double-digit point mark, with depth pieces Anthony Mantha (14G, 15A) and Justin Brazeau (12G, 8A) stepping up in the goalscoring department. The Penguins have been active in the trade market, too, acquiring Yegor Chinakov (4G, 4A) from the Blue Jackets and Stuart Skinner (2.83 GAA, .888 SV%) from the Oilers. Skinner had a rough first three starts for Pittsburgh, but he has secured back-to-back wins and ranks 14th in the NHL in goals saved above expected across the last 10 games.

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