Each day this season, NHL.com's fantasy staff will provide daily picks for DraftKings NHL contests. This lineup has been constructed with expensive and value picks and should be used as a basis for your roster decision-making.
Fantasy picks: Wayne Simmonds among scoring leaders
Flyers forward among Dec. 8 DFS targets against Oilers
C - Aleksander Barkov, FLA ($5,700)
After a 21-game drought, Barkov has scored in three of his past four on a total of 19 shots on goal. He has nine points in 11 home games and nine points and 31 SOG in his past 10 games. The Florida Panthers should be energized by their return home after a competitive but disappointing six-game road trip (1-2-3). The Pittsburgh Penguins have allowed 39 goals in 12 road games.
C - Anze Kopitar, LAK ($5,500)
Kopitar and Marian Gaborik (W, $5,000) form an appealing stack at home against the Carolina Hurricanes, who will be playing the second game of a back-to-back. The Los Angeles Kings captain has five assists and four SOG in his past two games, and has 10 points in 11 career games against the Hurricanes. Gaborik has no goals on 14 SOG in his past three games, so expect Kopitar to have a hand in the goal(s) once his linemate finally cashes in.
W - Johnny Gaudreau, CGY ($6,700)
Gaudreau has come back strong to the Calgary Flames with four points (two goals, two assists) and seven SOG in two games since missing time with a finger injury. He has eight points (four on power play) and 23 SOG in nine career games against the Arizona Coyotes. Spend up for Winnipeg Jets wing Patrik Laine ($7,400) against the New York Rangers if you can, but Gaudreau offers similar upside against a more favorable opponent; the Coyotes are allowing the second-most goals per game (3.16).
W - Wayne Simmonds, PHI ($6,700)
Simmonds is tied for third in goals (15) and multipoint games (eight). He ranks second in power-play points (13) behind Philadelphia Flyers teammate Claude Giroux (14), is a point-per-game player at home (16 points in 16 games), and is quietly among the top 10 in League scoring (26 points in 28 games, T-9th). He's tied for 11th among wings in price and is averaging 4.1 DraftKings points per game, fifth at his position. The Edmonton Oilers are allowing the most DraftKings points to opposing wings.
W - Nikolaj Ehlers, WPG ($5,200)
The Rangers are depleted by injuries and have allowed four goals in each of their past two road games. Look for the Jets' top line of Ehlers, Laine and Bryan Little (C, $5,600) to capitalize. Ehlers has 10 points and 36 SOG in 14 home games (2.9 DraftKings points per game) and has a chance to break out of his 14-game goal drought against Rangers backup goalie Antti Raanta. Ehlers has salvaged his fantasy value in that span with 11 assists.
D - Victor Hedman, TBL ($5,200)
Hedman is another strong home performer (10 points in 11 games) who's priced extremely low (T-13th among defensemen) given his strong fantasy reputation and favorable Thursday matchup. The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Vancouver Canucks, and Hedman has been a steady DFS performer with at least 3.5 DraftKings points in six of his past eight games.
D - Justin Schultz, PIT ($3,700)
You've heard a lot about the Penguins' third defense pair from the NHL.com fantasy staff this week, but it's worth noting how cheap Schultz and Ian Cole ($4,000) remain in DraftKings. Cole has three straight multipoint games, and Schultz is averaging 5.5 DraftKings points per game during his four-game point streak. Each will likely carry high ownership facing the Panthers, and their streaks will eventually come to an end, but they are low-risk, high-reward investments in the big picture.
G - Tuukka Rask, BOS ($8,200)
The Colorado Avalanche have lost six in a row (0-5-1), and Rask and the Boston Bruins are likely to extend that streak. He is 6-2-0 with a .921 save percentage and one shutout at home, and stopped all 21 shots faced against the Avalanche on Nov. 13. Defenseman Zdeno Chara is back from a lower-body injury and should provide added protection for Rask, who's among the safest goalie options on the board. If Anton Khudobin ($7,900) gets the call with the Bruins on the second leg of a back-to-back, he's an even cheaper option and has a .931 or better SV% in each of his past two games (1-1-0).
UTIL - Drake Caggiula, EDM ($3,100)
The Flyers have won six straight, but the Oilers are the NHL's highest-scoring road team (48 goals in 15 games). Caggiula provides the cheapest exposure to Edmonton's top six; he played shifts alongside Connor McDavid and Milan Lucic on Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres. The 22-year-old has five points in 10 games, with three (two PPP) coming in his past three games. He's worth a flier for $600 above the DraftKings minimum price.
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