This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
It's a light night with just two games on tap. The Rangers blew a chance to move above .500 after losing 6-2 on Monday to the Sens, who were the league's worst team heading into the game, and they'll get their chance to move back to .500 playing host the league's worst team again, except this time it'll be the Red Wings and their minus-29 goal differential.
The Blues will play for the second time in two nights after defeating the Canucks in OT when they visit the Oilers, who are 5-1-1 at home and get a chance to extend their lead in the Pacific Division.
GOALIES
Henrik Lundqvist ($7,800) will start after Alexandar Georgiev blew his chance to grab more of the timeshare. The Rangers defense is bad (3.50 GA/GP, 26th) and Lundqvist's play has declined due to his age (46-52-17 since 2017), but they should be good enough eke out a win. The King stopped 98 of 105 shots (.933 Sv%) in three games against Detroit last season and will start at home (.911 Sv% vs. .879 Sv% on the road) for the sixth time in seven games. A win for the Rangers is likely, but don't expect it to be pretty.
Mike Smith ($8,100) is the 1A starter for the Oilers and he'll likely get the nod after Mikko Koskinen suffered his third straight loss against the Coyotes in overtime. The Blues are without Vladimir Tarasenko and they've gone 5-1-0 in his absence, but here's the rub: four of those wins came in overtime, including a lucky 3-on-0 against Vancouver last night, and three wins came against teams with sub-.500 records (Detroit, Minnesota, Columbus). Jake Allen ($7,400) has been used sparingly this season for good reason (.855 Sv%, 3.72 GAA).
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Kaapo Kakko's ($4,800) reaction to his third goal of the season told you just how frustrated he was with his poor start. Goal scorers tend to score in bunches – James Neal ($5,500), anyone? – and it's about time Kaako caught fire.
Robert Thomas ($3,500) has two points in his past three games and skates on the top line with Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz. Both him and Zach Sanford ($3,300), who skated with Ryan O'Reilly and David Perron, are higher end prospects who can provide some offensive value.
Ethan Bear ($3,600) has been a nice surprise this season and an increase in minutes has also increased his shot totals. He's playing on Edmonton's first pairing with Darnell Nurse.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Detroit Red Wings (TOTAL: $18,300)
C – Dylan Larkin ($6,600)
W – Anthony Mantha ($6,600)
W – Tyler Bertuzzi ($5,100)
The Rangers have struggled to keep pucks out of their net all season and this line continues to be the only engine driving Detroit's offense. Despite losing 6-1 to Nashville in their most recent game, Larkin's line led the team with eight unblocked shot attempts. The trio have a 53.7 CF% rating despite allowing a league-worst 63 goals this season.
Edmonton Oilers (TOTAL: $21,700)
C – Connor McDavid ($8,900)
W – Leon Draisaitl ($8,800)
W – Zack Kassian ($4,000)
Draisaitl and McDavid are third and fourth in league scoring. The Blues are coming off a tough game in Vancouver, and Allen ranks 45th out of 64 goalies in goals saved above average (min. 100 TOI), according to Natural Stat Trick.
DEFENSEMEN
Oscar Klefbom ($5,000) is a do-it-all defenseman for the Oilers and he'll play plenty of minutes against the Blues. His ability to contribute in all categories makes him a relatively low-risk play.
Anthony DeAngelo ($4,600) remains a solid play as the Rangers' top PP QB, assisting on Artemi Panarin's goal and finished with four shots on net. Filip Hronek ($4,300) is a similar offensive-minded but inconsistent PP QB who could be a strong value play. Both teams have atrocious penalty killing efficiency; the Red Wings are 29th at 68.6 percent and the Rangers are 20th at 79.6 percent.
Rookie Adam Fox ($3,500) was lauded for his offense before turning pro and it's showing with three points in five games, including an assist and five shots while playing a season-high 19 minutes against the Sens.
