January ends on Saturday and the Olympic break is coming where there will still be DFS hockey contests to play. Let's make the most of Saturday with eight NHL games on the docket starting at 7 p.m. EST or later. Onto the lineup recommendations!
SLATE PREVIEW
There was one game Friday and there will be three on Sunday, but there are still some teams on the first or second leg of a back-to-back. As for those on the first leg, I don't see much difference in the Vegas goalies. Columbus skated on Friday while saving Jet Greaves for Saturday, where he'll be facing the league's worst offense in the Blues.
GOALIES
Joseph Woll, TOR at VAN ($8,300): Woll has some getting it in gear to do, yet still lists a .906 save percentage on the season. The Canucks are a decent team to round back into shape against as they've only produced 2.57 goals and 27.0 shots per game.
Ilya Sorokin, NYI vs. NAS ($7,900): While Sorokin has been solid the last couple years, he's back to his early-career form when he looked primed to be a perennial Vezina candidate having posted a 2.38 GAA and .917 save percentage. The Predators have managed to climb to 25th in average goals after starting the year near the bottom, though that's still not even close to average.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Tomas Hertl, VGK vs. SEA ($5,900): Hertl has averaged 3:34 on the power play where he's tallied 19 points through 53 outings. That should be beneficial on Saturday as the Kraken maintain the 31st-ranked penalty kill.
Jordan Kyrou, STL vs. CLM ($4.800): Kyrou has potted four goals from his last five appearances to go with 16 shots. The Blue Jackets are one of three teams to allow an average of at least 30.0 pucks on net and will be on the road for the second day of a back-to-back.
FORWARD LINE STACKS TO CONSIDER
Maple Leafs at Canucks
Auston Matthews (C - $9,500), Bobby McMann (W - $4,300), Max Domi (W - $3,400)
The Canucks are last in GAA and penalty-kill percentage and won't be getting Thatcher Demko back. Stacking against Vancouver is going to be enticing the rest of the season. Matthews is the only one of these three players who receives decent man-advantage minutes, but his wings make for a trio you can stack without breaking the bank.
Matthews has registered 26 goals in only 48 games alongside 184 shots. McMann scored 20 goals last season and is already at 17. He's also directed at least three pucks on net during each of his last four. Domi only has eight goals, yet has also still notched 29 points with nine of those coming across the last seven outings.
Sabres vs. Canadiens
Tage Thompson (C - $8,600), Alex Tuch (W – $6,100), Zach Benson (W - $3,300)
The Canadiens are at the top of the bottom-10 in GAA, though they're only there as they've held opponents to 27.0 shots per game and Jacob Fowler played well during his NHL stint. He's back in the AHL while Montreal ranks 27th in penalty-kill percentage. All three players participate on the Sabres' power play, with two of them on the top unit.
Thompson is central to the Sabres' offensive attack and on pace for his third 40-goal campaign over his last four while recording 15 power-play points. Tuch is no goal-scoring slouch either after a hat-trick last time out put him at 22. Benson has posted 25 points, but that's in only 40 games. He's also provided eight from the last 11 while recently getting looks on the lead man-advantage.
DEFENSEMEN
Matthew Schaefer, NYI vs. NAS ($5,800): Schaefer drives the Islanders' offense as much as anybody, which is remarkable for a teenaged defenseman. He's tallied 14 goals and 22 assists with 131 shots with 71 blocked shots. It's been an up-and-down year for Juuse Saros, and he's definitely down at the moment with a 3.69 GAA and .887 save percentage during his last six outings.
Morgan Rielly, TOR at VAN ($4,300): Rielly scored a power-play goal on Thursday as part of his 31 overall points. The Canucks enter with the league's worst penalty kill, so hopefully Rielly can repeat his recent feat on Saturday.
