This article is part of our DraftKings NHL series.
Wednesday's NHL slate consists of five games after 7:00 p.m. EDT. Below, you'll find a breakdown of the action and suggested options for crafting an effective DraftKings DFS lineup. All game lines and odds used below come courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
SLATE PREVIEW
The Rangers and Kings are Wednesday's two biggest favorites on home ice against the Devils and Kraken, respectively, while the Canucks will look to get back on track as they finish off a back-to-back set with a road game in Arizona. Exciting Lightning-Maple Leafs and Oilers-Stars matchups are both closer to toss-ups, and those last two games are tied with Devils-Rangers for Wednesday's highest over/under of 6.5 goals.
GOALIES
David Rittich, LA vs. SEA ($8,100): Cam Talbot ($8,300) started the Kings' last game, so it could be Rittich's turn to man the crease against a Kraken team that's averaging the fourth-fewest goals per game (2.62) in the NHL. Both LA netminders have posted strong ratios this season -- Rittich is 11-6-3 with a 2.26 GAA and .918 save percentage, while Talbot's 23-18-6 with a 2.48 GAA and .914 save percentage. The Kings' lead over the Blues for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference is just three points, so LA will be highly motivated in this game.
Arturs Silovs, VAN at ARI ($7,900): Silovs won his NHL season debut over the Ducks on Sunday, and he should get this second leg of a back-to-back, as Casey DeSmith was shelled by the Golden Knights on Tuesday and Thatcher Demko (knee) remains on LTIR. Between five starts last season and one this year, Silovs is 4-2-0 with a 2.62 GAA and .908 save percentage, so the 23-year-old Latvian has shown he has more than enough ability to lead a strong Canucks team past the lowly Coyotes. Arizona's average of 3.03 goals per game is second-lowest among teams in action Wednesday.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB at TOR ($7,500): Vasilevskiy has some against-the-grain appeal as the Lightning look to close the six-point gap with Toronto for the third spot in the Atlantic Division. The Russian netminder has found his form down the stretch, going 7-1-1 in his last nine starts while allowing no more than one goal in four of those games.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Connor McDavid, EDM at DAL ($9,600): The red-hot McDavid should be worth paying up for, especially against a Stars team that hasn't been quite as stingy as years past, allowing the 11th-fewest goals in the NHL. The league's best player has an eight-game point streak going, and McDavid has picked up multiple points in seven of those games, bringing him to just one point shy of Nikita Kucherov and Nathan MacKinnon, who each have 127.
Timo Meier, NJ at NYR ($5,700): It will likely end up being too little too late as far as the Devils' playoff hopes are concerned, but Meier has been one of the league's hottest goal scorers down the stretch, potting 14 in his last 16 games. The power forward also has seven helpers over that span, and he's showing no signs of slowing down, with an active four-game point streak heading into Wednesday's trip to MSG.
Wyatt Johnston, DAL vs. EDM ($5,600): Johnston has a 10-6-16 line in his last 12 outings, as he continues to thrive regardless of whether he's skating on the first line or third line. His Stars will be hosting an Oilers team that has struggled on the road lately. Edmonton is 1-2-1 with 17 goals allowed and no regulation wins in its last four road games.
Nick Schmaltz, ARI vs. VAN ($5,300): The Coyotes could be catching the Canucks at the right time, as Vancouver's finishing off a back-to-back and has slumped to a 1-3-0 record in its last four games. Schmaltz has been the opposite of slumping, with three consecutive multi-point performances to close out a month of March that saw him post a 5-16-21 line in 15 games.
Tyler Bertuzzi, TOR vs. TB ($4,400): Toronto's top line currently consists of Bertuzzi, Auston Matthews ($9,800) and Max Domi ($3,600) with Mitch Marner (ankle) still unavailable. Bertuzzi has been hot for the majority of Marner's absence, posting a 7-2-9 line over the last nine games.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Lightning at Maple Leafs
Brayden Point (C - $7,800), Nikita Kucherov (W - $9,500), Anthony Duclair (W - $4,900)
The Kucherov-Point pairing has been one of the NHL's most effective duos all season. Kucherov's 42-85-127 line has him tied for the league points lead, while Point's 18th in points and tied with Kucherov for seventh in goals with a 42-40-82 line. Duclair's mired in a three-game point drought, but he hit the ground running after being traded from San Jose to Tampa Bay and has a 5-4-9 line in 10 games with the Lightning overall. The Maple Leafs rank in the middle of the pack defensively with 3.09 goals allowed per game, and these two teams have combined for 18 goals in two previous meetings this season, both won in overtime by Toronto.
Rangers vs. Devils
Mika Zibanejad (C - $5,300), Chris Kreider (W - $5,900), Jack Roslovic (W - $3,300)
Artemi Panarin's ($7,800) line has done most of the damage for the Rangers at even strength this season, but the value on the Zibanejad line is tough to pass up in this matchup with a Devils team that's surrendering 3.43 goals per game -- sixth-most in the NHL. Zibanejad and Kreider have each had a goal disallowed over the last two games due to dubious goalie interference calls, yet Zibanejad still has a 4-4-8 line in his last nine games and Kreider has lit the lamp twice in his last three games. Roslovic has a goal and an assist in his last two games, and the trade deadline acquisition is starting to look more comfortable in his new surroundings.
Canucks at Coyotes
J.T. Miller (C - $6,900), Conor Garland (W - $3,800), Dakota Joshua (W - $2,700)
With so many top players in action Wednesday, locking in Vancouver's affordable second line against a Coyotes team that's surrendering 3.35 goals per game can help you squeeze more big names under the cap without seeing a decline in production. Miller has a double-digit advantage when it comes to the team points lead with a 35-60-95 line, and he's three goals back of Brock Boeser's ($6,100) team-leading total. Joshua could be one of the best bargains available Wednesday, as he's been skating in a top-six role in three games since returning from an upper-body injury and already has a two-goal game over that span, one of which was a between-the-legs beauty on the power play. Garland has been held without a point only twice in his last 11 outings, and the winger could have some extra motivation against his former team.
DEFENSEMEN
Adam Fox, NYR vs. NJ ($6,200): If Fox hadn't missed 10 games from a knee-on-knee hit by Sebastian Aho, the star defenseman would be in the thick of the conversation for a second Norris Trophy. Fox's 15-51-66 line in 65 games has him fourth among blueliners in points per game, and he has been especially effective lately with a 5-10-15 line over his last 11 outings. The worst defensive team in action Wednesday is unlikely to slow Fox down.
Quinn Hughes, VAN at ARI ($5,900): Hughes is the Norris Trophy frontrunner despite his defensive deficiencies, but those don't matter in DraftKings, and his offensive prowess is undeniable. After scoring two goals in Tuesday's loss to Vegas, Hughes is up to a 15-69-84 line in 75 games, which gives him a three-point cushion over Cale Makar for the NHL points lead among defensemen.
Vince Dunn, SEA at LA ($4,400): Dunn picked up where he left off after missing nearly all of March due to an upper-body injury, notching an assist in his first game back to stretch his point streak to three games and give the talented defenseman a point in seven of his last eight appearances. The slumping Kings have dropped three straight in regulation, so this is a nice buy-low opportunity on Dunn, whose 110 points since the start of last season are 12th-most among defensemen.
Luke Hughes, NJ at NYR ($3,800): Luke isn't nearly as established as his older brothers Quinn and Jack, but the rookie blueliner has quietly piled up nine points in his last seven games, with six of those points coming on the power play. His defensive deficiencies don't count against you with no plus-minus in DraftKings, which makes Hughes a low-risk, high-reward play.
