This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
There are 12 games on the NHL schedule Thursday. The Islanders visit Buffalo, Carolina hosts Florida, Ottawa faces Columbus, Arizona is in Detroit, Boston takes on Montreal, Pittsburgh hosts San Jose, the Rangers visit Tampa Bay, Toronto plays in Philadelphia, New Jersey travels to Dallas, Minnesota hosts Anaheim, Vegas plays in Calgary and Seattle hosts a tired Washington team. Below, you'll find suggested options for crafting an effective lineup.
GOALIE
Igor Shesterkin, NYR at TB ($34): Shesterkin has been sensational of late, going 9-1-1 with a 1.63 GAA and a .951 save percentage in his last 11 appearances. He got off to a shaky start this season, but his play of late has been Vezina Trophy worthy. Unfortunately, his poor start gives him a 28-13-2 record, with a 2.54 GAA and a .914 save percentage. Look for him to shut down the Lightning on Thursday.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB vs. NYR ($35): Vasilevskiy is coming off a 25-save shutout over the Flyers on Saturday. It was his second good start in his past 10 outings, as the Russian netminder is 4-5-1 with a 3.55 GAA and an .874 save percentage in the 10 contests. He has not played well all season – he did miss the first 20 games, after undergoing back surgery during training camp – and while he will likely regain his form next season, Vasilevskiy is only 22-16-1 with a 2.96 GAA and an .896 save percentage in 2023-24. It will be a tough matchup against the Rangers and Vasilevskiy is not worth selecting at this time.
CENTER
Auston Matthews, TOR at PHI ($35): Matthews leads the NHL with 54 goals in 63 games. He has been in a bit of a slump of late with only two goals and three points in his last seven games. Look for Matthews to snap out of his doldrums Thursday, as he has a hat trick in his lone game against the Flyers this season.
CENTER TO AVOID
Evgeni Malkin, PIT vs. SJ ($24): Malkin had an assist, a shot on goal and a hit Tuesday. It was the first time in four games that he has managed to do anything as Malkin was held without a point, shot or hit in his previous three games. Malkin has only 49 points in 64 games in 2023-24, the worst performance in his 18-year NHL career.
WING
Timo Meier, NJ at DAL ($21): Meier has been hot of late, finding the back of the net seven times in his last seven games. The former Shark has 18 goals and 16 assists in 52 games, a far cry from last season, when he managed 40 goals and 26 assists in 78 contests. Meier has plenty of value of late, and he could easily be a part of your DFS squad Thursday.
Calle Jarnkrok, TOR at PHI ($11): Jarnkrok replaced the injured Mitchell Marner (lower body) on the top line, alongside Auston Matthews, and picked up an assist Saturday in Montreal. He will get another opportunity to do so Thursday. It's a great flier to take at this salary as Jarnkrok is seeing first-line power-play duty as well. He has 10 goals and 21 points in 51 appearances, but rule all that out now that he is playing with Matthews and Tyler Bertuzzi.
WINGS TO AVOID
Brad Marchand, BOS at MON ($28): Marchand has a goal and six points in his last 10 games. The 35-year-old has 27 goals and 58 points in 67 games this season, and while that is a great season for most, Marchand seems to be in a rut. He is seeing time alongside Charlie Coyle and Jake DeBrusk. His point total has been boosted by the Boston power play, as Marchand has seven goals and 23 points with the man-advantage. He is overpriced in Yahoo on Thursday.
Alexander Nylander, CLS vs. OTT ($20): Nylander started his Columbus career like gangbusters, scoring five times – including a hat trick versus Vegas on Mar. 4 – and picking up a pair of assists in his first seven contests, but he has been held without a point in his last two appearances. Nylander is a nice story, but he is not worthy of his $20 salary Thursday.
DEFENSE
Rasmus Dahlin, BUF vs. NYI ($21): Dahlin has assists in two of his last three games, giving the Buffalo rearguard, 15 goals and 48 points in 65 contests. He has 18 points on the power play, a drop of 14 from last season, but he is still productive quarterbacking the first unit. Dahlin is a stud defenseman and deserves to be in your DFS lineup Thursday.
Miro Heiskanen, DAL vs. NJ ($19): Heiskanen hasn't found the scoresheet in his last two games, but he had seven helpers in his previous three games. The talented 24-year-old has seven goals and 44 points in 56 games, including 17 points when the Stars have a power play.
DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID
Gustav Forsling, FLA at CAR ($25): Forsling is on a five-game scoring streak, scoring once and adding six assists, to give him 10 goals and 35 points in 65 games. Those are good stats, but not enough to be the highest priced defenseman Thursday. Forsling has only two points on the power play this season and that does not help his cause.
Bowen Byram, BUF vs. NYI ($20): Normally I would be all over taking Byram, as he has three goals and an assist in three games with the Sabres. But I think that he is overpriced in Yahoo on Thursday, as there are plenty of players who are better than Byram and have similar pricing. Byram only had eight goals and 20 points in 55 appearances with the Avalanche before his trade last week. I would pass on Byram this time.
