This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Friday's NHL slate is a light one, with just six teams in action. There's still plenty of value to be found for both season-long and daily fantasy players nonetheless, especially with two top-five offenses and the league's worst defense all among the participants. Plenty of Carolina players make excellent streamers against the Avalanche, but Colorado's Gabriel Landeskog has started to heat up himself. Read on to find out the rest of the main fantasy factors from that game, as well as the other two.
Featured Matchups
Penguins (PP:4, PK:22) at Blue Jackets (PP:3, PK:12), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Matt Murray (21-6-2, 2.27, .926), Sergei Bobrovsky (30-12-3, 2.19, .925)
Key Injuries:Scott Hartnell (lower body), Carl Hagelin (concussion), Bryan Rust (arm), Conor Sheary (upper body)
This pair of Metropolitan behemoths comes in separated by just two points in the standings. Jake Guentzel is the newest premier weapon in Pittsburgh's arsenal. The 22-year-old forward already has six goals and 11 points in 18 games, and is currently skating in a premier offensive role on the top line alongside Sidney Crosby and on the second power-play unit. Evgeni Malkin finally returned from a seven-game absence Tuesday, further adding to a top-ranked Penguins offense that figures to trouble Bobrovsky. The Russian netminder has slumped with just two victories and 25 goals allowed over his past eight starts, while Murray is 4-0-1 with eight goals allowed in his past five.
Avalanche (PP:29, PK:25) at Hurricanes (PP:20, PK:2), 7:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Jeremy Smith (0-1-0, 3.10, .925), Cam Ward (21-17-6, 2.62, .905)
Key Injuries:Bryan Bickell (illness), Rene Bourque (lower body), Erik Johnson (leg), Semyon Varlamov (groin)
Smith is projected to man the Colorado crease after Calvin Pickard got the nod Thursday in Buffalo. The 2007 second-rounder turned in a 37-save performance despite some early jitters in his NHL debut Tuesday, but still took a 3-2 loss at the hands of the Devils. He can be expected to suffer a similar fate here as his team is outclassed even by the Metropolitan cellar-dwelling Hurricanes. Carolina's top scoring threats all make for strong plays, though Jeff Skinner, Sebastian Aho, Victor Rask and Jordan Staal are the team's only players over 30 points. Blueliner Justin Faulk's worth the risk here, as his scoring upside (.54 points per game) significantly outweighs his rating downside (minus-16) against this inferior foe. Ward is a reliable daily option in net against the league's least potent offense. Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog is on pace for fewer than 40 points after topping 50 in four of his first five seasons, but he's showing signs of stirring with two goals and four assists over the past seven games.
Panthers (PP:28, PK:5) at Ducks (PP:10, PK:7), 10:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Roberto Luongo (15-14-6, 2.71, .914), John Gibson (22-14-8, 2.30, .921)
Key Injuries:Clayton Stoner (abdomen), Sami Vatanen (lower body), Antoine Vermette (suspension)
This figures to be the lowest-scoring contest of the three, as it features the only two teams boasting a more proficient ranking in goals allowed than goals scored. Gibson capped his team's six-game road trip with a 37-save shutout win over the Wild, giving him momentum heading into this matchup against a Panthers team that has managed just 2.49 goals per game. Expect a Florida penalty kill that has operated at 84.5 percent efficiency to make life difficult for Ryan Kesler, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, who each have at least 15 points with the extra man this season. Jaromir Jagr continues to be an offensive weapon for the Panthers after picking up his 1,900th career point on his 45th birthday Wednesday, while Jonathan Huberdeau has three goals and four assists in four games since returning from an Achilles injury.
Recommended Pickup
Boone Jenner, RW/LW, CBJ - Much has gone right for Columbus this season, but Jenner has actually been quite unlucky up to this point. He's shooting a career-low 7.9 percent after never dipping below 10.8 percent in his first three campaigns, which explains why Jenner has just 11 goals this season after potting 30 last year. While a lack of power-play time continues to hamper the winger, his role has otherwise picked up significantly of late. Jenner has skated north of 16 minutes in seven of the past eight games while playing on the top line at even strength, and is starting to turn his luck around with two goals on 14 shots over the past three games. Scoop the 23-year-old up now before his offensive resurgence puts him back on everyone's radar.
