This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
Sunday's three-game NHL slate should be an exciting one, as the Islanders' chance to close out the Panthers on home ice will be preceded by a couple of home teams looking to take their respective series to seven games. The Wild and Flyers will both have desperation on their side, although Capitals and Stars players still make up a number of the day's top value plays thanks to their prominent roles on explosive offenses.
GOALIE
Michal Neuvirth, PHI vs. WAS ($32): Hindsight is 20/20, but perhaps the Flyers should've made their goaltending switch to Neuvirth earlier considering he has now won seven of his last eight decisions. Philadelphia's comeback bid could be put to rest at any time, but the Czech netminder will surely make plenty of saves regardless of the game's outcome. He has turned aside 75 of 76 Capitals shots in two starts this series, but is still available at a discount because of his team's underdog status.
Goalie to Avoid:
Braden Holtby, WAS at PHI ($39): While Holtby has continued to play well, he and the Capitals have dropped back-to-back grind-it-out affairs to the Flyers in which the netminder provided nearly no value due to a lack of shots faced in addition to the losses. He's so much more expensive than all other alternatives that it may not be worth the cap hit due to his tiny workload.
CENTER
Aleksander Barkov, FLA at NYI ($24): Barkov has found the back of the net twice in three games following a two-game adjustment period to playoff hockey, and is likely to light the lamp again given the streaky nature of his scoring during a 28-goal regular season. Just three of his tallies came as standalone efforts that weren't part of multi-game scoring streaks, which suggests the Finnish center is due to make it two in a row after scoring in Game 5.
Center to Avoid:
Evgeny Kuznetsov, WAS at PHI ($18): Kuznetsov has just a single point through five games this series, which really shouldn't be all that surprising considering the Russian closed the regular season on a 20-game goalless drought. That's simply not $18 worth of production from a forward.
WING
Justin Williams, WAS at PHI ($15): This is the time to buy low on Williams. He hasn't made much of an impact on this series yet with just two assists, but his ice time has risen in three straight games as the Capitals coaching staff recognizes his history of postseason success. The veteran has a long and successful playoff track record with 80 points in 120 games, and the chance to get such a consistent producer for just $15 doesn't come around often.
Patrick Eaves, DAL at MIN ($16): Eaves gets lost in the shuffle amid Dallas' myriad offensive weapons, but the inexpensive winger has quietly logged two goals and two assists while playing over 15 minutes in four of five games this series. Secondary scoring is often the deciding factor in a competitive playoff series, and Eaves is a likely source to provide some against Minnesota's bottom-two defensive pairings.
Wings to Avoid:
Jaromir Jagr, FLA at NYI ($18): For as amazing as Jagr has been in the regular season, it's shocking that the Czech veteran hasn't scored a goal in his last 35 playoff games. Odds are that streak reaches 36 on the road against a goaltender in Thomas Greiss who has been excellent at the Barclays Center all season.
Jakub Voracek, PHI vs. WAS ($18): Voracek's play this series has been poor enough to get him booted from the first line, as he has exceeded 2.0 fantasy points just once in five tries. The sample size from this series is starting to get big enough to say with confidence that Voracek likely won't be much of a factor in Game 6.
DEFENSE
Ryan Suter, MIN vs. DAL ($18): Suter has thrived in the latter part of this series, following up a plus-2 rating in Game 4 with two assists and a plus-4 in Game 5. The Wild have made this series very competitive with each of the last four games being decided by a single goal, so any early-series worries about them being an inferior team have been put to bed. Getting a proven first-pairing defenseman for just $18 is rarely a bad idea.
John Klingberg, DAL at MIN ($17): Klingberg finally came alive offensively with a pair of assists in Game 5. He's likely to continue getting on the scoresheet after dominating the Wild with three goals and three assists in four regular season meetings, and his struggles early in the series have made the Swede incredibly affordable at just $17.
Defenseman to Avoid:
Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI vs. WAS ($20): Gostisbehere's Flyers have scored a grand total of six goals in five games this series, giving the offensive-minded blueliner few chances to get involved. Don't expect that to change considering Washington netminder Braden Holtby has been tremendous all season.
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