This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
GOALIE
Anton Khudobin, DAL at PHI ($33): Khudobin has shared starts with Ben Bishop, but when he's been in net he's been stellar. The Russian netminder has a 2.52 GAA and .924 save percentage. Philadelphia is in the bottom 10 of goals scored per game, and it has also been struggling as a whole recently. The Flyers have lost eight games in a row, so the odds of Khudobin picking up a win seem pretty good.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Devan Dubnyk, MIN vs. WPG ($28): Dubnyk is having a good season, as he has a 2.56 GAA and .915 save percentage. However, there are a lot of easy matchups out there for goalies Thursday, but this isn't one of them. The Jets have averaged 3.45 goals and 32.3 shots on net per contest, so it could be a busy day for Dubnyk.
CENTER
Mathew Barzal, NYI at NYR ($20): Barzal isn't quite on pace to match his rookie campaign where he had 85 points, but his 38 points in 41 games is nothing to sneeze at. Plus, he's a weapon on the power play once again, as he has 14 points with the extra man. This matchup should be right up his alley, as the Rangers have the 27th-ranked penalty kill. On top of that, they have a 3.40 GAA, bottom five in the NHL.
CENTER TO AVOID
Evgeny Kuznetsov, WAS at BOS ($26): It's been a while since Kuznetsov has lit the lamp. The Russian center hasn't scored a goal in his last 16 games. That may not change in this matchup, as the Bruins have a 2.56 GAA, second lowest in the league.
WING
Brendan Gallagher, MON at STL ($18): After Gallagher notched 31 goals on 278 shots last season, he's been quite active offensively once again. The 26-year-old has 16 goals on 153 shots through 44 contests. St. Louis hasn't allowed a lot of shots, but it has had issues allowing goals. In fact, in his last 13 outings Jake Allen has a 3.20 GAA and .882 save percentage.
Dustin Brown, LOS vs. OTT ($17): Brown, like a lot of Kings, got off to a slow start, but he's picked it up a bit recently. He has a three-game point streak, and also eight points in his last 10 contests. Now he's facing a Senators team that ranks last in GAA, shots allowed per game, and penalty-kill percentage. Oh, and they are on the road for the second game of a back-to-back.
WINGS TO AVOID
Timo Meier, SAN at VGK ($22): Meier is enjoying a breakout campaign, but this is not the matchup to target. The Golden Knights have been absolutely stellar at home. They have a 2.00 GAA in Vegas, lowest in the NHL, and have only given up 28.7 shots on net per contest as well.
Jakub Voracek, PHI vs. DAL ($17): Voracek is having a good season, but his power-play numbers have cratered. After having 35 points with the extra man last year, he only has seven this time around. The Stars have the eighth-ranked penalty kill, so that may not change in this one. That goes doubly true with Anton Khudobin in net, given that he has a 2.52 GAA and .924 save percentage.
DEFENSE
Jeff Petry, MON at STL ($18): Petry has shown that his breakout campaign last year was no fluke, as he has 30 points and 105 shots on net in 44 games. Even the return of Shea Weber hasn't slowed him down. The Blues have struggled to prevent goals, but surprisingly they've been particularly bad at it even in their own arena. St. Louis has a 3.56 home GAA, highest in the NHL.
Nate Schmidt, VGK vs. SAN ($17): Schmidt missed the start of the season, but he's making up for lost time. The 27-year-old has nine points in his last 10 games, including three with the extra man. He's getting more power-play time as well, so that success could continue. As for the Sharks, they have a 3.55 GAA and .880 save percentage on the road, neither of which should intimidate Schmidt, or daily fantasy players.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Brent Burns, SAN at VGK ($29): This is bold, I know, because Burns is having another great season. However, he's also very expensive on a day where 24 teams are in action. The Golden Knights, as previously stated have a 2.00 GAA at home, lowest in the NHL. They also have the sixth-ranked penalty kill overall, so Burns may not even find success with the extra man.
Morgan Rielly, TOR at NJD ($26): Rielly never really cooled down after his torrid start to the season, although he has only one point iin his last five games. However, the Devils have been decidedly better at home defensively, as they have a 2.68 GAA in their own arena. Plus, New Jersey actually ranks second on the penalty kill, and 14 of Rielly's 45 points have been on the power play.
