This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Hockey series.
By now, hopefully you have gotten yourself situated with Daylight Saving Time. However, Monday still throws us a curveball, as there is an NHL game at 4:00 p.m. EDT between the Lightning and the Predators. I am not including that for the purposes of my DFS recommendations, instead sticking to the nine games starting at 7:00 p.m. or later.
That still gives me plenty of options to suggest for your lineup, so let's get to it...
GOALIE
Ilya Samsonov, WAS at BUF ($33): Samsonov is finally back playing after an extensive absence, and he's looked alright so far. Since returning from the COVID-19 list he has a 2.50 GAA and .915 save percentage. The Sabres have only managed 2.15 goals per game, and now it has been established that Jack Eichel is going to be missing a chunk of time, robbing the team of its best player.
GOALIE TO AVOID
Connor Hellebuyck, WPG vs. MON ($28): The Jets have played well recently, but you can thank the offense for that. Hellebuyck has actually been struggling a bit, as he's posted a 3.32 GAA and .900 save percentage over his last 10 outings. The Habs may have fired a head coach this season, but the team still has averaged 3.19 goals and 33.0 shots on net per contest.
CENTER
Bo Horvat, VAN at OTT ($19): The Canucks have been without Elias Pettersson recently, but Horvat has picked up the slack, as he has five points in his last five games. More important to me is this matchup. The Senators have the highest GAA in the NHL. They are also playing the second leg of a back-to-back, while the Canucks were off Sunday. The only way this could be more enticing is if Vancouver was at home.
CENTER TO AVOID
Logan Couture, SAN at VGK ($22): Couture has basically the polar opposite matchup quality of Horvat. He will likely be on the road squaring off with Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury has a 1.81 GAA and .935 save percentage. There's no reason to even think about this matchup for your roster when you have so many options.
WING
Max Pacioretty, VGK vs. SAN ($31): Pacioretty takes on an almost heroic workload when it comes to shooting the puck. The 32-year-old registered 307 shots on net in 71 games last year, and he already has 110 in 25 contests this season. Pucks on net have tended to pay off against San Jose, as it has a 3.52 GAA, second highest in the NHL.
Mike Hoffman, STL at LOS ($17): Hoffman has started 63.1 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, highest among the Blues' forwards. His power-play time is down this season, which has cut into his offensive numbers, but he still has 19 points in 27 games. The Kings have been solid when it comes to GAA, but they are on the second leg of a back-to-back and the Blues are not. That was enough to get me interested in Hoffman on Monday.
WINGS TO AVOID
Brad Marchand, BOS at PIT ($28): The Bruins have a top-heavy team, as I never really look beyond the top line for fantasy purposes. Those guys, including Marchand, tend to deliver as well. On the other hand, they also tend to have high salaries, and on a day with so many options like Monday it can behoove you to look elsewhere and try and target better matchups. This matchup definitely looks tougher than it did a few weeks ago, as Tristan Jarry has been on fire in net. He has a 2.45 GAA and .922 save percentage in his last 10 games.
Jake Guentzel, PIT vs. BOS ($26): Guentzel has a goal in three-straight games, and his last two have come on the power play. However, the Bruins have the top penalty kill in the NHL, so that power-play success seems likely to be brought to a halt here. On top of that, the Bruins have a 2.32 GAA and has only given up 26.6 shots on net per contest.
DEFENSE
Nate Schmidt, VAN at OTT ($13): Quinn Hughes is an obvious choice, of course, but if you want to try and save a little salary to use elsewhere go with Schmidt instead. His first year in Vancouver hasn't gone great, as he only has nine points. That being said, the Senators have the highest's GAA in the league and are the second night of a back-to-back. If Schmidt is going to step up, this is the place to do it.
Justin Schultz, WAS at BUF ($12): John Carlson is the big name on the Washington blue line, but Schultz does have 10 points in 23 games. Plus, five of those points have come with the extra man. The Sabres have a 3.39 GAA, but they also don't have Linus Ullmark on hand due to injury. Carter Hutton has a 3.15 GAA, but with a .893 save percentage.
DEFENSE TO AVOID
Brent Burns, SAN at VGK ($20): The 36-year-old Burns seems like he may have finally lost a step. Usually a prolific shooter, he only has 67 shots on net in 25 games this year. That's a big reason why he only has two goals in his last 16 contests. The Golden Knights have allowed only 27.6 shots on net per game, so they don't tend to let anybody get too many pucks on goal, and when they do, Marc-Andre Fleury has been handling them well.
Neal Pionk, WPG vs. MON ($19): Pionk has been quite the playmaker this season, as he has 20 assists in 27 games. On the other hand, he's gone from averaging 2:56 per game on the power play to 1:51, which means he assuredly won't tally 25 power-play points again (and not just because this season will be shorter). The Canadiens have gotten strong goaltending from Jake Allen all season, as he has a 2.28 GAA and .922 save perhaps. However, recently Carey Price has been even better, as he's registered a 1.40 GAA and .952 save percentage in his last five starts.
