There were 10 games Monday, and the NHL isn't slowing down today with another eight games on the docket. Half of those tilts will start at 7:00 p.m. EDT (Nashville at Toronto, Seattle at Montreal, Edmonton visiting the Rangers, Tampa Bay at Washington). That's followed by starts at 9:00 (Vegas at Calgary), 9:30 (Minnesota at Dallas),10:00 (Carolina at San Jose) and 10:30 (Pittsburgh at Anaheim).
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SLATE PREVIEW
Nashville, Toronto, Tampa Bay and Minnesota are all playing the second half of a back-to-back, so fatigue might affect those teams somewhat. Calgary will play again Wednesday, which might have some influence on the Flames' lineup decisions tonight.
GOALIES
Jake Oettinger, DAL vs. MIN ($7,700): Oettinger did allow four goals in each of his first two starts of 2025-26, but that's a small sample size, and it's well established that he's a good goaltender. This would be a good time for him to demonstrate that with a rebound performance. The Wild are a strong team, but Minnesota is on the road and playing for the second straight day, as well as the third time in four days, so Oettinger likely won't see the Wild at their very best.
Adin Hill, VGK at CAL ($7,500): Similar to Oettinger, Hill will be looking to bounce back tonight. The 29-year-old has opened the campaign with a record of 0-0-2 along with a 3.23 GAA and an .854 save percentage in two starts. He had one meeting against Calgary last year, posting a 16-save shutout. This year, the Flames' offense looks okay, but not great, especially while Jonathan Huberdeau (undisclosed) is absent.
VALUE PLAYS
Matty Beniers, SEA at MON ($4,900): Beniers has hit the ground running with a goal and three points across his opening two games this year. It helps that he's logging top-six minutes and has a role on the first power-play unit. The 22-year-old had 57 points in the 2022-23 regular season to earn the Calder Trophy, but he's fallen well short of that kind of offensive output since. Still, Beniers' potential remains sky high, so perhaps this is the year it'll all click.
Beckett Sennecke, ANA vs. PIT ($4,700): Sennecke wants to be in the conversation for this campaign's Calder Trophy, and he's started that journey by contributing two goals and three points in two appearances. The rebuilding Ducks aren't afraid to lean heavily on the 19-year-old -- he's logged over 17 minutes in each of his first two games -- so he'll get plenty of opportunities to build on this early momentum.
Zachary Bolduc, MON vs. SEA ($4,500): Bolduc couldn't have asked for a better start to his Montreal tenure, supplying three goals and four points over three outings this year. Acquired from St. Louis over the summer, Bolduc is seeing time on the first power-play unit, which has been the source of two of his points.
Jackson Blake, CAR at SJS ($4,200): After recording 34 points during the 2024-25 regular season as a rookie, Blake is looking to take a step forward this year. He's registered two assists in two games, but just as importantly, he's averaging 17:34 of ice time, a huge spike from his 13:51 last year. The Sharks seem to be all offense, little defense, at this stage of their rebuild, so this is a good night to grab Carolina skaters.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Maple Leafs vs. Predators
Auston Matthews (C - $7,700), Matthew Knies (W - $6,300), Easton Cowan (W - $3,200)
Typically, I wouldn't pick a line on the second half of a back-to-back, but I think Matthews is due. Aside from the empty netter in Toronto's season opener, Matthews hasn't found the back of the net -- or gotten any other point -- despite accumulating 15 shots. Toronto should probably have a bit of extra fuel tonight, one day after a frustrating 3-2 loss in which the Leafs outshot Detroit 40-15.
It should also be interesting to see how Cowan does. He was held off the scoresheet in his NHL debut Monday, but he's got plenty of potential, so it wouldn't be surprising to see the 20-year-old make an impression tonight.
In contrast to Matthews, Knies is off to a good start -- two goals and three points through three games -- so he'll attempt to maintain that moment today.
This line is not the safest of picks, but there is the potential here for it to pay off nicely.
Hurricanes at Sharks
Sebastian Aho (C - $6,800), Seth Jarvis (W - $6,600), Nikolaj Ehlers (W - $6,400)
Leaning on Carolina isn't a bad idea against an opponent like the Sharks, but it's also not a bad idea in general.
Jarvis is off to a fantastic start with three goals in two outings, and Aho has been effective as well with three helpers over the same stretch. The Jarvis and Aho had 67 and 74 points, respectively, during the 2024-25 regular season, and there's every reason to believe they'll have another strong campaign.
Ehlers didn't factor into the scoresheet across his first two appearances, but he did record eight shots, and it's only a matter of time before he gets his first point in a Hurricanes uniform following his six-year, $51 million contract signing over the summer.
DEFENSEMEN
Adam Fox, NYR vs. EDM ($6,500): Fox has three goals and four points in four appearances this year. Obviously, his goal-scoring pace will slow, but Fox should continue to generate points at a high rate this year. Edmonton's goaltending is a question mark, so it wouldn't be surprising to see Fox on the scoresheet tonight.
Shayne Gostisbehere, CAR at SJS ($5,700): Gostisbehere has opened the campaign with three assists in two outings. Surprisingly, none of those points have come with the man advantage, but power-play production is likely to be at the heart of his value over the course of the campaign. As noted above, it should be a generally good idea this season to grab skaters on the opposite side of the Sharks' developing defense.