This article is part of our FanDuel NHL series.
SLATE PREVIEW
Thursday features a 10-game NHL slate, and there are no divisional contests. In the midst of winter, it's important to double-check your lineups to make sure there are no last-minute scratches due to illness or injury. Just last night, Tyler Bozak was missing from warmups and, and Evgeni Malkin went on the shelf with an unexpected flu bug last week as well. The first puck drops at 7:00 p.m. ET, so read on to help navigate the crowded slate.
GOALIES
Marc-Andre Fleury ($8,900) is the most expensive netminder in this slate, but his game has had bumps in the road lately. The veteran has won three of his last four outings, but he's finished below a .900 save percentage in two of those outings. Vancouver's offense hasn't executed recently, and it has been short on chances with just 52.53 high-danger/scoring chances per 60 over the last month. Fleury is a superb start even at this price.
It's unsettled who will start between Jaroslav Halak ($8,200) and Tuukka Rask ($8,200), but the two have been switching off lately. Halak's has been the better of the two over the last month with a .934 save percentage compared to Rask's .917 mark. The Islanders have posted 1.85 GF/60 in that stretch -- 27th in the league. I'm more confident with Halak. Fire him up if he gets the nod.
Jonathan Quick's ($7,700) play has been on the decline since the start of last year, but he's rediscovered his game in December. Over the last four games, the two-time Stanley Cup winner registered a .933 save percentage and 3-0-1 record. The Blue Jackets have looked good recently, but they still rank 30th with 2.50 goals per home game. When Quick's playing like this against a favorable opponent, he rounds out as a top value option.
VALUE PLAYS/ONE-OFFS
Andrei Svechnikov ($6,300) is a superstar at 19 years old. He's piled up 35 points through 34 games, just two points shy of last year's total. His power-play prowess has pushed him over the top with 14 points on the man advantage, so facing off against the Avalanche's 78.5 penalty-kill percentage ups his ceiling even further.
Craig Smith ($4,000) couldn't find the gas pedal to start the year, posting just two goals and nine points over 32 games. The 30-year-old is a perennial 20-goal scorer, though, so it was just a matter of time until he was back in business. After head coach Peter Laviolette blended the lines, Smith came through Tuesday with two goals, a helper and a season-high six shots on net. Over the last month, Ottawa has generated 3.01 GF/60 -- the ninth-most in the league.
Christian Dvorak ($4,100) got first dibs to center Taylor Hall, and it doesn't hurt that he gets Phil Kessel flanking his right side. Dvorak was productive in his own right before the blockbuster trade, generating a 53.5 Corsi For percentage en route to 21 points over 36 games. The 23-year-old gets a prime matchup against the Wild, who have allowed 3.59 goals per road game so far.
FORWARD LINE STACKS
Philadelphia Flyers (TOTAL: $22,500) 
C - Sean Couturier ($6,700)
W - Claude Giroux ($7,600)
W - Travis Konecny ($6,200)
The Sabres have allowed eight goals over the last two road games, which is on par with their season, as they've yielded 3.57 scores per road game this campaign. In Konecny's return to the lineup Tuesday, the crew racked up two goals and three helpers, and the increased price tag accommodates for Buffalo's 30th-ranked traveling penalty kill (70.2 percent).
Carolina Hurricanes (TOTAL: $19,000) 
C - Sebastian Aho ($7,700)
W - Nino Niederreiter ($4,600)
W - Teuvo Teravainen ($6,700)
Aho is the lamplighter of the group, tickling the twine seven times over the last four games and adding four assists, but Teravainen and Niederreiter have pulled their weight with 13 combined points in that span. There's no splitting up this crew right now. Philipp Grubauer should be in the opposing goal, and he's posted a 3.05 GAA over his last seven appearances.
Vegas Golden Knights (TOTAL: $17,900) 
C - Chandler Stephenson ($3,900)
W - Mark Stone ($6,800)
W - Max Pacioretty ($7,200)
Stephenson's low price tag is key, and it's even better that he's not just a piggybacker. The 25-year-old is a fit in the desert, and he rides a four-game point streak into Thursday. Stone and Pacioretty have followed suit, as the trio combined for seven goals and 12 assists in that span. The matchup is favorable, as the Canucks clearly miss Alexander Edler (upper body). They've yielded 22 goals over the last six games (3.7 per game).
DEFENSEMEN
Roman Josi ($6,600) and Dougie Hamilton ($6,400) are both worth the splurge, as each has surpassed 10 goals and 30 points this year. Both have combined for 170 blocked shots and shots on net as well, providing a rock-solid floor.
Mark Giordano's ($5,500) not going to repeat last year's Norris Trophy season, as he's posted just 17 points over 36 games. The veteran averages 2.4 shots and 2.6 blocked shots per game, so he's still cash-game viable but starting 48.9 percent of shifts in the offensive zone isn't a tournament-winning formula.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson ($4,700) is having a down year, but hopefully, the arrival of Hall can help turn things around. It looks like it's working already, as the 28-year-old Ekman-Larsson notched the game-winning goal Tuesday on a feed from Hall. He works on the top power play with the superstar winger and Phil Kessel, too, forming a powerhouse against Minnesota's weak penalty kill (78.0 percent).
Neal Pionk ($4,200) makes a paycheck on the power play, and he's been converting more often lately with six apples with the man advantage over the last five games and 10 total this year. The 24-year-old will look to keep the ball rolling against Chicago, which has yielded 7.38 GA/60 to opposing penalty kills over the last month (20th).
