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Yahoo Daily Fantasy Hockey: Friday picks

VANCOUVER, BC - NOVEMBER 15: Mats Zuccarello #36 of the New York Rangers skates with the puck in NHL action against the Vancouver Canucks on November 15, 2016 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BC – NOVEMBER 15: Mats Zuccarello #36 of the New York Rangers skates with the puck in NHL action against the Vancouver Canucks on November 15, 2016 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)

By Chris Morgan

The weather’s getting icy in much of the United States and almost all of Canada, so hopefully you’re in the hockey spirit. Friday takes you into the weekend with a modest total of six games; here’s a look at some players in those matchups whom you might be wise to target or avoid.

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GOALIE

Devan Dubnyk, MIN vs. EDM ($35): You aren’t going to save much money by going with Dubnyk, but he still sticks out as a solid option in a less-than-stellar lineup of choices. The Oilers will be traveling to play in Minnesota after losing in Philadelphia on Thursday, which so you have to imagine they’ll be tired. Dubnyk won’t just be lucking into a win, though – he leads the league in both GAA (1.65) and save percentage (.946). Maybe Dubnyk isn’t the best goalie in the NHL – in fact, he probably isn’t – but you can’t argue that he hasn’t been the best so far, so he’s a safe choice.

GOALIE TO AVOID

Henrik Lundqvist, NYR at CHI ($34): The Rangers decided to give Antti Raanta the start Thursday to play Lundqvist against the Blackhawks, but it may not pay off for them. In his last eight starts, Lundqvist has a 3-4-1 record and a .902 save percentage; his overall save percentage is only slightly better at .912. Chicago’s offense may not currently be as potent as it’s been in the past, but you can’t overlook guys like Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin. With uneven the season he’s having and the price you’ll have to pay, you may want to steer clear of King Henrik.

CENTER

Travis Zajac, NJD vs. STL ($15): The Blues played Thursday with Jake Allen in net, which means that Carter Hutton and his .888 save percentage is the projected starter for Friday’s game. Of course, Allen hasn’t been much better, which is a big part of why the Blues are 28th in team save percentage. Zajac has 11 points in his last eight games, and he was on a three-game point streak until he ran into Carey Price on Thursday. At this price, it’s worth seeing whether his hot streak continues.

CENTER TO AVOID

Evgeny Kuznetsov, WAS at BUF ($19): Don’t expect a lot of scoring in this one, as Washington and Buffalo are both in the top 10 in goal prevention. Kuznetsov notched two assists in his last game, but that only brings him up to 12 points in 25 games, and only one of them has come on the power play. He’s down to averaging a paltry 4.5 fantasy points per game in Yahoo scoring, and it’s hard to be excited about him in this matchup.

WING

Cam Atkinson, CLM at DET ($22): At this point, the Jackets’ offensive prowess (third in goals scored per game, first on the power play) is probably well known to those who play daily fantasy. Atkinson has been at the forefront of that, collecting 23 points in 24 games, including 11 on the power play. It’s not a fluke, either, because his minutes are up and he’s put 74 shots on goal. Jimmy Howard doesn’t seem quite ready to return for the Wings, though he’s getting close, which means Petr Mrazek (who has a 2.84 GAA and a .908 save percentage overall, but admittedly has played well in Howard’s absence) will likely be in net.

Mats Zuccarello, NYR at CHI ($18): With the Hawks’ struggles on the penalty kill – their 71.4 percent success rate is worst in the league – it behooves you to get power-play performers who are going up against them. Zuccarello only has four power-play points, but he had 18 last year, and he came into Thursday’s game against the Jets averaging 2:46 on the power play and exceeded that, skating 3:50 with the extra man. Despite a bit of a cold stretch lately, Zuccarello still has 18 points, and he comes at a modest price point.

WINGS TO AVOID

T.J. Oshie, WAS at BUF ($22): Oshie returned to action after missing seven games Wednesday, playing 15:11 and putting one shot on goal. He has eight goals in 18 games, but with a 21.1 shooting percentage that is unsustainable. It remains to be seen how Oshie plays in his first couple of games after returning from injury, and it doesn’t help that Buffalo’s projected starter, Robin Lehner, has a .921 save percentage after posting a .924 save percentage last season.

Jordan Eberle, EDM at MIN ($20): This is not about Eberle’s output. He has eight goals and 22 points in 28 games, a perfectly respectable number. However, as mentioned earlier, Dubnyk leads the league in GAA and save percentage. The Wild have been the best team at goal prevention this season, and there are better matchups to capitalize upon.

DEFENSEMEN

Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SAN at ANA ($15): Vlasic’s scoring has dried up, but he has 50 shots on goal and 43 blocked shots. He’s put nine shots on net in his last four games as well. Vlasic is still averaging 5.2 fantasy points per game, and with a matchup against a middle-of-the-road Ducks team, he should be able to earn this price; if he manages to get back on the score-sheet, he’ll be a major steal.

Colton Parayko, STL at NJD ($16): Parayko may still have no goals, but he’s put 70 pucks on the net, so that’s destined to change. He scored nine goals on 165 shots during his rookie season, and he’s on pace for more than 200 shots on goal this year. The Devils are starting backup goalie Keith Kinkaid in this matchup after having played Montreal on Thursday. Kinkaid may have a .928 save percentage in six starts this year, but in his career mark is just .912 and he had a .904 save percentage last season. Maybe this will be the night Parayko finally lights the lamp.

DEFENSEMEN TO AVOID

John Carlson, WAS at BUF ($20): Carlson gets picked for this section fairly often, and the fact that he’s surrounded by players with more fantasy points per game than him speaks to that. He has yet to score a goal, although he does have 10 assists and 61 shots on goal. Eventually, his numbers should improve, but we’ve been saying that for a couple weeks now. Why bet on that happening when you can get Ryan McDonagh or Duncan Keith for the same price?

Mike Green, DET at CLM ($16): Green his six goals this season, but five of them have come in two games, one of which was back on October 17. His 12.5 shooting percentage is also unusually high, on par with the season when he scored 31 goals. The Blue Jackets are only allowing 2.17 goals per game, so it seems unlikely that Green is going to add to his scoring totals Friday, and his 47 shots in 27 games are not inspiring either, especially in such a tough matchup.