Fantasy picks: Copp value stack; Vatanen on first power play

All season long, NHL.com's fantasy staff will provide daily picks for DraftKings NHL contests. These targets at each position can be used as a basis for your roster decision-making.

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Projected lineups

CENTER

Value pick: Andrew Copp, WPG ($3,800 vs. LAK):The Winnipeg Jets center has one goal, three shots on goal and two blocks in his past two games (3.3 DraftKings points per game). He has 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 30 home games compared to five points (one goal, four assists) in 29 road games. Copp is on a line with elite forwards Patrik Laine ($6,700) and Nikolaj Ehlers ($6,100), and his low price could offset the high cost of his linemates against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, FS-W, NHL.TV).

Spend up for: Nathan MacKinnon, COL ($7,200 at VAN):The Colorado Avalanche center returned to their lineup against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday after missing eight games with a shoulder injury. In his return, he had four SOG and one block (2.5 DraftKings points) in 22:20, his highest time on ice since Nov. 24. Although it would be too aggressive to stack MacKinnon with linemates Mikko Rantanen ($6,000) and Gabriel Landeskog ($5,900), any combination of MacKinnon with Rantanen or Landeskog is logical because they will play together on Colorado's top power-play unit Tuesday against the Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m. ET; SNP, ALT, NHL.TV), who rank 23rd in penalty kill percentage (78.6).

WING

Value pick: Denis Malgin, FLA ($4,000 at TOR):The Florida Panthers wing has five points (two goals, three assists) in his past five games (3.1 DraftKings points per game). He is skating on the second line with center Vincent Trocheck ($6,600) and wing Jonathan Huberdeau ($6,000). Malgin has 10 points (five goals, five assists) and 32 SOG in 19 road games. He will look to continue his consistent road play against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; SNO, FS-F, NHL.TV).
Spend up for: Vladimir Tarasenko, STL ($6,800 vs. SJS):The St. Louis Blues wing has five points (two goals, three assists), 21 SOG and one block in his past four games (5.8 DraftKings points per game). He has an against-the-grain matchup against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; FS-MW, NBCSA, NHL.TV) and their goaltender Martin Jones ($7,400), who is seeking his third-straight win. Tarasenko has 10 points (four goals, six assists) and 41 SOG in 13 career games against the Sharks.
Worth noting: Edmonton Oilers wing Drake Caggiula ($3,900 in DraftKings) is expected to skate on the top line with Connor McDavid ($7,600) against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; SNW, NESN, NHL.TV).

DEFENSE

Value pick: Sami Vatanen, NJD ($3,800 vs. CBJ):The New Jersey Devils defenseman has six assists, seven SOG and eight blocks in his past six games (3.4 DraftKings points per game). He is now playing on the Devils top power-play unit with Taylor Hall ($7,200), Nico Hischier ($4,900), Kyle Palmieri ($5,300) and Jesper Bratt ($3,400) and has a favorable matchup Tuesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets (7 p.m. ET; MSG+, FS-O, NHL.TV), who rank 27th in penalty kill percentage (75.8).
Spend up for: John Carlson, WSH ($6,200 vs. TBL):The Washington Capitals defenseman had two points (one goal, one assist), two SOG and a block (6.5 DraftKings points per game) against the Buffalo Sabres on Monday. Carlson has 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) and 86 SOG) in 32 career games against the Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SNP, NBCSWA, SUN, NHL.TV) and has five points (two goals, three assists) and 35 SOG in 10 games played on no days rest.

GOALTENDER

Anton Khudobin, BOS ($7,800 at EDM):The Boston Bruins goaltender is a must-stream player in road games; he's 8-1-2 with a .934 save percentage and one shutout in 13 such games. Despite getting pulled against the Canucks on Saturday, Khudobin has averaged 4.8 DraftKings points per game in his past four road starts. He has a favorable matchup Tuesday against the Edmonton Oilers (9 p.m. ET; SNW, NESN, NHL.TV), who rank 22nd in goals per game (2.76).
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