NHL first look: Game-by-game DFS breakdown for April 14

There are six games in the NHL Wednesday, but most DFS sites will probably only be including the five evening games in their featured contests. The Coyotes and Wild drop the puck at 2 p.m. EST, with Minnesota a notable favorite.

Of the five night matchups, Vegas is the receiving the most chalk on the docket followed by Colorado, San Jose and Winnipeg. Montreal is also a reasonable home favorite over the Flames. It’s worth adding that Calgary is playing its second game in consecutive nights, whereas the Winnipeg-Ottawa, Vegas-Los Angeles and Anaheim-San Jose matchups are all rematches from Monday night.

Here’s your game-by-game preview for Wednesday’s action.

All statistics from Natural Stat Trick and Hockey Reference.

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Coyotes at Wild preview 

(Line: -190)

The Coyotes have dropped four consecutive games with a minus-7 goal differential and are now on the outside of the playoff picture, and the fourth-place Blues have two games in hand. Arizona has also lost four of five games to the Wild and been outscored by 11 goals in the process. There’s nothing to be overly excited about with the Coyotes, either. Statistically, they’re a middle-of-the-pack team or worse in all notable categories, and they lack high-end talent throughout the lineup. Additionally, netminders Darcy Kuemper (lower body) and Antti Raanta (lower body) are both still on injured reserve. Raanta is nearing a return, though.

Minnesota is also in the midst of a mini-skid, with just three wins through its past eight games. However, this comes on the heels of a dominant 15-4-1 stretch, so it’s still probably best to project the Wild to slide in between the two extremes moving forward. No. 1 netminder Cam Talbot has allowed 11 goals through his past three starts with an .888 save percentage, so he’s a ripe candidate for statistical correction given his .921 mark over the past two years. Additionally, Kevin Fiala will return to the lineup Wednesday after missing Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury. He’s scoring in bunches lately with five tallies and six helpers through his previous eight games.

Flames at Canadiens preview 

(Line: Canadiens -164)

Calgary pulled off a 3-2 overtime win against Toronto Tuesday, while Montreal topped the Maple Leafs 4-2 Monday to snap a three-game losing skid. The Canadiens are holding onto fourth place in the North Division and are eight points clear of the Flames with two games in hand, so it isn’t a close playoff race. Montreal continues to play excellent at five-on-five with the second best Corsi For percentage and the fourth fewest goals per 60 minutes in the league. Additionally, the Habs have won three of four meetings against the Flames while holding Calgary to just six goals. As a result, this should be a favorable matchup for Montreal netminder Jake Allen, or Carey Price (upper body) if he’s healthy enough to start.

With Jacob Markstrom starting Tuesday, and David Rittich no longer with the club, it will likely be Louis Domingue starting Wednesday. It’s not a great spot with Calgary playing its second road game in consecutive nights, and Domingue has an underwhelming .901 save percentage and 3.21 GAA through 93 appearances this past four years. Montreal’s leading scorer Tyler Toffoli is a potential DFS target. He’s failed to score in each of the past five games but has collected 12 shots and 24 shot attempts, including five attempts with two being of the high-danger variety last time out. Pairing Toffoli with centerman Nicholas Suzuki isn’t a bad mini-stack, either.

Jets at Senators preview 

(Line: Jets -188)

Ottawa upset Winnipeg 4-2 Monday, and the Senators were able to generate 12 high-danger scoring chances while allowing just four at even strength. Additionally, the five-on-five shot attempts were equal. Despite an inferior on-paper lineup, the Sens are competitive most nights. Additionally, when you remove their 0-for-9 Still, it will definitely be interesting to see how they fare after moving three regular blueliners ahead of Monday’s trade deadline. After all, Ottawa was already allowing the most goals per game in the league. After Monday’s result, and with the current odds in mind, there’s good reason to expect a rebound showing from the Jets.

Winnipeg’s new-look line of Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nikolaj Ehlers and Paul Stastny was excellent Monday and doubled up their opponents in shot attempts at five-on-five. Ehlers also found the back of the net to improve to nine points — three goals — through his past seven contests. The stretch has him at a point-per-game pace for the campaign and a team-high 3.57 points per 60 minutes. A bounceback showing from Winnipeg netminder Connor Hellebuyck is also a good bet, as he entered Monday’s contest with a dominant 7-1-1 stretch with a .950 save percentage and 1.44 GAA.

Avalanche at Blues preview 

(Line: Avalanche -180)

St. Louis has won three straight games to climb into a playoff position and curb a horrible seven-game losing streak. However, the Avalanche are also cruising along a 16-1-2 run with the league’s best record and goal differential. Add a top-ranked Corsi For percentage and most goals per game in the league, and it’s tough to argue against Colorado as the top team in the league. St. Louis is probably headed for a strong conclusion to the campaign, too, though. For the first time all season, the Blues are nearly at full strength and boast a solid three-line attack. Of course, while Colorado has ample star power, depth is also a strong suit. Additionally, the Avalanche also beefed up their depth ahead of the deadline, although it’s not clear if the recent acquisitions will be ready to play Wednesday.

Everything begins and ends with Colorado’s big line, as the trio have recorded an incredible 34 goals and 46 assists through the past 18 games to climb to an elite 6.05 goals per 60 minutes for the campaign. Expect them to go head-to-head with St. Louis’ Ryan O'Reilly–Sammy Blais–David Perron trio, who have clicked for six tallies and six helpers themselves through the past three games. In goal, Philipp Grubauer bounced back last time out with a 35-save win after he stopped just 11 of 18 shots and was pulled against the Wild last week. He’s posting a Vezina Trophy case with a 25-8-1 record, .920 save percentage and 2.00 GAA. It’s also worth noting that St. Louis No. 1 Jordan Binnington has stopped 74 of 76 shots through his past two starts, and he’ll be a candidate to stop lots of rubber again Wednesday with Colorado attempting the most five-on-five shots per 60 minutes in the league.

Golden Knights at Kings preview 

(Line: Golden Knights -220)

There have been a few more peaks and valleys in Vegas’ results of late with an active 7-5-1 record, but the Golden Knights have rattled off three straight wins, including a 4-2 victory over Los Angeles on Monday. Vegas is now 5-2 against the Kings while scoring 3.43 goals per game, so it's safe to expect another strong offensive showing from the Golden Knights Wednesday. Additionally, Vegas has a claim as the best defensive team in the league with the fewest goals against per game and the second-best penalty-kill percentage. Netminders Marc-Andre Fleury and Robin Lehner have been alternating starts since mid-March, and it’s Fleury’s turn Wednesday. Fleury has been underwhelming the past two weeks with a 2-5 record, .902 save percentage and 2.76 GAA. However, this could be the spot for a bounceback showing.

The Kings have scored just 2.43 goals per game during their underwhelming current 7-13-3 stretch and just 2.43 per game against the Golden Knights this year. It’s also worth noting that veteran Anze Kopitar has also cooled off considerably with just six points — one goal — through his past 11 outings. Offensively, the Golden Knights continue to be led by Max Pacioretty, Mark Stone, Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson and Shea Theodore, whereas Tomas Nosek has also been sneaky productive with five goals and six assists though his past 15 contests. The Kings have also surrendered three goals or more in eight of their past 10 games, so the matchup isn’t intimidating.

Ducks at Sharks preview 

(Line: Sharks -184)

The Sharks appeared on the brink of making a push for a postseason berth before losing three of their past four games to fall four points behind the fourth-place Blues. Anaheim has topped them in consecutive meetings, including Monday’s 4-0 win, in which San Jose dominated five-on-five shot attempts and generated 24 high-danger scoring chances while allowing 11. In fact, Anaheim netminder Anthony Stolarz’s 46 saves were the most in franchise history during a Ducks shutout. Needless to say, it’s probably safe to expect San Jose to have a little better puck luck Wednesday. After all, Anaheim has surrendered a healthy 3.14 goals per game and sports an underwhelming 78.0 penalty-kill percentage.

San Jose’s most dangerous line Monday was Logan Couture, Evander Kane and Kevin Labanc. They attempted 16 shots and generated six high-danger scoring chances, and for the campaign they’ve been a respectable offensive trio with 3.16 goals and 12.65 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes at five-on-five. Additionally, Couture led the Sharks in individual high-danger chances Monday with five total, and Ryan Donato and Timo Meier also both had four. Defenseman Brent Burns also attempted 10 shots and registered six on net, so he’s a high-floor candidate in DFS contests Wednesday. Finally, it would be surprising if Anaheim had another strong offensive showing considering the Ducks have scored the second-fewest goals per game in the league.