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Get today's top DraftKings daily fantasy hockey lineup picks for January 3, 2026. Doug's expert NHL DFS goalies picks, value plays, stacks, and power play picks.
After a wacky couple of holiday weeks, things in the NHL look to settle back in with a fun little seven-game slate on a Saturday night. Tonight’s premier game will feature Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche heading to Carolina to face a Hurricanes team that is ready to explode offensively. This one should be full of fantasy productivity.
A sneaky game on this slate could be Nashville facing off against Calgary in Western Canada. Both offenses have shown flashes of competence, and neither defense is playing exceptionally well at the moment. The night ends with another potential shootout in Vancouver, as Morgan Geekie and the Bruins look to take aim at Kevin Lankinen and the Canucks.
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NHL DFS Analysis And Picks For 1/3/26
Carolina Hurricanes (CAR1 - Andrei Svechnikov, Nikolaj Ehlers, Sebastian Aho; $19700 DK)
Defensive Addition: Shayne Gostisbehere ($5500 DK)
Colorado may be the best team in the NHL, but advanced data favors the Carolina offense in this game. Carolina has scored just 1.96 even-strength goals per 60 minutes over their past 10 games, but it was expected to have scored 3.31 goals. They are an aggressive offense, averaging 14.23 high-danger chances per 60 minutes.
Those metrics indicate that a turnaround is coming, and it may have already started with a five-goal explosion against Montreal on Thursday night. More importantly, four of those goals came from their new-look top line of Andrei Svechnikov, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Sebastian Aho.
On the flip side of this matchup, Colorado is due to get rolled on the road, having allowed 0.77 fewer even-strength goals per 60 minutes than expected over their past 10 games. Their defensive pairing of Josh Manson and Brent Burns is allowing 16.59 high-danger chances per 60 minutes over their past 10 road games.
Goalie Scott Wedgewood has been excellent under pressure this year, saving nearly 86% of the high-danger shots he’s faced on the road over the team’s past 10 games. He allowed five goals in his most recent start, a road game in Vegas, showing that he can be gotten to. Carolina has the firepower to continue that downward trend.
Aho gets a tip and the game is tied at 2 🚨 pic.twitter.com/MKtcZBU5Ff
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 2, 2026
Nashville Predators (NSH1 - Ryan O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos, Filip Forsberg; $17100 DK)
Defensive Addition: Roman Josi ($6200 DK)
Unreal goalie play from Calgary’s netminder Dustin Wolf has been the only thing keeping the Flames from getting blown out regularly. Wolf has saved 95% of all shots, and 90% of the high-danger shots he’s faced at home over the team’s previous 10 games. He’s allowed 1.53 fewer goals than expected, putting the team on his back and repeatedly saving the team from its poor defensive play.
Two of the three defensive pairings in Calgary have been awful, but we want to target Mackenzie Weegar and Yan Kuznetsov. They have allowed 15.17 high-danger chances and 33.17 scoring chances per 60 minutes, resulting in an expected goals allowed of around 3 per 60 minutes. At some point, Wolf is going to fall off, and the team will get rolled.
Nashville hasn’t put it all together yet this year, but the underlying metrics suggest that they should have scored 0.43 more goals per 60 minutes than the 2.21 they’ve produced over their past 10 road games. It’s not a huge discrepancy, but it’s enough when you combine it with the poor defensive play from the Flames.
Filip Forsberg, Ryan O’Reilly, and Steven Stamkos average a combined 29.5 DraftKings points per game, but they have 50-point upside, and a slate devoid of big-time teams in strong matchups is the perfect time to roll with the Preds in this spot.
New York Islanders (NYI1 - Anders Lee, Emil Heineman, Mathew Barzal; $14800 DK)
Defensive Addition: Matthew Schaefer ($5700 DK)
On a slate featuring Colorado, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Washington, somehow the Islanders make the list as a top-three stacking option. It’s not that those other teams don’t have the talent, because they do, but NHL success has a lot to do with matchups, and theirs just don’t compare with what we are getting with New York.
The team will be hosting the Maple Leafs, who have been merely mediocre on the road, allowing 2.56 even-strength goals per 60 minutes. That number is 0.36 fewer than expected, so there’s room for the Leafs to play worse. Goalie Joseph Woll has allowed three or more goals in four of his past five starts, so some of that downturn appears to be already starting.
The Islanders' offense has room for growth, having scored 0.67 fewer goals than expected over their past 10 home games. Defender Matthew Schaefer is the key to the top line’s success, as every iteration of this line does better with Schaefer on the ice; more expected goals, more scoring chances, and more high-danger chances. He is a must-play if you’re stacking the top line of Anders Lee, Emil Heineman, and Mathew Barzal tonight.
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— 🇺🇦Shockmain (@Shockmain) January 6, 2023
NHL DFS Value Stack of the Night
Washington Capitals (WSH2 - Ryan Leonard, Anthony Beauvillier, Nic Dowd; $10400 DK)
I’m not particularly in love with this line, as they haven’t been overly productive or played together much, but the matchup is so enticing. Washington is facing Chicago, which is awful defensively. The team has allowed 4.27 even-strength goals and 14.41 high-danger chances per 60 minutes over their last 10 road games.
The defensive pairing of Wyatt Kaiser and Artyom Levshunov has been the most generous on the squad during this ten-game stretch, giving up 4.63 expected goals and 19.16 high-danger chances per 60 minutes. They should spend the majority of their ice time tonight trying to stop Ryan Leonard, Anthony Beauvillier, and Nic Dowd.
Leonard has played well recently, picking up a goal or assist in eight of his past 12 games. Beauvillier has played significant minutes on the top line this year, showing the kind of upside he possesses when playing his best.
The most significant benefit of using this line is that it’ll allow you to spend up at goalie, defense, and on your top line. It won’t take more than one full-line goal for these guys to be worth their while, and given their matchup, this is as good a time as any to roll the dice and give them a click.
NHL DFS Goalie to Target
Jesper Wallstedt (MIN - $7600 DK)
Brandon Bussi, the Carolina goalie, is very intriguing at just $7000, but he’s facing the Avalanche, and their offense isn't one I want to target with my goalie. Bussi should be fine in tournaments, but I prefer to feature a slightly safer option in this spot. Jesper Wallstedt is a little more expensive at $7600, but he’s played just as well as Bussi and has a more favorable matchup, even if he is on the road.
The Kings have averaged just 2.26 even-strength goals per 60 minutes over their past 10 home games, and they haven’t been putting much pressure on opposing goalies with just 9.41 high-danger chances per 60 minutes. Wallstedt thrives under pressure, saving 91% of the high-danger shots he’s faced over the team’s past 10 road games.
For the season, he’s been nearly half a goal better per game on the road and has averaged 15.8 DraftKings points per game. He’s a high-floor option, having scored double-digit fantasy points in 75% of his 16 starts, but he’s also got a ceiling, with seven games of over 20 DraftKings points on the season.
The Wall of St. Paul is playing EA Sports NHL Be A Pro right now #mnwild pic.twitter.com/I1NxvUJROD
— Minny Hockey (@MinnyHockey) December 31, 2025
Others in consideration: Brandon Bussi (CAR), David Rittich (NYI), Jeremy Swayman (BOS)
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