When there are only three or four games, we will not put out the full DFS Playbook, but will do optimal lineups along with a breakdown of the slate. Tonight, we have the typical Sunnday Night slate with four games to consider. 

First off, a disclaimer. I highly recommend focusing on just GPPs on the shorter slate. I think there’s enough skill to play cash games, but there’s going to be way more variance than usual. Expect an update or two throughout the afternoon as some players are not on the ice for morning skate and some lines are indeed changed. We are currently awaiting some goalie confirmations as well. You can follow me @ChrisWasselDFS for the latest.

UPDATE 1: Patrik Laine is a game time decision due to illness and Dustin Byfuglien is out for tonight again (undisclosed). 

UPDATE 2: New Jersey is going with 11 forwards and seven defensemen with Joseph Blandisi out. Second line is now Wood-Henrique-Bennett. 

Dallas Stars @ New Jersey Devils (Dallas -130 favorites) - 5:00 PM ET

Starting Goalies:  Kari Lehtonen (DAL) [Confirmed] vs. Keith Kinkaid (NJD) [Confirmed]

Top Plays: Jamie Benn, Taylor Hall

Top Values: John Klingberg, Jason Spezza, Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac

At press time, Dallas was a favorite in New Jersey simply because of New Jersey's inability to win consistently at home. They also dropped a 3-1 decision there to Carolina who has speed a lot like how Dallas does. A ton of the Dallas offensive thrust does rest on their top six  Yet, Adam Cracknell had a hat trick against San Jose. Do not expect that again. Dallas, despite their defensive shortcomings, can make teams look silly at times with their puck possession and creativity.   

New Jersey was officially eliminated from playoff contention last night. They allowed another strong puck moving team to push them around just long enough to squeeze three goals out in hostile territory. New Jersey mounted a bit of a surge late but again too little, too late. Taylor Hall is not playing at 100% but is still soldering on. The top line with him and Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri is their biggest threat on the power play and at 5 on 5. They are one of the five best at shot attempt differential when together. Their depth is starting to play better. Pavel Zacha has six assists in his last seven gams and Joseph Blandisi is starting to look like the winger he did at times last year. 

Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins (PIT -220 favorites) - 7:00 PM ET

Starting Goalies: Steve Mason (PHI) [Likely] vs. Matt Murray (PIT) [Confirmed]

Top Plays: Sidney Crosby, Conor Sheary, Claude Giroux, Wayne Simmonds

Top Values: Nick Bonino, Bryan Rust, Shayne Gostisbehere, Brayden Schenn

It will be wild to see how the Flyers come out tonight considering they were shut out by Columbus yesterday afternoon. They did have 36 shots on net and the expectation is they may not be too far off from that again. The Philadelphia power play was dangerous and only Sergei Bobrovsky could stop them on Saturday. They will need more of that effort and some puck possession to slow down a speedy Pittsburgh team that tries to constantly generate pace through accelerations. Philadelphia's top line must set the tone early as best could go against best more often because of Pittsburgh has last line change. 

The problem with Pittsburgh is that though they can easily score four goals at home, they can also give up at least three themselves. They play at a pace that almost requires a superhuman effort by their goalies every night. Their penalty kill bleeds goals at times and is less than 80% at home. Philadelphia has one of the better power play in the league (over 20% on the road even). Watch to see if Evgeni Malkin comes back tonight. That would at least stabilize Pittsburgh's top six for the most part and their power play. If not, things may be chaotic again. High event hockey is likely.   

Vancouver Canucks @ Winnipeg Jets (WPG -185 favorites) – 8:00 PM ET

Starting Goalies: Ryan Miller (VAN) [Confirmed] vs. Michael Hutchinson (WPG) [Confirmed]

Top Plays: Bo Horvat, Blake Wheeler

Top Values: Reid Boucher, Daniel Sedin, Mathieu Perreault, Josh Morrissey

Vancouver is just playing out the string at this point and the younger line of Bo Horvat, Reid Boucher, and Sven Baertschi is intriguing to say the least more for GPP's. Both teams can be all over the place when it comes to shot attempts and totals. There is a warning here that this may not be the highest event game in the world. There is much volatility here as both teams give up over three goals a game in their respective splits. Vancouver's penalty kill is around 76% on the road as well. Their power play could get opportunities with the Sedin Twins as Winnipeg takes the third most penalties in the league at home.   

Winnipeg looks a little lost like they have for most of the season. They are missing four defensemen as Jacob Trouba has finally returned. The problem is team defense and discipline has always been an issue. This affects them in generating shot volume and their first line is below average in most shot and possession metrics. That is troubling to say the least. It is Blake Wheeler that is most dangerous on this team because he combines shot and chance volume with production. Special teams will likely win this game and maybe that is where Mark Scheifele and Patrik Laine surprise here. Winnipeg's value is something that could be used in either GPP's or cash lineups. 

New York Rangers @ Anaheim Ducks (ANA -145 favorites) – 9:00 PM ET

Starting Goalies: Henrik Lundqvist (NYR) [Confirmed] vs. Jonathan Bernier (ANA) [Likely]

Top Plays: Rick Nash, Ryan Getzlaf, Rickard Rakell

Top Values: Derek Stepan, Ryan McDonagh, Hampus Lindholm, Jacob Silfverberg

New York has been getting very good goaltending from Antti Raanta and that has keyed their bounce back over the last half dozen games or so. The record may not completely show that but improvements are noticeable. Even Rick Nash has started to score a few goals and yes Derek Stepan scored against Los Angeles. The Rangers shut out the Kings last night and will need a similar team effort to survive against a Ducks team that can produce a large volume of shot attempts and shots on net. Henrik Lundqvist must play on the road like he did before his injury.   

Anaheim looks great as John Gibson mends from his lower body injury. Jonathan Bernier has been on fire producing a 8-1-1 record with a 1.58 GAA and .948 save percentage. One boost for the Ducks is that the Rangers have allowed nine goals on the power play in their last eight contests. This will put Anaheim's power play into play. The concern is that New York only allows 2.19 goals per game on the road and the Ducks give up just 2.03 goals a game at home. Everything here indicates a lower scoring game. However, players like Silfverberg and Rakell can generate lots of chances and shot volume against a slower Rangers defense that makes mistakes. 

Stacks To Consider (Ranked From Most To Least Confident):

PIT1: Conor Sheary-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust-Mark Streit

WPG2: Mathieu Perreault-Mark Scheifele-Blake Wheeler (possibly Jacob Trouba)

PHI1: Claude Giroux-Wayne Simmonds-Shayne Gostisbehere

ANA PP2: Rickard Rakell-Jakob Silfverberg-Hampus Lindholm (Lines could change!) 

NJD1: Taylor Hall-Travis Zajac-Kyle Palmieri

Goalie Rankings:

1. Jonathan Bernier (Likely Best Play)

2. Matt Murray (Confirmed)

3. Henrik Lundqvist (Confirmed)

4. Keith Kinkaid (Confirmed)

5. Kari Lehtonen (Confirmed)

6. Michael Hutchinson (Confirmed)

7. Ryan Miller (Confirmed)

8. Steve Mason (Likely)

The DraftKings example lineup and FanDuel optimal lineup was posted around 12:30 PM ET. If you have any questions, please let me know on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS Good luck!