Evgeni Malkin Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

The Pittsburgh Penguins second line sees Evgeni Malkin centering Phil Kessel and Bryan Rust. Kessel has had a solid season with 20 goals and 53 points in 48 games with a lot of damage coming on the power play as indicated by his 23 power play points. Malkin and Kessel both play on the top power play unit, obviously, which makes for an interesting two-man mini-stack. However, the New Jersey Devils penalty kill has been elite this year, ranked second in the NHL with a 84.2 percent success rate. However, with Keith Kinkaid in net and the firepower of the Penguins power play, that is of little concern.

Evgeni Malkin has just 1 goal and 5 points over his last 10 games with a home matchup against the Anaheim Ducks tonight. The Ducks have been saved by John Gibson for most of the season and are coming to Pittsburgh with an 8-2-0 record over their last 10 games. However, the Pens are scoring 3.41 goals per game which is the seventh-highest in the NHL and their 59.2 CF/60 is 8th best on the season. Their high-powered offence will hopefully overcome Gibson's greatness in net considering the Ducks have just a 45.72 CF% which is the third-worst in the NHL and their 62.19 CA/60 is second-worst.

Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, and Zach Aston-Reese will look to stay hot tonight in Pittsburgh after producing a combined five points last night. Pittsburgh is second in the league so far in the month of December in HDCF/60 (14.07). Aston-Reese coming in around minimum salary across the industry helps bring down the overall cost of this stack. It also looks like star defenseman Kris Letang will miss tonight’s game after sustaining a lower body injury in last nights contest. This should give Olli Maata an increased role and increased ice time at a near minimum price tag as well.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are visiting the Chicago Blackhawks tonight in a fantastic matchup. Not only are the Chicago Blackhawks on the tail-end of a back to back, the Penguins have been playing great over the last three weeks. They've got a 61.8 CF/60 which ranks 4th and a 55.41 CF% which is 2nd over the same time frame. The line of Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel and Tanner Pearson is the line to target tonight as they are all a threat to score. Going with a mini-stack of Kessel and Malkin is also an option as they're on the top power play unit together.

Evgeni Malkin and line-mates Patric Hornqvist, and Bryan Rust, draw a great matchup tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers on home ice. Pittsburgh comes into the night with the highest implied goal total on the slate at 3.69. Philadelphia is also allowing the third most GA/60 at 3.56. They might be chalky tonight, but this is a line I will not be fading. Adding defenseman Kris Letang to the stack gives you three pieces of the team’s elite top power-play unit.

-Please not that Hornqvist is a game time decision, but is expected to play. Information should be out before any games lock at 7:00 pm est to allow lineup edits.

Evgeni Malkin has quietly put together a six game point streak, and I expect his line-mates, Phil Kessel, and Tanner Pearson to help him extend that tonight. Patric Hornqvist left last nights game with an injury after taking a hard hit and didn’t return. So I will be focusing on the line that provides two members of the teams top-power play unit, and a line that has been consistently producing goals. Columbus is expected to start goaltender Joonas Korpisalo tonight. While he hasn’t lost in regulation this year, he has looked far from good, posting a 3.38 GAA and a save percentage of .885%. Kris Letang is the blue liner you want to add to this stack, as he is the man on the top power-play unit.

With Sidney Crosby back in the lineup, Evgeni Malkin has settling back into his second line role with Phil Kessel and Tanner Pearson. This line is in a great spot tonight as the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the depleted Boston Bruins. The Bruins are missing the following players: Patrice Bergeron, Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo and John Moore. That is their #1 centre, #2 defenseman and two other top-6 defensemen. They are in a tough spot against a Pittsburgh team that despite the struggles in the wins department are starting to pick things up offensively as of late. With Pearson relegated to the second power play unit, a mini-stack of Malkin and Kessel is also in play.

Evgeni Malkin and line-mates Patric Hornqvist, and newly acquired Tanner Pearson, will host the Ottawa Senators tonight. With Sidney Crosby expected to miss tonight’s game, Malkin will likely see an increased role, as he picked up 24 minutes of ice time last game. Ottawa remains to be a top team to pick on with a CA/60 of 68.95, and allowing 3.38 goals per game. To add to the problems, they own the worst penalty kill percentage in the NHL, at 68.3%. We will need to keep an eye on Pittsburgh’s projected lineup as they were mixing up lines during practice yesterday, but I expect this trio to stay together. Kris Letang makes a great addition to the stack, and adds power-play correlation against this weak penalty kill.

With Sidney Crosby forced to miss tonight's contest due to injury, Evgeni Malkin will be relied on to produce even more offense than usual. Malkin is in a funk by his usual standards, and has just one point in his last five games. Malkin will likely be flanked by Patric Hornqvist and Dominik Simon at even strength, and will also help to quarterback a struggling Penguins Power Play. This game has an over/under of 6.5 goals, so Vegas is expecting plenty of action. If the Penguins are going to compete, they'll need Malkin to find the scoresheet early and often.

Evgeni Malkin and line-mates Phil “The Thrill” Kessel, along with Carl Hagelin will host the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight. As we know both these teams play high event/fast paced hockey. When these teams met back on the 18th of October, Malkin went off for two goals and an assist. While both of Pittsburgh’s top lines are in play, along with the top six forwards on the Toronto side, I will be looking to get Malkin and company in my stacks first. The correlation between Kessel and Malkin on the top power play unit increases their ceiling. Hagelin is not a must play in this stack, however he comes at a significant discount, freeing up salary elsewhere. Fitting in power play defenseman Kris Letang is optimal if salary allows it.