I hope everyone reading this article had a safe and happy New Year. This week was a good reminder that while we may be fanatical about sports, teams, and the fantasy games derived from them – at the end of the day it is just a game. The injury to NFL player Damar Hamlin on Monday was a reality check that these athletes are people too, and not just a name within a box score. Like everyone else, my thoughts and prayers are with Hamlin and his family, and I hope the news regarding his condition continues to improve just as it has over the past few days.

There's obviously no easy transition from that situation back to our fantasy game so I'll just get right into it. We've got a seven-game slate on tap for tonight, a nice number that gives us a solid range of options without bogging us down like some of the really large slates. As always, be sure to give our tools at DFS Central a look that gives you a more analytical approach to building your lineups, with some formulas that take into account a variety of factors. The player prices are from DraftKings, but the information and concepts can be applied to any site.

Top-Tier Stack to Pay Up For

There are many elite scoring options on this slate to pay up for with Buffalo, Edmonton, and Boston to name a few. But if you're just looking at one, I like Toronto over the rest. In the five games since the holiday break the top line for the Leafs has accounted for eight goals, nine assists, and 52 shots. Normally you'd think Auston Matthews ($8,700) would be responsible for a majority of the scoring, however that's actually been Michael Bunting ($5,000) of late who's scored four of those eight goals all while taking two more shots than Matthews during that stretch. I like stacking them two with William Nylander ($7,200) to get the full line correlation in addition to the power play correlation the three of them have. The matchup at home against Detroit is a good one as the Red Wings have allowed four goals or more in seven of their last eight games.

Mid-Tier Stack to Target

Speaking of good matchups, there may not be a better one on the slate than what the Blues have tonight against the Canadiens. Montreal comes in having lost seven straight games, with a whopping 34 goals allowed over their last six. You can do the math, that's almost six allowed per game. With Ryan O'Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko on the shelf, the Blues scoring becomes a little more predictable. The top line of Robert Thomas ($4,800), Jordan Kyrou ($7,500), and Pavel Buchnevich ($5,400) is where you want to look for stacks. Each skater has scored six points since picking back up from the break, with Kyrou leading the way in both shots with 14 and goals with three. The trio also see top power-play minutes together as does Justin Faulk ($5,700) who is worthy of including in the stack if you have the salary to pull it off.

Cheap Stack to Build Around

The Kraken come in to tonight in the midst of a 3-0 stretch that saw them beat the Islanders, Oilers, and Maple Leafs. The latter two were on the road and all three wins were by three or more goals, a pretty impressive feat all things considered. In those three games Vince Dunn ($3,900) has led the way on the scoresheet with five points. The defenseman can be stacked with Jared McCann ($4,400) and Jaden Schwartz ($3,400) for an affordable trio that gives you correlation on the top power play. McCann and Schwartz have combined for three goals and five assists over those three games, trailing only Dunn in the points department. Consider Alex Wennberg ($3,200) as well who centers that duo and has also kicked in a goal in each of the last two games.

Goalies

I typically like to correlate my goalie in my lineups with one of my stacks, but if you're looking for a standalone option, I'd consider Marc-Andre Fleury ($7,900). Fleury has a stellar .945 save percentage since December 10, a mark that's only bested by Andrei Vasilevskiy for goalies who've started at least five games since then. Fleury will get plenty of looks against a Sabres team on home ice who has some firepower. Fleury should be able to rack up a nice score if he can keep three pucks or less from getting to the back of the net.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter @SteveDotzel so you can follow my "DFS-NHL" list which is comprised of dozens of team accounts and beat writers providing important updates throughout the day. Best of luck with your lineups!