NHL

NHL Preview 3-12-21

National Hockey League 3-11-21 Nightly Preview

Vegas Golden Knights v. St. Louis Blues


The big news out of Vegas today is that Vezina frontrunner Marc-Andre Fleury will be out tonight due to his placement on the Covid-19 Protocol List. It is unconfirmed whether he tested positive or was in close contact with someone who did test positive, but either way “Flower” is out and rookie Logan Thompson is in net as his replacement. Top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo will also be out tonight due to injury which is unfortunate for him seeing as this game serves as an opportunity for him to return home to St. Louis where he played his entire career before this season. On the other side of the goalies tonight is recently extended Jordan Binnington who signed a 6 year, $6 Million AAV deal to stay with the Blues long term. Seeing the ink dry on a ticket like that will certainly bring a jump to Binnington’s game and the revenge game factor for the Blues against their old captain’s new team will bring energy to the rest of the lineup.

The Bet: Blues Moneyline, Over 5.5 Total Goals

Prediction: Vegas 2-5 Blues


Arizona Coyotes v. Minnesota Wild


These two teams have started to get awfully familiar with each other recently and tonight kicks off a 3 game set between them. Darcy Keumper remains out for Arizona so Antti Raanta will play in goal once again. Raanta did everything he could last game against Colorado but his team's lack of offense saw them drop a 2-1 contest in OT. Cam Talbot will mind the cage for Minneosta despite rookie goalie Kappo Kahkonen having won on Wednesday against Vegas to extend his personal win streak to 8 games. The Wild are flying high and the line reflects that, as they are rather massive favorites, leaving great value for the visiting opposition. 

The Bet: Coyotes Moneyline, Over 5.5 Total Goals

Prediction: Coyotes 4-2 Wild


Los Angeles Kings v. Colorado Avalanche 


LA destroyed the Ducks on Wednesday with a 5-1 win in front of a national audience. Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty continue to turn back the clock with vintage performances, carrying a rebuilding squad to what looks like playoff contention. Colorado received the boost of Nathan MacKinnon back in the lineup last game and he should have his skating legs under him tonight. The Avalanche are heavy favorites, as they should be, but I believe it is worth paying up extra units on their moneyline. LA is a team that hangs around and could make the Avalanche work for it in the end.

The Bet: Avalanche Moneyline, Over 5.5 Total Goals

Prediction: Kings 3-4 Avalanche.


Ottawa Senators v. Edmonton Oilers


Trap game alert! Trap game alert! These two teams met on Wednesday and it was a bloodbath in Alberta. The Oilers won 7-1 and at one point in the game they had more goals scored than the Senators had shots on goal. Ottawa has dropped two straight to Edmonton and tonight the series between these two will end. Edmonton has a big game tomorrow night against Vancouver on national TV up north, aka Hockey Night in Canada. The Oilers know not to look ahead but even the best players might take a night off against inferior competition.

The Bet: Senators Moneyline

Prediction: Senators 4-3 Oilers


San Jose Sharks v. Anaheim Ducks


The Sharks received a massive pick-me-up today as two top-6 forwards have been cleared to return to the lineup. Tomas Hertl has been removed from the Covid-19 List and will play tonight while Timo Meier has recovered from a lower body injury and will also take the ice tonight. These two regularly supply goals for the Sharks and are also key components of their power play unit. The Ducks are coming off an embarrassing loss where they fell back into their typical self by failing to score goals. This Ducks team simply isn’t very good and San Jose needs all the wins they can get against bad teams if they have any shot of sliding into the 4th spot in the West Division.

The Bet: Sharks Moneyline

Prediction: Sharks 3-1 Ducks



Daily Fantasy Plays of the Day:


Center: Logan Couture-The Sharks top center has a favorable matchup, the benefit of two skilled wingers returning, and great power play exposure.


Wing: Conor Garland-If there is anyone on the Coyotes who can jumpstart their rather lackluster offense, it is this guy. His speed and skill is hard for defensemen to handle and his energy makes the players around him play better.


Defense: Samuel Girard and/or Devon Toews-As long as Cale Makar remains out, one or both of these guys are great fantasy plays. They eat up ice time and both get great power play exposure to players like Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Gabriel Landeskog.


Goalie: Devan Dubnyk-The Ducks are the lowest scoring team in the NHL and the Sharks need a win. This is a great opportunity for Dubnyk to allow 2 goals or less.


Utility: Jordan Kyrou-This young rookie has been sensational for the Blues this season. A former junior scoring champion, he brings high-end speed and immense skill to the wing and has played his way onto a powerplay that features the likes of Ryan O’Reilly, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Torey Krug.