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Edmonton Oilers v. Montreal Canadiens
Edmonton is riding a 3 game win streak and defeated the Jets by a 2 goal margin in their last game. The Oilers continue to be carried by their superstar captain, Connor McDavid, who is on a 9 game point streak. The Canadiens recently split a back-to-back against the Canucks, picking up a 5-4 shootout win on Saturday. Montreal is right on that playoff cut line in the North Division and will need to find a way to get on a run to create separation between themselves and the teams below them. The Canadiens are strangely favored in this game and that just gives me even more confidence to back McDavid and company.
The Bet: Oilers Moneyline
Buffalo Sabres v. New York Rangers
Buffalo sits in dead last in the NHL right now and just the other week fired their head coach. Most recently they got put on a short Covid-19 pause and have had 4 days off to regroup under their interim bench boss. The Rangers are starting to heat back up again and a big reason is the return of Artemi Panarin and his dynamic playing style. The Rangers are coming off a 3-1 win over the Capitals on the weekend and will turn back to veteran backup Keith Kinkaid in goal tonight. It is bold, and borderline insane, to pick the Sabres to win a game, but I think they snap their 13 game skid tonight and if they don’t, take the over in the event they get crushed.
The Bet: Sabres Moneyline, Over 5.5 Total Goals
Carolina Hurricanes v. Columbus Blue Jackets
It feels like these two teams have gone toe-to-toe for forever now, and their series will continue tonight. The Blue Jackets won each of the first two games in both overtime and a shootout. These wins have been massive for Columbus to stay afloat in the Central Division while the Hurricanes are starting to slip away from division leaders Tampa. Tonight I am simply backing a rebound effort from Carolina, surely they won’t lose 3 in a row to Columbus, right?
The Bet: Hurricanes Moneyline
Calgary Flames v. Ottawa Senators
Calgary failed to score on Saturday as the Maple Leafs shut them out 2-0. Calgary has played better hockey since Daryl Sutter took over as head coach yet save for a 3 game win streak, they have mostly gone win one/lose one. Tonight they will get a prime matchup against the Senators and in the North Division you need to capitalize on games in the Canadian Capital. Ottawa has had several days off, seeing as they haven't played since Wednesday, yet that has not helped their goalie injury situation get any better. Tonight the Senators will give Filip Gustavsson his first career NHL start.
The Bet: Flames Puckline
New York Islanders v. Philadelphia Flyers
New York obliterated the Flyers on Saturday 6-1. The Islanders had previously lost two straight games so that 5 goal margin of victory really helped them get back on track. Philadelphia continues to underwhelm and their defensive issues are only getting worse. The offseason retirement of Matt Niskanen has seemingly broken the Flyers defensive core and their goaltending has not been able to pick up the slack and save them from conceding goal after goal. Anytime you see Philly playing, check the total, if it is at 5.5, take it and don’t look back.
The Bet: Over 5.5 Total Goals
Anaheim Ducks v. Minnesota Wild
The Ducks have struggled to keep the puck out of the net recently as they have allowed 5 or more goals in 3 of their past 5 games. A big reason for this porous defense is the loss of star goaltender John Gibson, who remains out tonight as Ryan Miller will draw the start. Minnesota has also had trouble keeping the puck out of their net recently as they gave up 5 and then 6 goals in back-to-back games against Colorado. The Wild are the superior team here, and the odds reflect that, but one way or another a team is going to score at least 4 goals tonight and that should be enough to push the over...over the edge.
The Bet: Over 5.5 Total Goals
Winnipeg Jets v. Vancouver Canucks
Both these teams are coming off losses on Saturday to rival teams on Hockey Night in Canada. The Jets have been the definition of win one/lose one recently as they have not had a streak, either way, go past 2 games since February. The Canucks were rolling prior to their loss to the Canadiens last game, as they had 4 in a row. Vancouver has been carried recently by their goalie Thatcher Demko and his play is the only reason they are still remotely close to playoff contention. This game is a toss-up, and Vegas agrees, but the current injuries to Vancouver are more significant than the current injuries to Winnipeg, and that will be the difference in the end.
The Bet: Jets Moneyline
Colorado Avalanche v. Arizona Coyotes
Colorado has hit their stride, and they have hit it hard. Colorado has won 6 games in a row and have scored 4 or more goals in 4 straight games. The Avalanche are coming off a two game set with Minnesota where they won both games, out scoring the Wild 11-1 in the process. Arizona snapped a 5 game losing streak with an easy win over the Ducks last time out. The Coyotes are really starting to fall behind in the Pacific Division and it doesn’t help that they only have 4 wins this month. The Avalanche are healthy, and feeling themselves, and it will show up tonight in a blowout of the Coyotes.
The Bet: Avalanche Puckline
St. Louis Blues v. Vegas Golden Knights
The Blues snapped a 5 game losing streak with back-to-back wins over the Sharks and are starting to get back to their playing level. Injuries have hurt the Blues all year and just recently have Vladimir Tarasenko and Robert Thomas returned to play. Vegas played last night and lost 3-1 to the Kings. Fatigue might be starting to catch up to the Golden Knights as they too are picking up injury problems as top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo and top goal scorer Max Pacioretty will miss tonight's contest. Tonight the goalie matchup will be Jordan Binnington versus Robin Lehner in what should be a playoff-like atmosphere.
The Bet: Blues Moneyline
Los Angeles Kings v. San Jose Sharks
LA picked up a nice win yesterday over division leaders Vegas and will look to make it 2 in a row tonight. The Kings will turn to their veteran goalie, Jonathan Quick, who will start just his 4th game this month. San Jose has lost 4 in a row, and man it must be hard to be a Sharks fan. Their team simply isn’t very good and their core group is all aging with multiple years left on big-money deals. San Jose will turn to their below average starter Martin Jones tonight in a game that would have excited fan bases around the league just a few years ago, now watching these two teams play is just sad.
The Bet: Over 5.5 Total Goals
Fancy a Parlay?
Flames, Wild & Avalanche to Win
Daily Fantasy (DFS) Plays of the Day:
Center: Mika Zibanejad-Coming off a 1 goal, 1 assist game, Mika is a good bet to rack up some more points tonight. Zibanejad and the Rangers have a great matchup against the Sabres who haven’t won a game in nearly a month.
Wing: Gabriel Landeskog-The Avalanche captain and his fellow linemates Nathan Mackinnon and Mikko Rantanen have been hot recently. Landeskog has points in 4 straight and is coming off back-to-back multi-point performances. He is the cheapest option on that top-line, yet he is as good a bet as the other two to score a goal.
Defense: Jaccob Slavin-The versatile Hurricanes defenseman has gone 3 straight games without a point but his ice time has been above 20 minutes in 4 straight appearances. Slavin will get good exposure in a good matchup and should find his way to secondary assist, at least.
Goalie: Jacob Markstrom-Play the starting goalie against Ottawa and you will win more times than you will lose, guaranteed.
Utility: Kirill Kaprisov-The leading candidate for Rookie of the Year is a great bet to add to his impressive stat line tonight. The Wild will play a poor Anaheim team and the price that Kaprisov is getting versus his elite production is simply too good to pass up on.
