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Philadelphia Flyers v. Washington Capitals
Projected Goalies: Brian Elliot v. Vitek Vanecek
Philly enters this game fresh off a 7-3 beatdown at the hands of their in-state rivals Pittsburgh. The Flyers have been eliminated from playoff contention and are about to enter an offseason filled with uncertainty. Washington scored two huge wins earlier this week over the Rangers despite missing several of its key players and playing with one less total skater than NHL teams are accustomed to. The Capitals will be without Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov once again tonight but they will still be focused on the two points at hand as they are gunning for 1st place in the East Division. So far this season, 4 out of the 5 games between these two teams has seen the over hit. I am expecting that trend to continue tonight.
The Bet: Over 5.5 Total Goals
Prediction: Flyers 3-4 Capitals
Dallas Stars v. Tampa Bay Lightning
Projected Goalies: Anton Khudobin v. Curtis McElhinney
Dallas is in a massive slump as they have lost 5 games in a row. This terrible run has all but made it certain that last year's Western Conference Champions will not be returning to the playoffs. Tampa Bay enters this game coming off two straight wins as they try to stay alive in the race for top spot in the Central Division and gun down the Carolina Hurricanes. Tampa is the better team, and they arguably have more to play for tonight, but McElhinney has been really bad this year as he has amassed a losing record on a team that has a 36-14-3 record overall.
The Bet: Stars Moneyline
Prediction: Stars 4-2 Lightning
Detroit Red Wings v. Columbus Blue Jackets
Projected Goalies: Jonathan Bernier v. Matiss Kivlenieks
This is easily the worst game on the slate tonight as Detroit is dead last in their division and Columbus is only one spot above them. Detroit has had a few days off since their last appearance on Sunday which was a close 2-1 loss to Tampa. Columbus secured a nice upset win over Nashville on Wednesday after losing to them in the previous game. Both of these teams rank in the bottom 5 in the NHL in goals scored per game and you can see that reflected in the total set by Las Vegas who has this game at 4.5. That is a ridiculously low over/under and while the metrics back up it would be insane to take an under on that number.
The Bet: Over 4.5 Total Goals
Alternate Bet: Red Wings Moneyline *if* Bernier starts
Prediction: Red Wings 3-2 Blue Jackets
Anaheim Ducks v. Minnesota Wild
Projected Goalies: John Gibson v. Kaapo Kähkönen
Anaheim’s shock win on Wednesday coupled with Buffalo’s loss yesterday meant that the Ducks could no longer secure dead last in the NHL and get that sweet, sweet draft lottery odds. The Ducks are in the middle of a complete organizational overhaul and hardly any game this season has meant much to them. Minnesota, on the other hand, is already in the playoffs and are looking to secure better seeding position by picking up some late season wins. The Wild are 3rd in the West Division but are only 1 point behind Colorado for 2nd. Kahkonen gets the start in goal tonight for Minnesota which is slightly concerning since he only has 3 starts in the past month of action. I normally believe taking the underdog on the puckline is a stupid bet but with the degree of disparity on the moneyline I actually think there is good value in Anaheim tonight.
The Bet: Ducks to Cover the Puckline
Prediction: Ducks 2-3 Wild
Colorado Avalanche v. Los Angeles Kings
Projected Goalies: Philip Grubauer v. Cal Petersen
Much like Minnesota, Colorado is in the playoffs but still has a lot to play for in terms of seeding. The Avalanche are starting to slip further behind Vegas for top spot in the West Division and a big reason is their underwhelming 3-2 regulation loss to San Jose on Wednesday. The Kings are also much like the Ducks in the sense that they are eliminated from playoff contention and in the midst of a rebuild. Los Angeles has at least rattled off two straight wins, both over Arizona, and comes into this game feeling good. Colorado is a far superior team, however, and they know they can’t afford to drop two in a row to non-playoff teams in the middle of a battle for 1st round home ice advantage in the postseason.
The Bet: Avalanche Puckline
Prediction: Avalanche 4-1 Kings
St. Louis Blues v. Vegas Golden Knights
Projected Goalies: Jordan Binnington v. Robin Lehner
St. Louis clinched their spot in the playoffs the other night but they did it by virtue of the Coyotes losing rather than by winning their own game. The Blues lost 3-2 in the shootout to the Ducks on Wednesday. Vegas knows that with one more win and a little help they can wrap up the West Division crown and this team is full of players who know what it means to have home ice advantage in the playoffs, especially with such a raucous home crowd. St. Louis is currently facing some injury problems as Vladimir Tarasenko, Torey Krug, Vince Dunn, and Sammy Blais all remain out tonight. In the end, I think those injuries negatively impact the Blues enough to allow Vegas to get the job done in 60 minutes.
The Bet: Vegas Regulation Moneyline
Prediction: Blues 2-4 Vegas
Arizona Coyotes v. San Jose Sharks
Projected Goalies: Darcy Kuemper v. Josef Korenar
Well, the dream is over, the Arizona Coyotes are eliminated from playoff contention. As someone who had a preseason future on them to make the playoffs at plus money I was cheering for them all year, at one point I actually thought they looked to be a shoe-in before dropping 12 of their last 15 and just completely flaming out. The Coyotes are also bound to fire their head coach as soon as the season concludes, which I think is the right call. Regardless of Arizona’s recent performance and overall franchise outlook I am committed to riding with the ship as it sinks in the Southwest desert. If you see me at a street corner with a cardboard sign you can blame it on Paul Bissonette for selling me on this garbage team back in January.
The Bet: Coyotes Moneyline
Prediction: Coyotes 3-2 Sharks
