I went into the All Star break going 1-2 last Wednesday to lose a unit. After an awesome five days off, we’re back in action tonight with a six game NHL slate. Let’s crush the second half of the season like we’ve done the last few years!!
Panthers vs. Lightning (7:00)
Tonight we have the third Battle of Florida of the season. I broke this game down in depth with my article on StatSalt. As I said in that article, I like the Lightning to get a third win against the Panthers on the road here and will take them for a unit. Additionally I like the over, which I’ll take for half a unit.
Flyers vs. Islanders (7:00)
This game doesn’t have a whole lot of luster to it in the Metro Division to come back from the All-Star break. I wrote an in depth article breaking this game down on StatSalt. Like I said in that article, I like the Islanders to get a win in Bo Horvat’s debut after being acquired last week from Vancouver, and will take them for half a unit. I also really like the under here, expecting a very low scoring game and will take the alternate under 6 here for a unit.
Rangers vs. Flames (7:30)
Interesting cross conference matchup here to return from the All-Star break. The Rangers went into the All Star game in good shape, improving to 27-14-8 on the season and sitting in third place in the Metro Division with a 16-4-3 record in their last 23 games after a slow start to the season. They went into the break with a 4-1 win at home against Vegas on January 27th. The Rags haven’t been all that special offensively but they’ve been fantastic defensively with last year’s Vezina winner between the pipes in Igor Shesterkin. The Flames are playing their best hockey of the year with a 24-17-9 record. With a 5-2 win in Seattle on January 27th, they went into the All Star break with three wins in their last four games. Calgary hasn’t been much better than league average on either end of the ice. I like the Rangers to win at home at MSG here and will take them for half a unit. I’d slightly lean the under but not enough to bet it.
Devils vs. Canucks (7:30)
This isn’t a great matchup. The Devils have been fantastic this season, coming out of the All Star break comfortably in second place in the Metro Division with a 32-13-4 record on the season. They won 3-2 in overtime in Dallas to go into the break with an 8-1-1 record in their last ten games. New Jersey’s been great on both ends of the ice this season. The Canucks on the other hand are in complete disarray as a franchise. They’re 20-26-3 and traded away one of their best players Bo Horvat to the Islanders during the break (not a surprise, no chance he was re-signing in Vancouver). Their offense has been decent but their defense has been some of the worst in the NHL. In Vancouver on November 1st in the first game these teams played, the Devils won easily 5-2. I’d expect a similar result tonight. I’ll take the Devils in regulation for a unit, and the Devils team total over 3.5 and the over for half a unit each.
Stars vs. Ducks (8:30)
Huge mismatch in talent in this Western Conference game but these two teams went into the All-Star break on opposite streaks. The Stars lead the Western Conference with a 28-13-10 record on the season but went into the break on a three game losing streak, losing at home to the Devils, Hurricanes and Sabres, all three in 3-2 games that they lost in OT. On the season Dallas has been fantastic on both ends of the ice. On the opposite end of the Western Conference standings are the Ducks, who are one of the worst teams in the NHL this season with a 16-29-5 record but went into the break on a three game win streak with four games in their last five games. These teams split their two previous games this season with both ending in shutout wins for the home teams, a 5-0 Stars win on December 1st and a 2-0 Ducks win on January 4th. I’d expect the Stars win this game at home. The moneyline and regulation lines are ridiculous here but I’ll go with half a unit on the Dallas -1.5 puck line.
Coyotes vs. Wild (9:00)
I don’t expect this to be a great Central Division game. The Wild are in third place in the Central with a one point lead over the Avalanche with a 27-17-4 record and went into the break with two overtime wins in a row beating the Sabres 3-2 in a shootout and the Flyers 3-2 in OT. They’ve been okay offensively but quite good defensively. The Coyotes are on of the worst teams in the NHL this season with a 16-28-6 record and are the front runners in the Bedard sweepstakes, coming off a 2-1 overtime loss in Anaheim to go into the break. They’ve been one of the worst teams in the NHL on both ends of the ice. I like the Wild to win here pretty easily for the third time this season after getting a 4-3 win on November 27th and a 2-1 win on January 14th, both at home. The moneyline is a bit too expensive but I’ll take the Wild in regulation for a unit. I’d lean the under but not enough to bet it.
Game Bets
1u Lightning ML (-125)
.5u Lightning/Panthers over 6.5 (-125)
.5u Islanders ML (-130)
1u Islanders/Flyers under 6 (-110)
.5u Rangers ML (-110)
1u Devils in regulation (-152)
.5u Devils TT over 3.5 (-157)
.5u Devils/Canucks over 6.5 (-120)
.5u Stars -1.5 (-141)
1u Wild in regulation (-148)
Futures
1u Boston Bruins – Stanley Cup Champions (+1000)
1.5u Boston Bruins – Stanley Cup Champions (+1100)
2u Vegas Golden Knights – Stanley Cup Champions (+1200)
1.5u Carolina Hurricanes – Stanley Cup Champions (+1300)
1u New Jersey Devils – Stanley Cup Champions (+1600)
Record: 384-329-10 (-31.64 units)
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