Another great night on the NHL yesterday, winning 4.19 units, going 12-11 on the night with a ton of fun games. Let’s make it a three day streak on tonight’s five game Friday night hockey slate!
Red Wings vs. Sharks (7:00)
This should be a really fun game to start off the night. The Red Wings are playing great this year, in second place in the tight Atlantic Division, a point back from the Lightning with a 28-16-4 record. They had a four game win streak come to an end on Tuesday, losing in a 3-0 shutout in Boston in the second half of a back to back. The Sharks are absolutely exceeding expectations, currently in the second Wild Card in the Pacific with a 24-19-3 record. Macklin Celebrini’s been absolutely unreal, leading the way with 71 points and 24 goals. San Jose has seven wins in their last nine games, in the second half of a back to back tonight, coming off a 3-2 win in DC last night in a game that I thought they were outplayed in. The first game between these teams went to a shootout in November, with the Red Wings winning 3-2 on the road. I like Detroit to complete the season sweep here at home and I’ll take them for half a unit. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also parlay Macklin Celebrini, Lucas Raymond, and Alex DeBrincat to each get a point for half a unit, along with another half unit on Celebrini to have over 1.5 points.
Hurricanes vs. Panthers (7:00)
Pretty solid game here in the East. The Hurricanes are coming off two losses in a row after a four game win streak, shockingly getting shut out 3-0 in St. Louis on Tuesday night to fall to 28-15-4 on the season, which still leads the Metro Division by three points. The Panthers are struggling with more and more injuries, and although they’re only two points ahead of the Senators for last place in the Atlantic, they’re also still just five points out of a playoff spot. They’re coming off two wins in a row, beating my Sabres 4-3 on the road in a tight game on Tuesday. Florida won both previous games between these teams in December, 4-3 at home in a shootout and then 5-2 on the road to head into the Christmas break. I like Carolina to avoid the season sweep here and I’ll take them for half a unit. The total’s a complete toss up to me, so I’ll stay off it. I’ll also parlay Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Sam Reinhart to each get a point for half a unit.
Blues vs. Lightning (8:00)
Huge mismatch for this cross conference game. The Blues have been awful, pretty close to the bottom of the standings across the whole league with an 18-21-8 record. They ended a three game losing streak on Tuesday with a surprising 3-0 shutout at home to the Hurricanes, but they’ve struggled mightily on both ends of the ice. Meanwhile the Lightning are one of the hottest teams in the league, on an eleven game win streak to give them a point edge over the Red Wings for the Atlantic Division lead with a 29-13-3 record. They’re coming off a 2-1 shootout win in Pittsburgh on Tuesday and have played great on both ends of the ice. Tampa won the first game between these teams 4-1 in December, and I fully expect them to compete the season sweep here on the road. I’ll parlay the moneyline with Nikita Kucherov to get a point for 1.5 units. I’ll also take Kucherov to get over 1.5 points for a unit. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it.
Avalanche vs. Predators (9:00)
Another big mismatch here. The Avalanche are far and away the best team in the NHL this year, with a 33-4-8 record. They’re not playing their best right now though, with only two wins in their last five games, coming off a 4-3 rare loss at home in overtime against the Leafs on Monday night. This team’s elite, leading the league on both ends of the ice. The Predators have been playing pretty good lately after their terrible start to the year, with 16 wins in their last 24 games to improve to 22-20-4 on the season, coming off a 4-3 overtime win at home against the Oilers on Tuesday. Colorado is 2-0-1 on the season against the Preds, winning a 3-0 shutout on the road in November, losing 4-3 on the road in a shootout in December, and then answering back four days later with a 4-2 win at home. I like the Avs to bounce back here again and I’ll take their puck line for a unit. I’d slightly lean the under, but not enough to bet it. I’m back on all my player props here as well. I’ll parlay Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, and Cale Makar to each get a point for a unit, and I’ll take the Nate Dogg to get over 1.5 points for a unit.
Kings vs. Ducks (10:30)
Kind of a lousy Pacific Division matchup between these two California rivals to end the night. The Kings have been good defensively this season, but their offense is awful. They’re 19-16-11 on the season, with just one win in their last four games, coming off a 3-2 overtime loss at home to the Golden Knights on Wednesday. The Ducks have really come crashing down after their hot start to the season, ending a nine game losing streak on Tuesday with a surprising 3-1 win at home against the Stars, just their third win in their last 16 games to improve to 22-21-3 on the year. Their offense has been pretty good, but their young, yet quite injured offense has been good. These teams split their first two games, with the Ducks winning 5-4 at home in a shootout in November, and the Kings answering back in December with a 6-1 blowout at home. I’d lean the Kings win at home, but not enough to bet them. I’d also lean the over, but at 6.5, I don’t think that’s worth it either. I don’t like any player props on this game, so I’ll lay off it completely and end my night early.
Bets
.5u Red Wings ML (-178)
.5u parlay: Macklin Celebrini/Alex DeBrincat/Lucas Raymond 1+ point each (+155)
.5u Macklin Celebrini over 1.5 points (+135)
.5u Hurricanes ML (-175)
.5u parlay: Sebastian Aho/Seth Jarvis/Sam Reinhart 1+ point each (+198)
1.5u parlay: Lightning ML/Nikita Kucherov over 0.5 point (-155)
1u Nikita Kucherov over 1.5 points (+105)
1u Avalanche -1.5 (-125)
1u parlay: Nathan MacKinnon/Martin Necas/Cale Makar 1+ point each (-150)
1u Nathan MacKinnon over 1.5 points (-150)
Record: 477-493-1 (-35.52 units)
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