Another winning day for me on the NHL yesterday, going 4-5 but winning 1.5 units. Today we have a big ten game staggered slate, including some early games to get the day started. Let’s win again!
Hurricanes vs. Sabres (1:30)
Great Eastern Conference matinee matchup to start the day. The Hurricanes are a very good team, leading the Metro Division with a 30-15-4 record. They’re coming off a 4-1 win in Jersey on Saturday and have played well on both ends of the ice. My Sabres are one of the hottest teams in hockey, with 14 wins in our last 17 games, in the second Wild Card in the East with a 26-16-5 record. They’re coming off a 5-4 overtime loss at home in an early game against the Wild on Saturday, coming back from a 3-1 deficit, but losing 5-4 in OT on a power play goal that UPL didn’t have a chance to save with Kirill Kaprizov setting up Mats Zuccarello for a one timer. These teams split their first two games, with the Canes winning 6-3 at home in November and the Sabres answering with a 4-1 win a couple weeks later. It’s been years since the Sabres won on the road in Carolina, and I’d lean the Canes win again here, but not enough to bet against my boys, especially at -205. I’ll lay off the side there. I do like the over in this game, which I’ll take for half a unit. I also like some player props, and I’ll parlay Tage Thompson, Seth Jarvis, and Sebastian Aho to each get a point for half a unit.
Avalanche vs. Capitals (4:00)
Not a great cross conference matchup for this mid afternoon game. The Avalanche have been far and away the best team in the NHL this year, coming off their first regulation loss at home this season on Friday night was they lost 7-3 at home to the Predators. That was their second loss in a row after a 4-3 overtime loss at home to the Leafs on Monday, as they’re now 33-5-8 on the season with a 19-1-3 record at home. Colorado’s still leading the league both offensively and defensively, and I love the bounce back spot for them here. The Capitals are struggling right now, dropping to 24-19-6 on the season with just six wins in their last 19 games. They’re still right in the playoff race, a point back from Pittsburgh for third in the Metro and right in the Wild Card mix, coming off a 5-2 loss at home to the Panthers on Saturday. I like the Avs to bounce back here pretty easily at home, and I’ll take them in regulation for a unit. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it. I’m back on my usual player props as well. I’ll parlay Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, and Cale Makar to each get a point for a unit, and I’ll take MacKinnon to get over 1.5 points for a unit.
Kraken vs. Penguins (5:00)
This cross conference game isn’t great. The Kraken are struggling again, on a three game losing streak with just one win in their last six games, coming off a 6-3 loss in Utah on Saturday, but they still are in third place in the weak Pacific Division with a 21-17-9 record. Seattle’s defense has been good this season, but their offense stinks. The Penguins are struggling a bit as of late too with just one win in their last five games, coming off a 4-3 shootout loss at home to the Blue Jackets on Saturday, but they are in third place in the Metro with a 22-14-11 record, with a 7-2-2 record in their last eleven games. The first game between these teams in Pittsburgh in November went to overtime, with the Kraken winning on the road. I like the Pens to answer back here, and I’ll take them for half a unit. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also parlay Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to each get a point for half a unit and I’ll take Sid to get over 1.5 points for half a unit as well.
Panthers vs. Sharks (6:00)
This isn’t the best cross conference matchup, but this should be a pretty fun game. The Panthers are still struggling with a ton of injuries, but with three wins in their last four games, they’re still only four points out from the second Wild Card in the East with a 25-19-3 record. Matthew Tkachuk’s back in the lineup for the first time this season tonight, which should be a huge help for Florida and he should make a significant impact. I can’t believe him getting a point is -330 though in his first game back after such a long injury. The Sharks have exceeded a lot of expectations this year, currently in the second Wild Card spot in the West, and in a four way tie for third place in the Pacific Division with a 24-20-3 record. That success is entirely credited to Macklin Celebrini, who’s a Hart candidate in his sophomore season with 72 points and 24 goals already this year, involved in a majority of the Sharks scoring. Defensively though San Jose has struggled big time. They’ve played well lately, with seven wins in their last ten games, coming off a 4-2 loss in Detroit on Friday. The Sharks won the first game between these teams 3-1 at home in November. I’d expect Florida to answer back here with a win at home, but the price at -192 is too inflated for me to bet on it. I do like the over which I’ll take for half a unit, and I like two player props too. I’ll parlay Celebrini with Sam Reinhart to each get a point for half a unit and I’ll add Tkachuk to that for another half unit parlay. Additionally I’ll take Celebrini to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Maple Leafs vs. Wild (7:30)
This should be a fantastic cross conference matchup. The Leafs have turned it around this season after their awful start and are now a point behind the Sabres for the second Wild Card in the Eastern Conference, improving to 24-16-8 on the year with a 9-1-3 record in their last 13 games. After two losses in a row, they bounced back on Saturday with a 24-16-8 record. The Wild have been in a slump, but are still a very good team. They’re comfortably in third place in the Central with a 27-13-9 record, ending a three game losing streak on Saturday afternoon, blowing a 3-1 lead, but then beating the Sabres 5-4 in overtime on the road, with Mats Zuccarello cashing in on the power play on a beautiful cross ice pass by Kirill Kaprizov, just their second win in their last seven games. This game’s pretty much a toss up to me. I’d slightly lean Toronto wins it at home, but didn’t even consider betting the side on this game. I like the over though, which I’ll take for a unit. I’ll also parlay Kirill Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, and Auston Matthews to each get a point for half a unit.
Golden Knights vs. Flyers (8:00)
Not the best cross conference game here with both of these teams in opposite trajectories right now. The Golden Knights have been inconsistent for most of the year, but they’re rolling right now, leading the Pacific Division with a 24-11-12 record. Coming off a dominant 7-2 win at home against the Predators on Saturday, they’re on a seven game win streak, playing well on both ends of the ice. Vegas made a nice move yesterday, acquiring Rasmus Andersson from the Flames to bolster their defense. The Flyers started the year way better than expected, but have come crashing down, now on the outside looking in on a Wild Card spot in the East with a 22-17-8 record. They’re on a six game losing streak, losing 6-3 at home to the Rangers on Saturday afternoon. The Knights won the first game between these teams 3-2 on the road in overtime a little over a month ago. I like them to win again tonight at home and I’ll parlay their moneyline with Jack Eichel to get a point for a unit. I like the over as well, which I’ll take for half a unit. Additionally, I’ll parlay Eichel, Mark Stone, and Mitch Marner to each get a point for half a unit.
Blackhawks vs. Jets (8:30)
Terrible matchup between the two worst teams in the Central Division. The Blackhawks have been struggling, on a three game losing streak with just one win in their last five games, coming off a 5-2 loss at home to the Bruins on Saturday to drop to 19-22-7 on the season. The Jets have looked horrible and broken the whole season, but they’ve been hot lately, hopefully turning it around. They had a four game win streak come to an end on Saturday, losing 4-3 at home in overtime to the Leafs. I like the Jets to stay hot here, and I’ll take them for half a unit. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also parlay Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, and Connor Bedard to each get a point for half a unit.
Flames vs. Devils (9:00)
Pretty boring cross conference matchup here. The Flames are a middling, lousy team, with a 21-23-4 record. They have won three of their last four games, coming off a 4-2 win at home against the Isles on Saturday for their second in a row. Calgary’s been good defensively this season, but their offense has sucked. The Devils aren’t much better. They’re slightly worse defensively, and their offense has been just as bad, but they have a 24-22-2 record on the year. Jersey’s coming off a 4-1 loss at home to the Hurricanes on Saturday after two wins in a row and have just four wins in their last 13 games. I’d lean the Flames win here at home, but didn’t even think of betting the side of this shitty game. I’d also lean the under, but can’t get there at 5.5, so I’ll lay off this game entirely.
Canucks vs. Islanders (10:00)
This is a pretty big cross conference mismatch. The Canucks are the worst team in the league at 16-27-5, on a ten game losing streak coming off a 6-0 shutout loss at home to the Oilers on Saturday. This team’s awful on both ends of the ice. The Islanders are having a solid season, in second place in the Metro Division with a 26-17-5 record. Although their offense has been lousy, their defense is very good, surprising a lot of people, myself included. They have seven wins in their last twelve games, coming off a 4-2 loss in Calgary on Saturday. The Canucks won the first game between these teams with a 4-1 win on Long Island exactly a month ago. I like this bounce back spot for the Isles and I’ll take them for a unit. I’d lean the under, but with how bad Vancouver is defensively, I’m not betting it.
Ducks vs. Rangers (10:00)
Pretty bad cross conference matchup to end the night. The Ducks have been very inconsistent this year, but have dealt with some many injuries that it makes sense. They do come into tonight on a three game win streak after two overtime wins in a home and home against the Kings back to back on Friday and Saturday to improve to 24-21-3 on the year. Their young offense has been solid this season, but their defense and goaltending has been awful. The Rangers are awful this season. They’re 21-22-6, ending a five game losing streak with a 6-3 win on the road in Philly on Saturday, just their second win in their last ten games. New York’s offense has been horrible, but for most of the season their defense and goaltending has been good. That changed last week though, with Igor Shesterkin and Adam Fox both on IR, so they’re struggling on the back end now too. Last month Anaheim won the first game between these teams 4-1 on the road. I’d lean they win again tonight at home, but with all their injuries, I’m not trusting them. I’d also lean the over but not enough to bet that either. For my only plays on this game, I’ll parlay Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad to each get a point for half a unit, and I’ll take Panarin to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Bets
.5u Hurricanes/Sabres over 6.5 (-105)
.5u parlay: Tage Thompson/Sebastian Aho/Seth Jarvis 1+ point each (+167)
1u Avalanche in regulation (-130)
1u parlay: Nathan MacKinnon/Martin Necas/Cale Makar 1+ point each (-124)
1u Nathan MacKinnon over 1.5 points (-120)
.5u Penguins ML (-125)
.5u parlay: Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin 1+ point each (+125)
.5u Sidney Crosby over 1.5 points (+220)
.5u Panthers/Sharks over 6.5 (-115)
.5u parlay: Macklin Celebrini/Sam Reinhart 1+ point each (-140)
.5u parlay: Macklin Celebrini/Sam Reinhart/Matthew Tkachuk 1+ point each (+122)
.5u Macklin Celebrini over 1.5 points (+145)
1u Maple Leafs/Wild over 6.5 (+110)
.5u parlay: Auston Matthews/Kirill Kaprizov/Quinn Hughes 1+ point each (+122)
1u parlay: Golden Knights ML/Jack Eichel over 0.5 point (-150)
.5u Golden Knights/Flyers over 6.5 (+105)
.5u parlay: Jack Eichel/Mark Stone/Mitch Marner 1+ point each (-122)
.5u Jets ML (-135)
.5u parlay: Kyle Connor/Mark Scheifele/Connor Bedard 1+ point each (+121)
1u Islanders ML (-142)
.5u parlay: Artemi Panarin/Mika Zibanejad 1+ point each (-110)
.5u Artemi Panarin over 1.5 points (+200)
Record: 504-515-1 (-28.06 units)
Please follow me:
Instagram: @atownszone
Twitter: @atownszone
If you like the site and my work, share it with your friends!
… and tell Dave Portnoy to hire me at Barstool…
A Town's Zone 