Slight loss for me going 6-6 on the NHL last night, losing 0.52 units. Not terrible, but let’s crush tonight’s big eleven game slate!
Sabres vs. Golden Knights (7:00)
I cannot wait to go to this game tonight as the Sabres honor Tage Thompson, along with former Sabre (and still my favorite player in the league) Jack Eichel, and Noah Hanifan for winning Gold for Team USA. Gonna be a blast, and this cross conference game should be awesome too, as it’s the first time Jack’s coming back with Vegas while the Sabres are actually relevant and better than the Knights, seeing that before this year, this team has sucked since he left. The Sabres are on a three game win streak coming out of the break, off a huge 6-2 win in Tampa on Saturday night in the second half of a back to back in the state of Florida, getting to within four points of the Lightning, tied with the Red Wings for second in the division, a point ahead of the Habs. The Golden Knights have a point lead over the Ducks at the top of the Pacific Division with a 28-18-14 record, coming off getting shut out 5-0 in a matinee in Pittsburgh on Sunday. I’d lean the Sabres win here at home, but not enough to bet them. I’d slightly lean the under, but not enough to bet that either. I’ll parlay Tage Thompson and Jack Eichel to each get a point for a unit.
Bruins vs. Penguins (7:00)
Solid Eastern Conference matchup between these two playoff teams that have both far exceeded expectations this year. The Bruins are in the second Wild Card in the East, two points ahead of the Capitals with a 33-21-5 record, with just one win in their last four games coming off a 3-1 loss in Philly on Saturday evening. The Penguins have been great, tied with the Islanders in second place in the Metro, on a 9-1-2 run in their last twelve games, coming off shutting out the Golden Knights 5-0 on Sunday in a matinee at home, even without Crosby for the next month. Boston won the first game between these teams with a 1-0 shutout at home in January. I’d slightly lean they win again at home here, but not enough to bet them, although I do think the Pens are the slightly better team. I’d also lean the under, but don’t like that enough to bet it either. I will parlay David Pastrnak and Evgeni Malkin to each get a point for half a unit.
Devils vs. Panthers (7:00)
Not the best matchup in the East. Neither of these teams have been great. The Devils ended a five game losing streak on Saturday with a 3-1 win in St. Louis to improve to 29-29-2 on the season, playing pretty well defensively but struggling big time offensively. The Panthers are in last place in the Atlantic Division with a 30-27-3 record, coming off a 5-4 loss on Long Island on Sunday, looking like all these injuries they’ve dealt with meaning their chance at a threepeat is likely over. These teams split their first two games with the Devils winning 3-1 at home in October and Florida answering with a 1-0 shutout win at home in November. I’d lean the Panthers win here on the road, but I don’t like them enough to bet them. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet that either. I considered a handful of player props but don’t think any of them are worth it, so I’ll lay of this game entirely.
Capitals vs. Mammoth (7:00)
This should be a pretty solid cross conference matchup. The Caps are coming off a 6-2 loss in Montreal on Saturday that ended a three game win streak, but they’re playing well right now, just two points back from the Bruins for the second Wild Card spot in the East. The Mammoth are in the first Wild Card in the West with a 31-25-4 record, but are coming off getting shut out in surprising fashion, 4-0 at home to the Blackhawks on Sunday. I’d slightly lean Utah wins here on the road, but not enough to bet them. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet that either, so I’ll stay off this game.
Blue Jackets vs. Predators (7:00)
This cross conference matchup isn’t great, but it could be a decent game with both of these teams in the second half of back to backs. Last night the Blue Jackets blew a 4-0 lead on the road against the Rangers heading into the third period, but ended up still getting the win on Kirill Marchenko’s game winner to get the 5-4 win in overtime, bouncing back from two losses in a row out of the break. They’ve turned their season around after making a coaching change in January, with a 12-2-1 record in their last 15 games, now just four points back from the Bruins for the second Wild Card spot in the East. The Predators have been struggling lately. Coming off a 4-2 loss at home in a matinee against the Red Wings yesterday, they have just one win in their last four games and just four in their last 13 to fall to 27-25-8 on the season, but are still just four points back from the Mammoth and Oilers for the two Wild Card spots in the West. Nashville won the first game between these teams 2-1 at home in the first week of the season. I like Columbus to answer back at home tonight and I’ll take them for half a unit. With both teams in the second half of a back to back, I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also parlay Kirill Marchenko, and Ryan O’Reilly to each get a point for half a unit.
Jets vs. Blackhawks (8:00)
Quite the awful game here in the West. The Jets have been a big time disappointment this year, falling from winning the President’s Trophy last year to now being just 23-26-10, a far ways out from the playoffs. They’re struggling on both ends of the ice, with just four wins in their last 13 games, but picking up at least a point in nine of this egames, coming off two overtime losses in a row after losing 2-1 in OT in San Jose on Sunday. The Blackhawks ended a three game losing streak on Sunday with a 4-0 shutout win in Utah, but have been even worse than Winnipeg, with a 23-28-9 record this season. These teams split their first two games, each winning at home, with a 6-3 Jets win in October and a 2-0 shutout win for Chicago in January. I’d lean the Jets win here but I’m not touching them, especially not at -162. I’d lean the under, but at 5.5, I don’t see any value in betting it. I won’t stay off this game entirely though, and I’ll parlay Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor to each get a point for half a unit.
Flames vs. Stars (9:00)
Big mismatch here out West. The Flames have struggled all year, with a good defense but a terrible offense, with a 24-28-7 record, coming off a 3-2 shootout loss in Anaheim on Sunday. The Stars are in the second half of a back to back tonight, coming into tonight on an eleven game win streak after cruising to an easy 6-1 win in Vancouver last night. They’re in second place in the Central, with a three point lead over the Wild for home ice in the first round, still six points back from the Avs for first place in the NHL. The first game between these teams surprisingly went to a shootout with Calgary winning 3-2 at home. I love the Stars to answer back here and I’ll take them for a unit. I’d very slightly lean the under, but not enough to bet it. I will also parlay Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston to each get a point for unit.
Oilers vs. Senators (9:00)
Kind of a lousy cross conference Canadian matchup. The Oilers are struggling recently, with just one win in their last six games, coming off a 5-4 loss in San Jose on Saturday night. They’re now tied for the Wild Card spots in the weak Pacific Division with a 29-24-8 record, a point back from Seattle for third in the division, but still only four back from Vegas for first place. Although their offense is good, Edmonton’s defense has been awful. The Senators have been pretty bad this year, similarly being fine offensively, but terrible on the back end. They’re 29-22-8 on the year, coming off a 5-2 win in Toronto in the Battle of Ontario on Saturday. The first game between these teams went to overtime in Ottawa, with the Oilers winning 3-2 on the road back in October, I’d lean they win again here on the road, but not enough to bet them. I do like the over in this game though, which I’ll take for a unit. I’ll also parlay Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Tim Stutzle, and Brady Tkachuk to each get a point for half a unit, take McDavid to get over 1.5 points for a unit, and Draisaitl to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Wild vs. Lightning (9:30)
Spectacular cross conference matchup here between two fantastic teams, both surprisingly coming off two losses in a row. Coming off a surprising 3-1 loss at home to the Blues on Sunday, the Wild are three points back from the Stars for home ice in the first round, comfortably in third place in the Central with a 35-16-10 record. The Lightning have a four point lead over the Sabres, who they lost to 6-2 on Saturday night at home, and the Red Wings, in first place in the Atlantic Division and they’re my pick to win the East this year. Both of these teams have been fantastic on both ends of the ice this year, and this matchup is a complete toss up to me. I do like the over, which I’ll take at the alternate 6 line for half a unit. I also like a handful of player props here. I’ll take a shot on a parlay of Nikita Kucherov, Quinn Hughes, Kirill Kaprizov, and Matt Boldy to each get a point for half a unit. I thought about adding more Tampa guys in there, but I’ll keep it at just four guys. Along with that, I’ll take Kucherov to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Ducks vs. Avalanche (10:00)
Pretty good matchup out West. The Ducks have been hot lately, coming into tonight on a five game win streak with twelve wins in their last 14 games off a 3-2 shootout win at home against the Flames on Sunday. Their young offense has been very good, but Anaheim has struggled on the back end. The Avalanche have been very good, leading the NHL with a 40-10-9 record. They’re coming off a 4-2 win last night in LA, cashing me three bets on MacKinnon and Makar’s assists on Devon Toews goal. Colorado’s won four of their last five games, leading the league statistically by a pretty large margin on both ends of the ice. I like the Avs to win here on the road and I’ll take them for half a unit. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also go back to ole reliable on my player props in this game and I’ll parlay Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Martin Necas to each get a point for a unit, along with Nate to get over 1.5 points for half a unit. I’ll also take Cutter Gauthier to get a point for half a unit, who’s gotten on the score sheet in nine of his last eleven games.
Sharks vs. Canadiens (10:00)
This should be a fun cross conference game to close out the night, but it isn’t a great matchup. The Sharks replacing better than expected this year, four points back from the Oilers and Mammoth for the two Wild Card spots in the West with a 29-25-4 record. They’re coming off two wins in a row, beating the Jets 2-1 in overtime at home on Sunday in the second half of a back to back. The Habs have been good, in the first Wild Card in the East, a point back from the Sabres and Red Wings for second and third in the Atlantic. Coming off a big 6-2 win at home against the Caps on Saturday, they’ve gone 5-0-2 in their last seven games. I like the Habs to win here on the road and I’ll take them for half a unit. I also like the over, which I’ll take for half a unit. On the player props, I’ll parlay Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, and Macklin Celebrini to each get a point for a unit.
Bets
1u parlay: Jack Eichel/Tage Thompson 1+ point each (-115)
.5u parlay: David Pastrnak/Evgeni Malkin 1+ point each (-120)
.5u Blue Jackets ML (-142)
.5u parlay: Kirill Marchenko/Ryan O’Reilly 1+ point each (+132)
.5u parlay: Mark Scheifele/Kyle Connor 1+ point each (-145)
1u Stars ML (-135)
1u parlay: Jason Robertson/Wyatt Johnston 1+ point each (-150)
1u Oilers/Senators over 6.5 (-135)
.5u parlay: Connor McDavid/Leon Draisaitl/Tim Stutzle/Brady Tkachuk pt each (+218)
1u Connor McDavid over 1.5 points (-115)
.5u Leon Draisaitl over 1.5 points (+110)
.5u Lightning/Wild over 6 (-124)
.5u parlay: Nikita Kucherov/Quinn Hughes/Kirill Kaprizov/Matt Boldy point each (+172)
.5u Nikita Kucherov over 1.5 points (-115)
.5u Avalanche ML (-148)
1u parlay: Nathan MacKinnon/Cale Makar/Martin Necas 1+ point each (-120)
.5u Nathan MacKinnon over 1.5 points (-115)
.5u Cutter Gauthier over 0.5 point (-150)
.5u Canadiens ML (-135)
.5u Canadiens/Sharks over 6.5 (-120)
1u parlay: Cole Caufield/Nick Suzuki/Macklin Celebrini 1+ point each (+114)
Record: 693-744-1 (-47.71 units)
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