With my Sabres losing last night, I went 1-2 on last night’s small slate to lose 1.38 units. Tonight we have a giant 13 game slate with the NHL’s scheduling department not knowing what they’re doing. Let’s bounce back!
Canadiens vs. Blue Jackets (7:00)
Fun game in the East to start the night between these two playoff teams. The Habs are in third place in the Atlantic with a 39-21-10 record, tied with the Bruins who are in the first Wild Card spot in the East. They’ve won three of their last four games, coming off an impressive 5-2 win at home against the Canes on Tuesday. The Blue Jackets are one of the hottest teams in the league lately, now in second place in the Metro with a point lead over the Penguins. Coming off a 3-2 win in Philly on Tuesday, they’ve gone 20-3-4 in their last 27 games. Columbus won the first game between these teams 4-3 in a shootout in November at home. I’d slightly lean the Habs answer back at home here, but the side on this game is a complete toss up to me. I do like the over, which I’ll take for half a unit. I’ll also parlay Zach Werenski, Kirill Marchenko, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Juraj Slafkovsky to each get a point for half a unit.
Senators vs. Penguins (7:00)
Fun game here between these two Eastern Conference playoff teams. The Senators have been on a tear in the last month, coming into tonight on a four game win streak after a 3-2 win in Detroit on Tuesday night, improving to 38-24-9 on the season with a 15-3-2 record in their last 20 games to get into a tie with the Islanders for the second Wild Card spot in the East. Their offense has been good all season, and now their defense and goaltending has gotten much better. The Penguins are struggling a bit as of late, with just one win in their last four games, coming off a 6-2 loss at home to the Avalanche on Tuesday. They’re 35-20-16, a point behind the Blue Jackets and one ahead of the Islanders. Ottawa won both previous games between these teams, winning 4-0 at home in December and then 3-2 on the road in February. I’d lean they complete the season sweep, but not enough to bet it. I’d lean the over, but not enough to bet that either. I will take a player props parlay though for half a unit on Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, and Sidney Crosby to each get a point.
Lightning vs. Kraken (7:00)
Pretty big mismatch here. The Lightning are on a tear right now, in second place in the Atlantic Division, three points back from my Sabres with a 44-21-5 record, and coming off a 6-3 win at home against the Wild on Tuesday, they’ve gone 4-0-1 in their last five games. They’ve played fantastic hockey on both ends of the ice. The Kraken are struggling, on a four game losing streak coming off a 5-4 shootout loss in Florida on Tuesday to fall to 31-29-10 on the season, two points back from the Kings for the second Wild Card spot in the West. Tampa dominated the first game between these teams on the road with a 6-2 win a couple weeks ago. I like another big win for the Bolts here at home and I’ll take them in regulation for a unit. I like the over as well, which I’ll take for half a unit. I’ll also parlay Nikita Kucherov, Jake Guentzel, and Brandon Hagel to each get a point for half a unit, and I’ll take Kucherov to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Panthers vs. Wild (7:00)
Not the best cross conference matchup. The Panthers are coming off a 5-4 shootout win at home against the Kraken on Tuesday, but they’ve struggled with so many injuries that they’re in last place in the Atlantic and are going to miss the playoffs with a 35-32-3 record. The Wild have been inconsistent lately, pretty much locked into third place in the Central with a 40-20-12 record, coming off a 6-3 loss in Tampa on Tuesday. Florida won the first game between these teams 4-3 in overtime on the road back in January. I like Minnesota to answer back here and I’ll take them for a unit. The total’s a toss up to me. I’ll also parlay Kirill Kaprizov,
Islanders vs. Stars (7:00)
This cross conference game is a pretty big mismatch to me despite both of these teams having pretty good seasons. The Islanders are tied with the Senators for the second Wild Card spot in the East with a 40-27-5 record and they’re struggling a bit lately, with just one win in their last four games, coming off a 4-3 loss at home to the Blackhawks on Tuesday. Their defense has been great all year, but offensively they’ve struggled. The Stars are one of the only two teams to have already clinched a playoff spot, in second place in the Central. They come into tonight on a three game losing streak after looking like the best team in the NHL, losing 6-4 at home to the Devils on Tuesday. The Isles won the first game between these teams 3-2 on the road back in November. I love the Stars to bounce back here and the price is far too cheap. I’ll take them for 1.5 units. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet it at 5.5. I’ll also parlay Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston to each get a point for half a unit.
Flyers vs. Blackhawks (7:00)
Pretty lousy cross conference matchup here. The Flyers are coming off a 3-2 loss at home to the Blue Jackets on Tuesday, ending a three game win streak and they’re currently five points out of a playoff spot with a 34-24-12 record. The Blackhawks are horrible, in last place in the Central with a 27-31-13 record, coming off a 4-3 win on the road on Long Island on Tuesday. Philly won the first game between these teams 3-1 on the road in December. I like them to win again tonight at home and I’ll take them for half a unit. I like the under as well, not really expecting many goals here with two struggling offenses, and I’ll take that for half a unit as well.
Blues vs. Sharks (8:00)
This Western Conference matchup isn’t great by any means. The Blues have been horrible this year with a 29-30-11 record, but they have played a bit better lately, with a 9-2-2 record in their last 13 games since the break, coming off a 3-0 shutout win at home against the Capitals on Tuesday. The Sharks have come crashing down, on a five game losing streak with just two wins in their last ten games coming off a 6-3 loss in Nashville on Tuesday, falling to 32-31-6 on the season, seven points back from the Preds for the second Wild Card spot in the West. The first game between these teams earlier this month went to overtime with the Blues winning 3-2 in San Jose. I’d slightly lean St. Louis wins again here at home, but not enough to bet them. I’d lean the under but with how bad both of these teams have been defensively all season, I don’t think it’s worth betting. I considered taking Celebrini to get over 1.5 points here, but he hasn’t lit the lamp much lately to expect two points out of him, so I’ll lay off this game entirely.
Predators vs. Devils (8:00)
Kind of a boring cross conference matchup but both of these teams have played pretty well lately making this a pretty interesting game. Coming off a 6-3 win at home against the Sharks on Tuesday, the Preds are on a five game win streak to improve to 34-28-9 on the season, now sitting in the second Wild Card spot in the West. The Devils are too far out to make the playoffs, but coming off a shocking 6-4 win on the road in Dallas on Tuesday, they have eight wins in their last eleven games. The first game between these teams in Jersey in January went to overtime with the Devils winning 3-2 at home. This game’s a complete toss up to me, so I’ll stay off both the spread and total on it. I won’t stay off it completely though and I’ll parlay Jack Hughes and Filip Forsberg to each get a point for half a unit. I considered adding Ryan O’Reilly to that, but don’t like the price difference enough to bet it.
Jets vs. Avalanche (8:00)
Huge mismatch here in the Central. The Jets after having a horrendous start to this season are still not out of the playoffs, five points back from the Preds for the second Wild Card spot in the West. They’re 30-29-12 on the season, coming off two wins in a row after beating the Golden Knights 4-1 at home on Tuesday. The Avalanche are the best team in the NHL with a 47-13-10 record. They’re on a three game win streak after a dominant 6-2 win in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. These teams split their first two games, each winning at home with a 3-2 Avs win in December and a 3-1 Jets win a couple weeks ago at home. I like the Avalanche to win here on the road and I’ll lay the -192 on them for a unit. The total’s a toss up to me, so I’ll lay off that. I like several player props here too. I’ll parlay Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Martin Necas, Kyle Connor, and Mark Scheifele to each get a point for half a unit and I’ll take MacKinnon to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Mammoth vs. Capitals (9:00)
This is a pretty boring cross conference game. The Mammoth have been solid this year, in the first Wild Card spot in the West with a 37-29-6 record. They’ve won three of their last five games, coming off a 5-2 loss at home to the Oilers on Tuesday night. The Capitals haven’t been great this year, with a 35-28-9 record, and are coming off two losses in a row after getting shut out 3-0 in St. Louis on Tuesday. Utah won the first game between these teams 3-2 on the road earlier this month. I like them to win again tonight at home and I’ll parlay the moneyline with Clayton Keller to get a point for half a unit. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet it.
Flames vs. Ducks (9:00)
Lousy Pacific Division matchup but this could potentially be a decent game. The Flames have been awful this year, but they come into tonight on a four game win streak after a 3-2 shootout win at home against the Kings on Tuesday to improve to 30-34-7 on the season. The Ducks have been very good, leading the weak Pacific Division with a 40-27-4 record. Coming off a 5-3 win in Vancouver on Tuesday, they’re on a three game win streak. Anaheim won both previous games between these teams in overtime, winning 4-3 on the road in OT in January and then 3-2 in a shootout at home early this month. I like them to win again here on the road and I’ll take them for half a unit. The total’s a complete toss up with this game likely having five or six goals, so I’ll stay off it. I’ll also go back to Cutter Gauthier to get a point here for half a unit.
Golden Knights vs. Oilers (9:30)
Both of these Pacific Division teams have struggled, not playing great hockey and separated by just a point for second and third place in that weak division. The Golden Knights are in third place with a 32-26-14 record and coming off a 4-1 loss in Winnipeg on Tuesday, they have just one win in their last five games. The Oilers haven’t been much better, a point ahead of them with a 35-28-9 record. After two bad losses, they bounced back on Tuesday, beating the Mammoth 5-2 on the road on Tuesday. Edmonton won both previous games between these teams, winning 4-3 at home in December and then 4-2 on the road earlier this month. I’d lean they win again here on the road, but don’t trust them to bet it. I’d also lean the over, but not enough to bet that either. I’ll keep it simple here and parlay Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, the top two picks in the 2015 draft to each get a point for half a unit, and I’ll take McDavid to get over 1.5 points for half a unit.
Canucks vs. Kings (10:00)
Horrible matchup in the Pacific to end the night. The Canucks are far and away the worst team in the NHL with a pathetic 21-41-8, on a five game losing streak, coming off a 5-3 loss at home to the Ducks on Tuesday. The Kings are terrible offensively, but pretty decent on the back end. They’re 28-25-18, three points behind the Preds for the second Wild Card spot in the West, but on a four game losing streak coming off a 3-2 shootout loss in Calgary on Tuesday. LA won the first game between these teams 2-1 in overtime at home back in November. I like them to win again here on the road since the Canucks are pretty much an auto-fade for me and I’ll take them for half a unit. I’d lean the under, but not enough to bet it. I’ll also parlay Artemi Panarin and Adrian Kempe to each get a point for half a unit.
Bets
.5u Canadiens/Blue Jackets over 6.5 (-115)
.5u parlay: Werenski/Marchenko/Caufield/Suzuki/Slafkovsky 1+ point each (+258)
.5u parlay: Tim Stutzle/Brady Tkachuk/Sidney Crosby 1+ point each (+184)
1u Lightning in regulation (-175)
.5u Lightning/Kraken over 6.5 (+105)
.5u parlay: Nikita Kucherov/Jake Guentzel/Brandon Hagel 1+ point each (+104)
.5u Nikita Kucherov over 1.5 points (-130)
1u Wild ML (-142)
.5u parlay: Kaprizov/Boldy/Hughes/Tkachuk 1+ point each (+212)
1.5u Stars ML (-122)
.5u parlay: Jason Robertson/Wyatt Johnston 1+ point each (-145)
.5u Flyers ML (-170)
.5u Flyers/Blackhawks under 5.5 (-105)
.5u parlay: Jack Hughes/Filip Forsberg 1+ point each (-120)
1u Avalanche ML (-192)
.5u parlay: MacKinnon/Makar/Necas/Connor/Scheifele 1+ point each (+178)
.5u Nathan MacKinnon over 1.5 points (-105)
.5u parlay: Mammoth ML/Clayton Keller over 0.5 point (+110)
.5u Ducks ML (-135)
.5u Cutter Gauthier over 0.5 point (-162)
.5u parlay: Connor McDavid/Jack Eichel 1+ point each (-165)
.5u Connor McDavid over 1.5 points (-115)
.5u Kings ML (-175)
.5u parlay: Artemi Panarin/Adrian Kempe 1+ point each (-155)
Record: 829-908-2 (-74.84 units)
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A Town's Zone 