NHL Best Bets

Finally, we had a 2-0 night last night. It feels like it’s been a while since things have fully gone my way, but with 12 NHL games on deck, we’re looking to keep the good vibes going. We’ve got some potential playoff type of matchups tonight, so I’m fired up for this slate. Let’s take a look at some of my NHL best bets.

NY Islanders at Detroit (-115, 6)

The Detroit Red Wings are on fire right now as they’re riding a six-game winning streak. Believe it or not, Patrick Kane has been leading the way for this team with 10 points throughout the winning streak, which has helped the Red Wings average 4.67 goals per game. 

 

The New York Islanders haven’t been playing as hot as they’re 2-2-1 in their last five games. They’re slowly falling out of the playoff race. Brock Nelson, Mat Barzal and Noah Dobson all have five points in those five games, but offense hasn’t been the issue for the Islanders lately. It’s been keeping pucks out of their net. 

Ilya Sorokin is 2-1-1 in his last four starts, but his numbers haven’t been great as he is skating to a 3.73 goals against average and a .885 save percentage. Something that hasn’t helped the Islanders is their penalty kill, which is at 64.7% throughout their last five games. 

The Red Wings have had the opposite of that problem. They have only allowed 10 goals over their last six games. As a team, they’re only allowing 1.67 goals against in that span, and their penalty kill has been solid at 80%. Alex Lyon is 4-0-0 in his last four starts with a 1.97 goals against average and a .931 save percentage. 

The Islanders have been generating 34.8 shots on goal per game over their last five games, the third most in the NHL. 

Detroit’s power play has been buzzing as well. They’re piping hot at 31.3%. 

I think the Islanders will throw a ton of pucks on Lyon, but ultimately, I see him staying strong and helping the Red Wings win. 

NHL Best Bet(s): Detroit Red Wings ML -115 (play to -125) | Alex Lyon Over 26.5 saves -105 (play to -115)

Minnesota at Nashville (-115, 6)

Similar to Detroit, the Nashville Predators are also on a six-game heater of their own. 

Juuse Saros has found his game. He has gone 3-0-0 in his last three starts and is skating to a 1.33 goals against average with a .949 save percentage. Ridiculous numbers. 

As a team, the Predators are only giving up 1.83 goals against during this streak. They have only allowed more than two goals in one of those six games. What’s even more impressive about this streak is that they have scored at least four goals in each of those wins. 

Nashville currently sits six points ahead of Minnesota in the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. This game should have that playoff-type atmosphere as the Wild look to chase the Predators. 

The Wild have been playing solid hockey as of late. Kirill Kaprizov has six goals and seven assists in his last five games. But I don’t trust their goaltending at all. 

Kaprizov has been playing lights out and has put up 10 shots on goal in his last two games combined. He has had at least three shots on goal in 10 of his last 11 games. He should be very aggressive tonight. 

Filip Gustavsson is the likely starter tonight for the Wild. He and Marc-Andre Fleury have essentially split the net. In Gustavsson’s last two starts, he is 1-1-0 with a 3.77 goals against average and a .885 save percentage. Fleury is 2-1-0 in his last three starts but has a 3.86 goals against average and a .870 save percentage. 

I don’t want to discredit anything Minnesota has done, but to me, they can’t be trusted. 

Nashville has been hot, and I want to ride the hot hands of Gustav Nyquist, Roman Josi and Filip Forsberg. 

NHL Best Bet(s): Nashville Predators ML -115 (play to -125) | Kirill Kaprizov over 3.5 shots on goal -125 (play to -135)

February Record: 19-18 (-0.88 units)

2023-24 record: 99–111 (-35.26 units)

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