NHL Best Bets
If you live in the New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia area, it was quite the weekend of hockey. I am still fired up about how much of a success the NHL Stadium Series was. The quality of hockey is starting to pick up as we get closer to the trade deadline and the playoff push. There are eight NHL games tonight featuring some incredible matchups. Let’s get to my NHL best bets.
Dallas at NY Rangers (-142, 6.5)
The Dallas Stars are playing their second game of a back-to-back as they’re coming off of a shootout loss yesterday in Boston. Since getting back from the All-Star break, the Stars have been one of the NHL’s best offensive teams. Despite losing two games in a row, Dallas is averaging 4.00 goals per game in their last seven contests, and the New York Rangers are scoring at the same rate over their last six contests.
The Rangers have found a bit of a spark offensively in their last two games. They have scored 13 goals combined in those two games. They’re coming off an incredible comeback win against the New York Islanders. After struggling on the man-advantage for quite a while, the Rangers power play has converted on four of their last nine attempts.
The goaltending matchup will most likely be Scott Wedgewood against Jonathan Quick. Wedgewood’s recent play hasn’t been his best as he is 2-3-2 in his last few appearances with a .880 save percentage and a 3.26 goals against average.
While Quick’s numbers have been excellent, the team is coming off of a very emotional win. This game could be considered a letdown, but Dallas is certainly not a team to sleep on.
With how both teams are scoring goals right now, we could see another high-scoring affair.
NHL Best Bet: Over 6.5 +102 (play to -110)
NY Islanders at Pittsburgh (-135, 5.5)
The New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins are both struggling, but the Islanders should most likely have a bit of a fire lit in them after their disappointing loss on Sunday.
Only three points separate these two teams, so this game is very important for both clubs. The Islanders are also seeking some revenge against the Penguins, who have dominated the season series.
Pittsburgh has won the first two meetings between these teams, outscoring the Islanders by a combined score of 10-1. Tonight, the Islanders need to make a statement. They’re on a three-game losing streak but still finding ways to put the puck in the net. In their last five games, the Islanders are scoring 3.40 goals per game, and their power play is clicking at a 33.3% rate.
Pittsburgh’s had a harder time scoring goals as they’re only averaging 2.17 goals per game in their last six contests, but their power play is only at an 18.2% rate.
The Penguins have lost four of their last five games and have only won three out of their last 10 contests, so this team is currently stuck in the mud. Tristan Jarry is 2-5-0 in his last seven starts, but his numbers are pretty similar to Ilya Sorokin’s. Jarry has a 2.58 goals against average and a .906 save percentage in that span, while Sorokin is skating to a 3-1-3 record along with a 2.83 goals against average and a .908 save percentage.
The Islanders should play with some anger after their most recent game. Pittsburgh hasn’t been reliable this season. I like the revenge factor.
NHL Best Bet: New York Islanders ML +114 (play to +100)
February Record: 8-11 (-4.41 units)
2023-24 record: 88–104 (-39.19 units)
