There are 11 NHL games on the docket tonight. Let’s take a look at the top picks, plays and predictions.
| Sharks vs Sabres ML -145 / +135 O/U 5 |
Ducks vs Rangers ML +118 / -145 O/U 5.5 |
| Flames vs Penguins ML +170 / -200 O/U 5.5 |
Hurricanes vs Capitals ML +165 / -200 O/U 5 |
| Stars vs Maple Leafs ML -105 / -115 O/U 6.5 |
Blues vs Senators ML +120 / -140 O/U 5.5 |
| Blue Jackets vs Red Wings ML -133 / +105 O/U 5.5 |
Kings vs Lightning ML -105 / -115 O/U 5 |
| Canucks vs Predators ML +175 / -205 O/U 5 |
Wild vs Jets ML -130 / +110 O/U 5.5 |
| Canadiens vs Avalanche ML -200 / +170 O/U 5 |
Here are tonight’s starting goaltenders, courtesy of LeftWingLock.
Before we get into today’s plays, let’s address the top breaking news of the day. Claude Julien has been relieved of his coaching duties with the Boston Bruins. Julien was previously the longest tenured head coach in the NHL and one of the more accomplished at that. The timing of this move is confusing, given that the Bruins are still very much so in the hunt for a playoff spot. If anyone deserves blame for this season, it’s the general manager.
Firing one of the best head coaches in the league just to send a message is dumb. Unless there’s something going on behind the scenes that we don’t know about, this is another in a slew of dumb moves from Bruins management.
Anyway, to the games.
Play of the Day: The over in Wild vs Jets.
Count the Winnipeg Jets among those scrambling for a Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. Amazingly, they managed to stay in the hunt even without Patrik Laine in the lineup for a while. Like so many teams on the outside looking in this season, what holds them back is their play at home. Without an improvement on their home ice, they will not be able to leapfrog over the teams ahead of them.
The Jets are 13-11-1 at home this season, the third-fewest home points in the West this season. Only Arizona and Colorado are worse.
On the bright side, Winnipeg has won nine of their last 10 games against Central Division opponents.
However, they will be playing one of the best road teams in the NHL tonight in the Minnesota Wild. The Wild have amassed the second-most wins as the visiting team in the league with 17. Their offense has been rolling, scoring five goals or more in three of their last four games.
As much as I would like to put my money on the Winnipeg Jets tonight, the Wild have been scoring at too high a clip to favor Ondrej Pavelec. Pav is just one of those goalies that I have a hard time putting faith in. Given he has not had a game in which he allowed fewer than three goals this season, I think that lack of faith is warranted.
At least this game will be worth it for the scoring. Play the over all the way.
Prediction: Take Minnesota to win. Play the over.
The Game to Watch: Stars vs Maple Leafs.
The over/under for this game is set at 6.5 Read that again. It is not a misprint. There will need to be seven goals scored in this game for the over to be a hit.
And you know what? It’s not that farfetched.
Antti Niemi will be in net tonight in all his 3.20-goals-against-average-having glory. Opposite him will be Curtis McElhinney, who has allowed nine goals in his last three starts.
Last week in Dallas, the Stars put six goals on the board, five of them coming in the first period alone. The nine goals scored in the game were scored by nine unique skaters between the two teams, which is impressive.
After the first period, the Stars seemed to take their foot off the gas pedal. Though they fired 12 shots on goal in the opening 20 minutes, they mustered just eight in the final 40. Toronto, meanwhile, threw 43 shots at Kari Lehtonen.
This time, the game will be in Toronto. The Leafs have won their last four against the Stars on their home ice.
Jason Spezza has been ruled out for the foreseeable future for the Stars with an upper-body injury, which will hinder offensive progress for Dallas.
While I would love to take the over in this game, because I am expecting plenty of goals to go around, the Leafs were on the road in overtime yesterday. The under has hit in each of their last six games in which they were playing the day after an overtime contest.
Prediction: Take the Leafs to win. Play the under despite your temptation.
Other Game Notes Around the NHL
Canadiens vs Avalanche: Colorado is still shopping Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog. I still contest that this is phenomenally stupid and will set the franchise back by 10 years. But this is really the only way for them to multiply assets and start to get multiple pieces for the future.
Prepare your eulogies for the Avalanche, everyone. Because they are not going to be relevant for years once these guys are gone barring some sort of trade wizardry.
That’s the only reason why I wanted to touch on this game. Carry on.
Prediction: Take the Canadiens to win. Play the over.
Hurricanes vs Capitals: I keep waiting for the moment that the Carolina Hurricanes will take the next step. They have been one of the most surprising teams in the NHL this season, with an incredible run of success on home ice that has kept them in playoff contention. It is enough to make one wonder if they have a legitimate shot at competing in the near future.
If they are going to, then much like how the Jets need to win at home, the Canes need to win on the road. Carolina is just 7-14-6 as the visiting team this season, which is the worst road record in the Eastern Conference. Only the Canucks and the Coyotes have fewer road wins this season in the league.
So a matchup against the current President’s Trophy frontrunners in Washington is probably not the best thing in the world for them right now.
Carolina actually has one of the strangest stretches in the league coming up. They got two days off after their overtime road win against the Islanders, and after tonight’s game they get three more days of rest. Then, they have their bye week. It’s a dangerous time for the Canes if they don’t stay sharp.
Eddie Lack will be making his first start for the Carolina Hurricanes since November 10th. Another reason to be iffy on taking the Canes tonight.
Prediction: Take the Capitals to win tonight. Play the over.
Ducks vs Rangers: Anaheim is looking to snap a four-game losing streak against the New York Rangers. They have lost five of their last six games at Madison Square Garden. Moreover, they have lost their last four against teams with a winning record.
For whatever reason, the Rangers have a ton of success against the Pacific Division in the regular season. They have won nine of their last 10 against foes from the far West.
Kevin Hayes should be back in the lineup tonight after nursing a knee injury for the past few weeks. He will likely slot back on the third line with Michael Grabner and J.T. Miller. Even without his usual center, Miller has six points in his last five games. Grabner scored his team-leading 23rd goal of the season against the Calgary Flames on Super Bowl Sunday.
Prediction: For whatever reason, the Rangers have the Ducks’ number. Take New York to win tonight. Play the over.
Canucks vs Predators: The Nashville Predators sent one of their most detestable players down to the minors the other day in Mike Ribeiro. Words cannot express how happy that makes me. For those that are unsure what I am talking about, a quick Google search should point you in the right direction. It’s in the top five results, above even his Yahoo player page.
Nashville will be hosting the Vancouver Canucks. As I touched on in the Hurricanes-Capitals preview, Vancouver is tied for the fewest road wins in the league this season. The Canucks have now dropped three in a row. They are heading out on a six-game road trip that could doom their season if they don’t pick up the pace.
The problem for Vancouver is their utter inability to set the tone for themselves. They allow the first goal of the game so frequently that it is impossible to play catchup every night.
At least Ryan Miller has a good track record against the Preds. He is 7-3-3 with a 1-0 shutout under his belt earlier in January.
Prediction: Take the home Predators to win. Play the under.
To make a play on these predictions, or any other NHL bets, visit our sports book at https://www.betdsi.eu/gms-hockey.
