This article focuses on today’s two-game NHL slate, going over the NHL odds and giving you a few potential NHL betting picks against the spread for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks. Feel free to jump in our sports betting Slack channel for additional information and updates when it comes to tonight’s action.
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NHL Betting Picks: Saturday’s Best Bets + Odds
The Early Evening North Division Game
Vancouver Canucks vs Toronto Maple Leafs – The one thing that Vancouver and Toronto have in common is that they give up goals. The Maple Leafs, when Freddie Andersen is in net, are almost a lock to allow three or more goals. Toronto allows 2.91 goals per game on the season (17th) while the Canucks yield 3.93 goals per game (3oth).
Vancouver compounds its problems by giving up a league-worst 36.1 shots per game and 13.1 penalty minutes per contest. When one’s team is killing penalties for almost 1/4 of a contest, that presents problems later on. As they say, everything gets thrown out of sync.
The Canucks come in losers of six of their eight road games this year while the Maple Leafs are 4-1 at home. Vancouver has lost three straight games as well. Travis Hamonic is the only significant injury for the Canucks while Jack Campbell is still out with a leg injury for the Maple Leafs.
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Toronto’s power play is a big reason why its offense is so good. It is clicking at a league-leading 40% and showing little signs of slowing down. Their penalty kill is only 23rd at 75.6% so some vulnerability exists. This is partly why the moneyline is only between -190 and -210. Some expected it to drift as high as -220 to -240.
Currently, the puckline for Toronto is around -120 to -135. If that number creeps to -130 or above, the value is just not there. There is even a puckline set to -1.5 goals for Toronto, meaning they would have to win by 2. That number is more enticing at a range of +120 to +130.
The Toronto puckline looks to be best value in this game. The over of 6.5 is at -125 and around -140 on a few sites. That may only be an option if it stays near -125 to -130. There is also an under 7 option but that may be too dicey. This is because it is around -130 to -135. Furthermore, an under 6.5 exists for true risk takers. That number is around even to +110.
The over at 6.5 and the Toronto puckline at -1.5 are our picks.
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The Question Mark
Ottawa Senators vs Montreal Canadiens (Over 6.5) — Again, the over is at -105 at press time, which is surprising. This is why: Any oddsmaker offering under 6.5 may be giving away their money. Most should tilt the over and for good reason.
The Montreal Canadiens are guilty of playing down to their competition sometimes and have lost three straight games. This includes one to the lowly Ottawa Senators at home. Do they come out as lifeless as they did on Thursday? That answer looks to be a no. Montreal leads the league in goals at 4.18 and shots at 34.7 per contest. Ottawa gives up a league-worst 4.55 goals per game. Ottawa’s goaltending was solid on Thursday more because of Montreal’s lack of urgency early on.
Montreal always has a little bit of trouble with Ottawa but goals should not be a problem. Montreal will want to get off to a quick start this afternoon, which should increase the pace on both sides. Even looking at the first period over/under may be worth one’s while.
Take the risk with the over here, as it is expected to stay at 6.5. The ideal betting range is around -105 to -115.
Notable Score And Other Props
The night-game pucklines do not look very appealing at this time. It might be best to wait for numbers to move a bit more. For some anytime goal-scoring props, Jake Guentzel at +175, Mike Hoffman at +195, and yes stray off of Auston Matthews at -135. There is better value with Leon Draisaitl at +125.
More player props expect to be available later in the day, but among shot totals, look towards some Edmonton and Calgary players as numbers shift after the early games.
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