Check out our NHL best bets from our crew of hockey experts for Tuesday, April 11.
With just four days remaining in the NHL regular schedule, a few playoff races are coming down to the wire.
Check out our hockey crew's top picks, including a player prop and parlay, for today's 10-game lineup.
Capitals vs. Bruins Parlay
Ryan Dadoun: Betting on Boston has been a winning strategy for most of the season, but the Bruins are so good that the potential payout typically isn’t noteworthy. That’s why I’m tacking on the "under of 6.5 goals" as an extra condition to make things more interesting.
I like the chances of this being a decently low-scoring affair. While Boston does have the second-best offense with 3.64 goals per game, the
Bruins also have some key question marks in Patrice Bergeron (undisclosed), David Krejci (lower body) and offensive defenseman Charlie McAvoy (undisclosed), which might make their offense a touch less effective than normal.
The Bruins aren’t the only ones missing key scorers. Alex Ovechkin (upper body) and Anthony Mantha (lower body) are both questionable while T.J. Oshie (upper body) is done for the season. Washington ranks just 20th offensively with 3.09 goals per game, so between the Capitals’ potential absences and the fact that they’re facing the NHL’s top-ranked defense, Washington might not score much.
It’s also worth remembering that, even though the Bruins’ priority at this point is the playoffs, once the game does start, Boston still has something to fight for. A win Tuesday would make the Bruins the all-time points leaders, surpassing the 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens. If Linus Ullmark gets the start, then his teammates will also be fighting to secure him his 40th victory of the campaign.
Red Wings vs. Hurricanes Anytime Goal
Tony Sartori: There is an Eastern Conference tilt to kick off Tuesday's NHL slate with the Metropolitan Division's Carolina Hurricanes hosting the Atlantic Division's Detroit Red Wings. We are going to hone in on a specific Carolina forward to score in this contest: centerman Sebastian Aho.
Once again putting his fingerprints all over the Canes' season, Aho has now potted 35+ goals for the second consecutive season and the third time over the past four, with the lone exception coming in the COVID-shortened campaign in which he scored 24 goals in 56 games. Entering this contest in good form, Aho has registered eight goals over his past 13 games, something that is likely to continue against the lowly Red Wings.
Entering this matchup on the second half of a back-to-back, Detroit allowed six goals in Monday's loss to the Dallas Stars. This poor defensive showing marked the third straight game in which the Wings allowed at least five goals, a trend that is likely to continue on Tuesday against a Canes team that ranks third in the league this season in expected goals for per 60 minutes (xGF/60) at 5-on-5.
Slated to get the nod for Detroit in this matchup is backup goaltender Magnus Hellberg, who appeared in relief for Ville Husso on Monday night. In that outing, Hellberg surrendered three goals on 17 shots for a .824 save percentage (SV%).
The Wings have been lifeless over the past week while Carolina needs these two points to hang onto their first seed in the Metro. As is typically the case with this team in big moments, look for Aho to carry the burden.
Oilers vs. Avalanche Player Prop
Greg Liodice: Evander Kane hasn’t had the season he envisioned after becoming a critical part of the Oilers offense last year. However, had he not sustained that gruesome injury earlier in the season, things may have been different. Kane has built out a decent portfolio for a half-season with 15 goals and 27 points.
However, it looks like the forward is ready to break out, and it’s showing on the stat sheet. Since March 28, he is averaging 4.8 shots per game, leads the Oilers in high-danger chances, and is fourth with a 61.21 SCF% (Scoring Chances For).
Tonight, the Edmonton Oilers are playing Colorado, and while the Avalanche are a bonafide playoff team, they allow 31 shots per game. With this Oilers roster, there are plenty of shots to go around; they average 33.5 shots per game, which makes it more than feasible for Kane to hit the over on shots.
FanDuel has Kane at over 3.5 shots at +106, which is great value. He has gone under three shots only once in two weeks, and he has generated a ton of scoring chances, so I see this trend continuing.
Pick: Evander Kane over 3.5 Shots on Goal (+106) |
Oilers vs. Avalanche Anytime Goal
Grant White: The Edmonton Oilers' pursuit of their first division crown in more than 30 years continues with a matchup against the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night.
The Oilers are firing on all cylinders right now, and their top-six forward group has been the engine driving their success. Among those forwards is Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who skates next to Connor McDavid on the top line and power-play unit.
Analytically, Nugent-Hopkins rates as one of the best players on the team. Across all strengths, the former first-overall draft pick ranks fourth in scoring and high-danger chances, despite starting just 53.6% of his shifts in the attacking zone.
Moreover, RNH has had success over his recent sample, finding the back of the net in two of his last three, with six points over that stretch. He'll have a chance to extend that run against an Avs squad allowing an average of 12.2 high-danger chances per game over its past five games.
At +200, Nugent-Hopkins is a solid play in the anytime goal scorer market.
Pick: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins over 0.5 goals (+200) |
