Today's NHL schedule features four tremendous playoff matchups, which means there are plenty of entries to sift through on PrizePicks.
But first, a quick refresher if you aren’t familiar with PrizePicks: You can combine up to five different player squares to pay out up to 10x your entry.
You can do a Flex Play or a Power Play. A Flex Play gives you lesser odds, but you can win money if you do not nail every pick. A Power Play is all-or-nothing.
Here's how I would approach Friday's NHL slate.
What is PrizePicks? A daily fantasy operator — meaning they’re available in more states (30) than sports betting is! — PrizePicks offers a unique opportunity for action on player picks in which you combine two or more entries together.
Mikko Rantanen Less Than 0.5 Goals
Game 6 of this Western Conference series is set to get underway with the Seattle Kraken hosting the Colorado Avalanche.
With Colorado's backs against the wall in this contest, we are looking to fade its superstar forward Mikko Rantanen.
There is no denying that Rantanen is a goal-scoring machine, registering 55 in the regular season and five through the first five games of this series. However, the Avs' offense has been slowed to a halt over the past two games, only scoring twice in each contest.
Possessing perhaps one of the deeper blue lines in the league, Seattle throws out all six guys who play their roles well. While none of these blue liners are the "Cale Makar's" of the world by any stretch, they all contribute in a positive manner.
This season, all six defensemen finished with an on-ice expected goals percentage of 50% or higher. Since the Christmas break, the Kraken rank second in the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) at 5-on-5.
Backing up this underrated defense is goaltender Philipp Grubauer, who has been terrific against his former team in this series. Through five starts, he boasts a .918 save percentage (SV%) and 2.61 goals against average (GAA).
Is Rantanen one of the best goal-scorers in the league? Of course. But this combination of stingy defense and strong goaltending has suffocated the Avs in this series. That is something that could continue in Game 6.
Jake Oettinger More Than 27.5 Saves
Another Western Conference Game 6 is set to get underway on Friday night with the Minnesota Wild hosting the Dallas Stars.
Slated to take the crease for Dallas is Jake Oettinger, who put together another dominant campaign in 2022-23.
Through 62 appearances in the crease, Oettinger posted a 37-11-11 record with a .919 SV% and 2.37 GAA. This success is likely to continue against Minnesota, a team he has dominated over the past couple of seasons.
Over his past eight starts against the Wild, Oettinger is 5-2-1 with a commanding .941 SV% and 1.75 GAA.
While Minnesota struggles to find those high-danger scoring areas at even strength, it is still a team that fires at will, averaging 30.9 shots on goal per game this year.
Filip Gustavsson Less Than 27.5 Saves
In a play with some solid correlation, we are going to fade Filip Gustavsson's saves entry, as he is taking the crease for Minnesota in this matchup.
How are these two plays slightly correlated?
Well, if the Wild are firing pucks at Oettinger on the other side of the ice, that means time is ticking away on the clock while Gustavsson is just standing on the other end.
Unless this game goes to overtime, the more saves Oettinger makes, the more likely it is that Gustavsson does not eclipse this number.
Perhaps the most underrated netminder in hockey, Gustavsson put together a brilliant campaign in his first season with Minnesota. However, if there was a time to fade Gustavsson, it could be in this matchup.
While the Wild have typically been defensively competent under head coach Dean Evason, they have taken a step back in the second half of this season. Since the Christmas break, Minnesota ranks in the bottom half of the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) at 5-on-5.
Brent Burns More Than 3.5 Shots on Goal
Game 6 of this Eastern Conference series is set to get underway with the New York Islanders hosting the Carolina Hurricanes.
New York barely escaped Game 5 after getting dominated from start-to-finish, something Carolina will likely not let happen again.
Domination has been the trend for the Canes in this round, despite the 3-2 series record. Controlling possession, Carolina has outshot the Islanders 169-140 through the first five games of this series.
While goaltender Ilya Sorokin could continue to bail out New York, he cannot also play defense and prevent the Canes from entering the zone with ease while firing pucks on net.
One of the guys who has been most dominant in doing so in this series is defenseman Brent Burns, who has been finding the high-danger scoring areas with relative ease.
This postseason, Burns ranks second on Carolina in expected goals at 5-on-5. If he continues to find the prime scoring areas, then the shot-happy Burns will have no qualms in continuing to fire the puck.
Averaging 4.4 shots on goal, Burns has registered at least four shots on goal in four of the first five games.
Dating back to the regular season, he has recorded at least four shots in seven of his past 10 games, a trend likely to continue in this matchup against a team that is allowing Carolina to dominate possession.
