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NHL Odds & Best Bets Today: Schedule, Picks for Saturday

Kyle Smith

Last Updated: April 1, 2023 12:29 PM EDT • 3 min 38 sec read.

NHL best bets
NHL best bets

With 13 games on a jam-packed NHL day, there are plenty of opportunities to line your pockets with some extra cash. Here are our NHL best bets for Saturday based on the top NHL odds.

As the NHL races into the season's final stretch, there are still some unanswered questions for wild card spots in both the Eastern and Western Conference. 1 point behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final Eastern Conference slot, the Florida Panthers square off against the bottom-feeding Columbus Blue Jackets in the first string of “do or die” games for the squad from Sunrise.

The Penguins face a much sterner task against the league-best Boston Bruins. The Bruins already clinched the Presidents' Trophy, so they could take their foot off the gas a little bit. Also on tap: the Battle of Ontario rages on when the Toronto Maple Leafs travel to Canada's capital to face the Ottawa Senators.

This is just a taste of the matchups in store for April Fools' Day. Here are our NHL bets for Saturday (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook and PointsBet; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Saturday’s NHL schedule and odds

  • St. Louis Blues (+130) vs. Nashville Predators (-150)
  • Boston Bruins (-135) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (+115)
  • Florida Panthers (-225) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (+190)
  • Buffalo Sabres (-120) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (+100)
  • Toronto Maple Leafs (-140) vs. Ottawa Senators (+120)
  • Carolina Hurricanes (-265) vs. Montreal Canadiens (+225)
  • New York Islanders (+130) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (-150)
  • New Jersey Devils (-315) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (+260)
  • Dallas Stars (+120) vs. Colorado Avalanche (-140)
  • San Jose Sharks (-115) vs. Arizona Coyotes (-105)
  • Anaheim Ducks (+360) vs. Edmonton Oilers (-450)
  • Minnesota Wild (-105) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (-115)
  • Los Angeles Kings (-105) vs. Seattle Kraken (-115)

Saturday’s NHL best bets

  • Puckline: Hurricanes -1.5 (-110 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Moneyline: Maple Leafs (-140 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • O/U: Ducks vs. Oilers Over 7.0 goals ( -110 via PointsBet) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Prop: Auston Matthews Over 4.5 shots on goal (+100 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Saturday’s NHL top picks

Puckline: Hurricanes -1.5 (-110 via Draftkings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Mired in one of their worst stretches this season, the Carolina Hurricanes should still have more than enough juice to style on the Montreal Canadiens. A terrifying five-on-five beast, the Canes are the No.1 NHL team in Corsi for percentage, expected goals against, expected goals for percentage, and are No. 2 in expected goals for.

By contrast, the Canadiens are in the bottom-10 in all of those categories, and look for a high draft pick. If they want to keep themselves in the Connor Bedard sweepstakes, they’ll have to continue coming up short.

With most books listing the Canes -1.5 at around -115, there’s some value in snatching them up at -110 Over with DraftKings. The Habs kept it close during their most recent showdown, falling 4-3 in a shootout, but the Hurricanes won their initial matchup quite handily, scoring four third period goals en route to a 6-2 victory.   

Moneyline: Maple Leafs (-140 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

No matter where these two teams are in the standings, the Battle of Ontario delivers on intensity. With the Leafs firmly ensconced in an Atlantic Division playoff spot, the Sens are battling tooth-and-nail to play some extra hockey, 5 points out of the final wild card spot with seven games remaining.

Even with Ottawa’s obvious desperation, I’m still backing the Leafs. Toronto is the superior team in goals for, goals against, power play percentage, expected goals for, expected goals against, and expected goals for percentage. On top of that, resident sniper Auston Matthews is stuffing the scoresheet, racking up six goals and 11 points during a current seven game scoring streak.

Most sportsbooks list the favorites at -150 to -155, so your best value to back the Buds is -140 at DraftKings.

O/U: Ducks vs. Oilers Over 7.0 goals (-110 via PointsBet) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Powered by the two highest scoring NHL players, expect the Edmonton Oilers to hang an ugly, crooked number on the Anaheim Ducks. Boasting the league’s deadliest power play, Edmonton averages nearly four goals per game, and is a top-10 team in Corsi for percentage, expected goals for, and expected goals for percentage.

The Ducks play the opposite brand of hockey. Surrendering a league-worst 4.04 GPG, Anaheim also has a bottom-five penalty kill, so Oilers forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl should absolutely feast Saturday night.

7 may seem like a high goal total considering Anaheim’s lack of offense, but Edmonton should do most of the heavy lifting. The Oilers combined with their opponents to score seven-plus goals six times in their past seven games. The total actually juiced to 7.5 with some sportsbooks, so if that’s too high, snag Over 7.0 at Pointsbet, or back the Under somewhere else.

Prop: Auston Matthews Over 4.5 shots on goal (+100 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This one feels like a no-brainer, especially at plus-money. Aside from Matthews’ seven game point streak, he’s absolutely launching rubber at an alarming rate. The reigning Hart Trophy winner averaged 6.4 shots per game over his last five matchups, and has three straight five-plus shot outings. This includes a ludicrous 15 (!) shot explosion against the Hurricanes last week.

Most books list this bet between -105 and -135, so to get this at +100 is an absolute steal.

NHL best bets made 4/1/2023 at 8:41 a.m. ET.

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Written By:
Kyle Smith
A sportswriter for more than a decade, Kyle Smith was once voted “World’s 78th Greatest Lover” by ‘Relatively Attractive People Magazine’.* After covering nearly every sport under the sun for theScore, Smith settled in as head MMA writer where he helped shape the company’s coverage and establish its combat sports identity. Since then, he’s dipped his toes (cannonballed) into the world of betting, where he specializes in the UFC and NHL. Constantly chasing that gigantic Parlay Dragon, Smith was devastated when a Leon Edwards head kick completely obliterated a recent five-leg parlay. You can read his rantings and ravings on Twitter @Heldrificus. *Not a real publication.