NHL Odds & Best Bets Today: Schedule, Picks for Thursday
Thursday brings a busy night on the NHL ice. There are 11 games on the NHL schedule, including three matchups in which both teams are currently in playoff position. Check out our NHL best bets for Thursday based on the top NHL odds.
The New York Rangers visit the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, and both teams have 43 points, though the Lightning have played just 33 games compared to the Rangers’ 36. TNew York is also catching Tampa Bay on the second game of a back-to-back.
In a compelling Central Division matchup, the first-place Dallas Stars travel to face the third-place Minnesota Wild. Both teams are playing well. The Stars are 5-1-1 across their past seven games while the Wild are 7-1 in their past eight contests.
Finally, the Los Angeles Kings take on the Colorado Avalanche. The Kings are in second place in the Pacific Division while the Avs sit fourth in the Central.
Here are our best bets for Thursday’s NHL slate (odds via Barstool Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, and PointsBet; pick confidence is based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Check out all of our NHL best bets.
Thursday’s NHL Schedule and Odds
(odds via DraftKings)
- Ottawa Senators (+145) vs. Washington Capitals (-170)
- New York Rangers (+110) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (-130)
- Montreal Canadiens (+255) vs. Florida Panthers (-305)
- Detroit Red Wings (+140) vs. Buffalo Sabres (-165)
- Columbus Blue Jackets (+200) vs. New York Islanders (-240)
- Dallas Stars (+100) vs. Minnesota Wild (-120)
- Vancouver Canucks (+135) vs. Winnipeg Jets (-155)
- Chicago Blackhawks (+225) vs. St. Louis Blues (-265)
- Toronto Maple Leafs (-295) vs. Arizona Coyotes (+245)
- Los Angeles Kings (+125) vs. Colorado Avalanche (-145)
- Philadelphia Flyers (+135) vs. San Jose Sharks (-155)
Thursday’s NHL Best Bets
- Moneyline: Capitals (-165 via BetMGM)
- Spread: Blues -1.5 (-105 via DraftKings)
- Total: Red Wings-Sabres Over 6.5 (-120 via DraftKings)
- Upset: Kings (+135 via Caesars Sportsbook)
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NHL Top Picks for Thursday
Moneyline: Capitals (-165) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
With 10 wins in their past 11 games, the Washington Capitals are as hot as any team in the league.
Capitals starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper has a .920 save percentage for the season and is rocking a .953 save percentage in his past six games.
The Ottawa Senators have a 6-8-2 road record, and that mediocrity is backed by their underlying numbers. Ottawa is controlling 47.4% of five-on-five expected goals on the road, which ranks 19th.
Ottawa is also missing a couple of regulars on defense, so putting that up against the buzzsaw that is the Capitals looks like another W for Washington.
BetMGM has the most favorable price for a Capitals win, at -165, followed by Caesars (-169), DraftKings (-170), and PointsBet (-175). By the time you get to FanDuel, at -178, the price is too steep to gain much value.
Spread: Blues -1.5 (-105) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Picking against the Chicago Blackhawks is the way to go most nights.
Although the St. Louis Blues are winless in their last three games, they also have just one regulation loss in their past eight games. They are a competitive team still hoping to get into the playoff picture.
The pick here is less about the Blues than it is about the Blackhawks, a truly terrible team that has one win in its past 10 games. The Blackhawks' nine losses in that span were all by more than one goal.
Prices for Blues on the puck line are consistent at -105 at most of the top sportsbooks. FanDuel is charging -106 for Blues -1.5, but those are reasonable prices when going against this awful Blackhawks squad.
Total: Red Wings-Sabres Over 6.5 (-120) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Even though the Detroit Red Wings fell behind 4-0 in the first period against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, they still had the firepower to rally and win 5-4 in overtime.
Detroit is averaging 6.73 goals for and against per 60 minutes on the road this season, the fifth-highest rate in the league.
The Buffalo Sabres are the highest-scoring team in the league, averaging 3.92 goals per 60 minutes, including 3.98 goals per 60 minutes on home ice. With the Red Wings playing their second game of a back-to-back situation, they will not be shutting down the high-scoring Sabres and that will push this game to the Over.
Most top sportsbooks have the Over going for -120, while FanDuel has priced the Over at -128 and that appears to be an outlier in the marketplace.
Upset: Kings (+135) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
These are still not the Cup-winning Avalanche.
The Avs have battled injuries for most of the season and it is catching up to them. While they picked up some overtime and shootout victories recently, the Avs have just two regulation wins across their past 12 games.
That leaves them vulnerable against competitive opposition and the Los Angeles Kings qualify.
Climbing up to second place in the Pacific Division, the Kings are 6-1-2 in their past nine games.
The Kings have a mediocre road record of 9-7-4, but they have managed 51.6% of the five-on-five expected goals away from home, which ranks sixth in the league.
Kings goaltender Pheonix Copley has won seven of his eight starts since getting called up from the AHL so that is helping to turn positive puck possession into wins.
There is quite a variance in pricing for this game. Caesars and PointsBet have the Kings at +135 on the moneyline while DraftKings and BetMGM have a Kings win priced at +125. FanDuel remains the outlier, with +116 odds for a Los Angeles victory.
NHL best bets made 12/29/2022 at 1 a.m. ET
Here are our top-rated sportsbooks:
- FanDuel: Get a $1,000 No-Sweat First Bet Offer | Read our FanDuel Review
- Caesars: Earn a First Bet Offer of Up to $1,250 | Read our Caesars Review
- DraftKings: Get a 20% Deposit Match up to $1,000 | Read our DraftKings Review
- PointsBet: Earn Five First Bet Offer of Up to $100 Each | Read our PointsBet Review
- BetMGM: Get a First Bet Offer of Up to $1,000 | Read our BetMGM Review
* Bonuses not applicable in Ontario.
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