NHL Odds & Best Bets Today: Schedule, Picks for Wednesday
The Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins aren't division rivals, but these two franchises have significant history against one another in the Stanley Cup Final. Here are our NHL best bets based on the top odds.
The NHL slate for Wednesday consists of only five games, but we see a few teams returning to action after extended layoffs over the holiday break. One of the most notable returnees will be the Red Wings, who haven't played in more than a week.
Detroit will travel to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins, a team it had a ferocious rivalry with a little more than a decade ago in the Stanley Cup Final.
Meanwhile, will the New Jersey Devils be able to avenge their 4-3 loss to the Boston Bruins from a couple of days ago?
Here are our best bets for Wednesday’s NHL slate (odds via Barstool Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, and PointsBet; pick confidence is based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Check out all our NHL best bets.
Wednesday’s NHL Schedule and Odds
(odds via FanDuel)
- Montreal Canadiens (+275) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (-350)
- Boston Bruins (-110) vs. New Jersey Devils (-110)
- Detroit Red Wings (+180) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (-220)
- Calgary Flames (-105) vs. Seattle Kraken (-108)
- Vegas Golden Knights (-178) vs. Anaheim Ducks (+146)
Wednesday’s NHL Best Bets
- Moneyline: Flames (-110 via Barstool Sportsbook) ⭐⭐⭐
- Total: Bruins-Devils Under 6.5 (-122 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Upset: Red Wings (+180 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐
- Prop bet: Mark Stone Under 2.5 shots on goal (+125 via BetMGM) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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NHL Top Picks for Wednesday
Moneyline: Flames (-110) ⭐⭐⭐
Having lost 2-1 at home to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night, the Calgary Flames will now travel to Seattle for their game on Wednesday. Despite the Kraken having the advantage in rest, I believe this has allowed us to get a better price on the Flames.
According to the projections, the Flames should be trading as -125 favorites over the Kraken, and the market has started to move in that direction. At several sportsbooks, the Flames opened with a Moneyline price of -110 but have since been bet up to -115.
We have a very small advantage in the numbers, so we must bet at the best price and maximize our advantage. On the ML, only FanDuel and Barstool are still offering the Flames at -110. Your positive expected value drops from 6% to 4% if you purchase this ML at -115 rather than -110.
Total: Bruins-Devils Under 6.5 (-122) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
At the Prudential Center, the New Jersey Devils will face the Boston Bruins on Wednesday night in a matchup between two of the top teams in the NHL. On Dec. 23, these two teams met with the Bruins winning 4-3. Fortunately, for our Under, this is a brand new game, so the score starts at 0-0.
According to the projected scoring, this game has a 59% (-145) chance of going Under a total of 6.5 goals. Compared to FanDuel's odds, our price is 23 cents higher than theirs, so we're seeing an edge in these numbers.
As FanDuel is the only sportsbook offering a total of 6.5 for this matchup, price shopping is essential. There are many other sportsbooks offering this game at Under 6 (+100), including DraftKings, PointsBet, BetMGM, and Caesars. As long as the juice remains at -125 or lower for a total of 6.5, FanDuel offers the line we want to bet into.
Upset: Red Wings (+180) ⭐⭐⭐
The Red Wings will have a significant rest advantage over the Penguins on Wednesday, as the former last played on Dec. 21, while the latter played on Tuesday night against the New York Islanders. Besides the rest, the Penguins will also start Casey DeSmith in net instead of Tristan Jarry, who started Tuesday night.
At FanDuel, the Red Wings opened at +160 on the ML but have since moved to +180, which is allowing us to come back with a bet on the Red Wings. As the Red Wings should be trading near +165, it's easy to understand why there was interest on the Penguins' side of the ML when it was +160, but the move to +180 is excessive.
The Red Wings aren't available at +180 just anywhere in the market; they're still trading at +163 at Barstool. Based on our price point of +165 for the Red Wings, our positive expected value is directly related to buying the +180 at FanDuel. You would have a negative expected value if you purchased the Red Wings at +163 on Barstool.
Prop bet: Mark Stone Under 2.5 shots on goal (+125 via BetMGM) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
On Wednesday, everyone will likely be playing the Over on the player props for the Vegas Golden Knights players, but we're seeing a very favorable price point on the Under for Mark Stone.
Stone is projected to have 2.3 shots on goal against the Ducks on Wednesday. This projection falls below the total of 2.5 and well below the three shots on net required in order to lose this prop bet. Despite the fact that this projection is below the total, Stone is currently trading at -165 to go Over the total of 2.5 on BetMGM.
Our best price for this prop is available at BetMGM and PointsBet, where we can get a +125 on Under 2.5 shots on goal. Stone is much shorter at Caesars, trading at +106 to go Under 2.5 shots.
NHL best bets made 12/28/2022 at 12:26 p.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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