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NHL Player Props & Best Bets Today: Battle of Alberta Heats Up

Ryan Gilbert

Last Updated: January 20, 2024 12:28 PM EST • 3 min 4 sec read.

NHL best bets
NHL best bets

It’s a Saturday filled with hockey and featuring 12 games, so read on for our top NHL prop picks and best bets for Saturday based on the top NHL odds from our best sports betting apps.

There’s going to be hockey on for most of the day on Saturday with 12 NHL games on the slate.

The Buffalo Sabres kick off the day by hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by three games starting at 7 p.m. ET, including the Toronto Maple Leafs visiting Vancouver, and the schedule concludes with the Los Angeles Kings hosting the New York Rangers at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Here are our top NHL prop picks and best bets for Saturday (odds via our best NHL betting sites; Pick confidence is based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Saturday’s NHL schedule and odds

(Odds via DraftKings)

Saturday’s NHL best bets

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Saturday’s NHL prop picks

Matt Duchene to record a point vs. Devils (-140 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Matt Duchene has been making his presence felt during his first season in Dallas. He's notched 40 points (14 goals, 26 assists) across 43 games during 2023-24. 

While Duchene has produced a few impressive stretches, he isn't prone to long droughts. He's consistent for the Stars as one of their key contributors.

Duchene has recorded points in four of his last five games and eight of 10 since Dec. 31. Back him to get on the board again against a tired Devils team.

Elias Pettersson to score a goal vs. Maple Leafs (+140 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐

Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson has been fantastic during 2023-24, but even more so recently. Pettersson has scored in two straight games and six of his last seven contests. 

The top-line forward is creating plenty of chances and he’s been getting rewarded.

Pettersson and the Canucks should be able to go to work against a lackluster Leafs defense. Toronto allowed four-plus goals in four straight before holding the Calgary Flames to just three on Thursday night.

Pettersson has scored in nine of his last 14 games, including four multi-goal contests. Take the plus odds for him to find the back of the net on Saturday.

Saturday’s NHL game picks

Stars ML vs. Devils  (-125 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Dallas Stars were embarrassed in Philadelphia on Thursday night with the Flyers outshooting Dallas 43-15 in their win. While that ended a 4-1-0 stretch, Dallas now gets a great chance to rebound in New Jersey.

The Devils are playing the second half of a back-to-back set after a 4-1 win in Columbus against the Blue Jackets on Friday. So although New Jersey is at home, the Stars were there waiting on Friday night.

The Devils' depth is already being tested due to a few key injuries, and a Stars team looking for a strong bounce-back effort can exploit that weakness.

Oilers ML vs. Flames (-146 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Oilers have owned the Battle of Alberta recently with three straight wins, including a 5-2 victory in 2023-24. Edmonton is also red hot right now. The Oilers are riding a 12-game winning streak dating back to Dec. 21. They've outscored their opponents 48-21 and have allowed two goals or fewer in 10 straight outings.

The Flames' four-game winning streak ended on Thursday night with a home loss to the Maple Leafs. They may be 7-3-0 in their last 10, but the squad is due to regress. The team has posted the seventh-lowest expected goals for percentage in the last 10 games (45.37%), most of which wasn't against the toughest competition.

The Oilers don't struggle to win on the road (12-9-0), and I'd play this up to around -160.

NHL best bets made 1/20/2024 at 4:00 a.m. ET

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Written By:
Ryan Gilbert
Ryan Gilbert is a contributing writer at SportsbookReview.com, covering hockey and baseball. He is the lead NHL writer and editor at the Sports Gambling Podcast Network, where he also co-hosts the Hockey Gambling Podcast. Ryan covers the Philadelphia Flyers for Broad Street Hockey and co-founded Sons of Penn. His past stops include NBC Sports Regional Networks and NHL.com.