Best player prop bets for Friday's NHL slate: MacKinnon to hammer shots on goal

Colorado arguably have the best player in the NHL this season in Nathan McKinnon.

Matthew Lowrimore

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Nathan MacKinnon Over 4 Shots on Goal (+100)

The Colorado Avalanche have all but secured their playoff spot in the West Division, but will attempt to make a late push to overtake Vegas for the top spot. They are currently tied for second with Minnesota, so at the very least, they will be looking to move into second by themselves. They will have the perfect opportunity tonight as well, seeing that they are playing San Jose.

Our focus in this game will be Nathan MacKinnon. He has been one of the Avalanche’s best players all season, and we will be looking at a shots on goal prop in this game. MacKinnon leads the team this season with 184 shots on goal. That averages out to about 4.27 shots per game. He has cashed this prop in four of the last five games overall and four of the five head to head meetings with San Jose. He is averaging five shots on goal against the Sharks, so backing this over at even money will be our play.

Be sure to check out our full game preview for San Jose Sharks vs. Colorado Avalanche.

Nick Schmaltz Over 1.5 Shots on Goal (-118)

The Arizona Coyotes will have a very tough test tonight against the Vegas Golden Knights as they look to make a final push for the playoffs. The Coyotes are trailing the Blues by five points for the final spot in the West Division, making this game a must win. Tonight we are going to actually back an Arizona player, but just to have shots on goal. That player being Nick Schmaltz. He does not always have a ton of shots on goal, considering he has 99 for the year. That averages out to 1.98 shots per game. However, against Vegas, Schmaltz has 16 shots on goal over six games. He has cashed this prop in four of the six head to head meetings and because this prop total is so low, we will back him here to just have two shots on frame.

Kyle Connor Over 0.5 Points (-136)

Winnipeg is hanging onto third place in the North Division and will look to extend their lead when they take on the fourth placed Canadiens tonight. The Jets know the Canadiens need to win this game, so they are likely to give a full and focused effort. For this game, we are going to back one on Winnipeg’s best players and that is Kyle Connor. He is the leading goal scorer for this team with 22 goals, while also posting 22 assists. That gives him the third highest point total on this Winnipeg team. Connor has seen some success against Montreal this season, posting nine points in eight games. In five of the eight games, he has at least one point, so backing him to continue that trend will be our play here.

Be sure to check out our full game preview for Winnipeg Jets vs. Montreal Canadiens.

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