Ryan Hodges
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Friday the 13th brings a 2-game slate in the NHL, which will be a nice calm before the 14-game storm on Saturday. Fans have been treated to a great start to the regular season. Connor Bedard has boosted TV ratings, Auston Matthews became the fastest American-born player to 300 goals with an opening night hat-trick, and Brock Boeser scored 4 goals in Vancouver’s rout of Edmonton. So much has happened and the season is not even a week old. Friday’s schedule lacks quantity but not quality. This will be a nice appetizer to a busy weekend of hockey. Along with our NHL player prop bets, be sure to check out our NHL picks for tonight’s matchups.
Clayton Keller over 2.5 shots on goal (-130)
Clayton Keller had the best season of his 7-year career in 2022-23. He played in all 82 games and tallied 37 goals and 49 assists for 86 points. He averaged 20:45 of ice-time per game, also a career-high, and even on a weaker team, he was just -2. Keller is in the prime of his career and is far and away the most important player on the Coyotes. For any offense Arizona is able to generate, there is a good chance that Keller will be involved.
The Coyotes have an uphill battle on Friday facing the Devils. New Jersey broke out with a 112-point season last year. Over the offseason, they may have gotten even better. Unfortunately, Arizona is still in its rebuild. This one looks to be a lopsided game in favor of the Devils. There is a good chance that at some point in this game, the Coyotes will be behind and have to press for offense. In a case where Arizona has to play catch up, look for Keller and his teammates to throw everything they can on net to try to muster up scoring chances.
Alex Ovechkin over 0.5 goals (+105)
Alex Ovechkin’s chase for Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal record has become very real. Ovechkin is 72 goals away from tying the record and has shown no signs of slowing down lately. At ages 36 and 37, he has put up 50 and 42 goals for 92 over the last 2 years. Every game is an incentive to score which knocks out two birds with one stone: he helps keep the team in the game and, on a personal note, inches toward the prestigious record.
Last season, the Penguins ranked 19th in the league in goal prevention and 25th in shots on goal allowed per game. In their season opener, the Penguins blew a 2-0 lead to the Blackhawks and ended up losing 4-2. The Capitals do not appear to be a juggernaut this year, but neither do the Blackhawks. If Pittsburgh cannot make defensive adjustments game over game, the door will be open for Washington to pepper Tristan Jarry with shots and score 3-4 goals. If that is the case, look for Ovechkin to be the ringleader and tally his first of the season.
