Mark Lammey
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Saturdays in the NHL are a beautiful thing, as it means action on the ice throughout the day. We’ve got an early afternoon game and matchups all the way through to the nightcap out west in Los Angeles. That provides plenty of opportunities to pinpoint our favorite plays and piece together a mega parlay. That’s exactly what we’ve done here. In fact, we’ve targeted the very first puck drop of the day, and capped it off with the game out in LA. There’s plenty to go through, so let’s check it out.
Before we dive in, be sure to check out our NHL picks for today’s action.
Boston Bruins -1.5 (-140) over Columbus Blue Jackets
The first puck drop of the day features about as big of a mismatch as you could set up. The Bruins have been the best team throughout the first 2 months of the season, while the Blue Jackets have been among the worst. We correctly predicted the Tampa Bay Lightning to roll over Columbus just 2 nights ago, and the Bruins should do the same. This game will be in Boston, where the Bruins are an incredible 15-0-2. They’ll be fired up that it isn’t 16-0-1, as they fell in a shootout to the Los Angeles Kings 2 nights ago.
Losses have been few and far between for them, whereas they’ve been all too common for the Jackets. Columbus is one of just 2 teams remaining in the Eastern Conference with just 10 wins. For some perspective, the Bruins are 23-4-2. One of the many reasons for their success has been due to them scoring the 2nd-most goals per game in the NHL. On the flip side, the Jackets are allowing the 2nd-most goals per game. With such a discrepancy, there’s no reason to expect anything but a convincing Boston win on home ice.
Buffalo Sabres -1.5 (+158) over Arizona Coyotes
We’ve got another puck line play, but one that isn’t nearly as obvious. Much like the Bruins, the Sabres have been lighting up the scoreboard. In fact, they are the only team scoring more than Boston, as they top the league with 3.93 goals per game. Their record may not be the greatest, but they just defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche by multiple goals. That game was also on the road, and the Sabres will be getting a huge boost for this matchup.
Jeff Skinner will be returning from his 3-game suspension from the Pittsburgh Penguins game. He’s been a massive part of their firepower, as he has 32 points through 27 games. As for the Coyotes, they’ve been regarded as one of the worst teams in the NHL for quite some time now, and will be on the second night of a back-to-back. That’s bad news for a team that already struggles with goaltending and now has to face a high-octane offense. The Coyotes are scoring the 5th-fewest goals per game, so we don’t anticipate them being able to keep pace with the Sabres.
Be sure to check out our Buffalo Sabres vs Arizona Coyotes prediction
San Jose Sharks ML (+158) over Los Angeles Kings
Our last play consists of more great plus-money odds, and we don’t need a multi-goal win. We’ll have to wait for the last game of the night, but these teams should make it worth the wait. Taking a look at the Pacific Division standings may make this pick seem like a head-scratcher. However, the Kings have felt like the most inconsistent 16-12-5 second place team there’s ever been. They’ve escaped with some lucky wins, as they’ve allowed the 6th-most goals per game this season.
They’re no better at home, allowing over 3.5 goals per game in LA. If that hasn’t convinced you yet, they’ve been even worse as of late. The Kings are allowing the 3rd-most goals per game over the last month. The only teams worse are the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks. Those are the worst teams in the NHL. Somehow a second-place team is in the same conversation as them, so there’s nothing to expect from the Kings except for regression.
Don’t miss out on our NHL player props for today’s action – we hit last night’s at plus-money!
Saturday’s NHL mega parlay (12/17)
Bruins -1.5 (-140)
Sabres -1.5 (+158)
Sharks ML (+158)
Parlay odds +1041
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