Ricky Dimon
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We enjoyed a huge betting night in the NHL on Friday. All five of our money line or puck line picks were winners, a +466 three-team parlay cashed, a +1201 four-team parlay was successful, and the Edmonton Oilers were both our hockey best bet and our overall lock of the day across all sports (they beat the Ottawa Senators 6-2).
Now we have a 12-game NHL slate on Saturday with which to go back to work. Here is another four-team parlay in hopes of building on Friday’s dominance, which consists of two favorites on the puck line and a couple of money line winners:
Stars ML (-135)
Penguins -1.5 (+115)
Lightning -1.5 (-105)
Panthers ML (-156)
Parlay odds: +1134
Stars ML over Blue Jackets (-135)
The Blue Jackets are on a three-game losing streak. They have seemingly lost their identity this season. Columbus was once viewed as a hard-nosed team that played excellent defense and made life tough on opposing star players, but this season that has not been the case at all. The Jackets are only averaging 2.2 goals per game in their last 10 and they’re allowing 3.29 goals per game for the season. this season–the sixth-worst in the league. To be honest it looks like they are in tank mode for a high draft pick. As for the Stars, they have been a disappointment after reaching the Stanley Cup Finals in 2020; they have just as much talent as they did last season and therefore have a much better chance of turning thring around than the Sabres do. That turnaround could begin on Saturday.
Penguins -1.5 over Sabres (+115)
The Sabres are in last place in the entire NHL and are clearly playing like their season is already over now that captain Jack Eichel looks to be out long term. They have lost nine in a row, including on Thursday night against the Penguins. In that game they put only 23 shots on goal and their top players did not play well. Taylor Hall was minus-3 and is now minus-16 on the season with only two goals, while Rasmus Dahlin was minus-2 in and only has one goal all year. Pittsburgh has won four in a row and five of its last six games. During these six they have averaged 4.33 goals per game and their top two lines have been playing outstanding. Evgeni Malkin endured a slow start to the year but had two points on Thursday against the Sabres and now has eight points over his last five games. Tristan Jarry has settled into a legit starting goaltender in the NHL; in his last five starts he has a .917 save percentage and a goals-against average of 2.61.
Lightning -1.5 over Predators (-105)
The Lightning will be looking to rebound after a surprising 6-4 loss to Detroit. Now they return home to welcome the Nashville Predators as they look to extend their home winning streak to four in their first home game in front of fans in more than a year. This is a big one for the Lightning, as they need to pick up points to break the tie for second in the Central Division and take first place. Tampa Bay’s special teams have been phenomenal this season; their power-play unit and penalty kill both rank in the top five of the league. Nashville has struggled in both of those areas this season and likely won’t be able to keep up with Tampa Bay’s electric offense in this one. Nashville is coming off of a 5-1 loss to the Hurricanes and have now lost five out of its last six games.
Panthers ML over Blackhawks (-156)
The Blackhawks have lost two of their last three games and will head to Florida to play the red-hot Panthers. Florida has won four of its last five games and have the highest goals-scored average over this stretch with 4.4 goals per game. The Panthers are doing more than scoring, as starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky has found his game and is playing to his elite level with a .912 save percentage over his last four games–all of which he has won. Aleksander Barkov has points in his last five games and his new winger, Carter Verhaeghe, has a lot do do with that success. Verhaeghe has nine goals on the year and is plus-10. Chicago has been plagued by injuries, too. With Dylan Strome out due to a concussion, Carl Soderberg has been forced to move up the lineup and that hasn’t worked out. He is minus-4 over his last five games and is not creating any offense.
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