The 2024-25 NHL regular season has seen a ton of scoring so far and there should be plenty of goals lighting up lamps across the league with an 11-game slate on tap for Thursday night. There have been some surprising starts, including Edmonton at 1-3, Colorado at 0-4, and Calgary sitting undefeated at 4-0.
In this article, I’ve got two best bets to tail during Thursday’s big NHL slate. Follow me on X at Matt_MacKay_ for more NHL free bets and weekly analysis.
Thursday’s NHL Best Bets
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
New Jersey Devils vs. Ottawa Senators
New Jersey has been strong to start the season, sitting atop the Metropolitan division at 4-2, while recording all four of their wins in regulation. The Devils head to Ottawa to take on the Senators, who will be starting Anton Forsberg in goal. Forsberg allowed three goals in 26 minutes during an 8-7 win over the Los Angeles Kings.
New Jersey has much more depth than Ottawa and goaltender Jacob Markstrom has been good in the crease, however, he has allowed three or more goals in three straight starts for the Devils. Losses to Toronto and Carolina aren’t unexpected, but against an Ottawa team that lost 4-1 to Montreal, before managing an overtime win despite giving up seven goals against Los Angeles, Markstrom needs to come through.
Let’s drink the juice and bet on New Jersey to improve to 5-2 with an outright win, bouncing back from a 4-2 road loss to Carolina, taking the Devils’ -142 moneyline odds on the road at Ottawa on Thursday night.
Pick: New Jersey Moneyline (-142)
San Jose Sharks vs. Chicago Blackhawks
San Jose and Chicago offers us good value on the Sharks at home. San Jose could easily be 2-1, however, a blown lead to St. Louis in Game 1 and a shootout loss to Dallas in Game 3 have the Sharks sitting with only two points instead of four.
Chicago hosts this game and is -184 on the moneyline, despite going 1-3 to start their season. Yes, a 5-2 win over Edmonton is worth recognizing, but the Oilers have looked sluggish to start the new season. The Blackhawks have only score more than two goals during their lone win over the Oilers.
San Jose goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood is better than Petr Mrazek for Chicago, allowing two goals on 38 shots faced against Dallas, while holding strong against St. Louis, allowing one goal through 2.5 periods, before collapsing against the Blues late in the third period while facing 40 shots in the net.
Chicago’s offense is underwhelming and should keep Blackwood comfortable defending the crease, while the Sharks are due for a win after dropping two of their first three in extra time. The Sharks were blanked by Anaheim during a 2-0 loss, otherwise, they’ve been active in the offensive zone, and Tyler Toffoli should lead the charge yet again for them to finally get their first win of the year.
Let’s stake a unit on the Sharks moneyline odds at a solid +152 price on the road against the Blackhawks.
Pick: San Jose Moneyline (+152)
BettingPros Podcast
Subscribe: YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | iHeart | Castbox | Amazon Music | Podcast Addict | TuneIn
Matthew MacKay is a featured writer for BettingPros and FantasyPros. For more from Matthew, check out his archive and follow him @Matt_MacKay_.