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NHL Player Prop Odds, Picks & Predictions: Thursday (3/2)

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This is a fantastic way to start the second half of the season. Three games featuring at least one current playoff team with some favorable matchups. Let’s look at some players that can impact these games.

Also, take a look at our other best bets for Thursday:

View 5-star bets and historical prop performance by players with our Prop Bet Analyzer >>

Thursday’s Best NHL Player Prop Bets

(Odds courtesy of DraftKings)

Nikita Kucherov OVER 1.5 Points vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (+110)

The Eastern Conference has a lot of great teams, but it’s tough not to love Tampa Bay, who have made it to three straight Stanley Cup finals. The Lightning’s offense runs deep, leading with Brayden Point’s 37 goals, Nikita Kucherov being second in the league with 63 assists, and the team has four players with 20 or more goals.

They’ll face off against the Penguins, who have had their number by beating them twice with a combined score of 113-5. Kucherov has been involved in both games, grabbing two points in each. As great as the Pittsburgh offense is, they have a below-average defense, and I like Kucherov to have another multi-point night.

Adrian Kempe OVER 2.5 Shots On Goal vs. Montreal Canadiens (-175)

The big news from the Kings is they traded away their long-time goalie Jonathan Quick who helped them win two Stanley Cups. They needed to bolster up the defense to support their incredible offense. They are currently 11th in goals scored and have a playmaker on each line, with seven players having double-digit goals.

They get the below-average Canadiens, who sit near the bottom on both sides of the puck. Their defense allows the most high-danger shots, which is excellent for a volume-shooting team like Los Angeles. I’ll take Kempe all day cashing in this prop.

John Tavares Anytime Goal vs. Calgary Flames (+170)

The Leafs did not play well in their last game. They gave up five goals to Edmonton, the best-scoring team with the best player in the league.

I will take Toronto’s top lines over most in the league. Everyone on those lines has contributed recently. Over a ten-game span, John Tavares has six goals, Will Nylander and Ryan O’Reilly each have five, and Mitch Marner has 14 assists.

You can’t sugarcoat it, Flames have been disappointing. The forward unit has never been able to develop chemistry, and some of their offseason acquisition has been awful.

Goaltending has been their weakest point. Jacob Markstrom and Dan Vladar’s ave percentages are below 90% and have negative Goals Saved Above Expected.

Toronto’s offense will not disappoint, and I’m all in on Tavares continually his hot run by lighting the lamp.

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