The NHL season is heating up, and the league rolls out a 10-game slate tonight. I'm heading to PrizePicks to get some skin in the game. Below I've listed my three favorite player predictions on the platform. If all three cash, they'll net us a 5x multiplier.
The NHL season is heating up, and the league rolls out a 10-game slate tonight. I'm heading to PrizePicks to get some skin in the game. Below I've listed my three favorite player predictions on the platform. If all three cash, they'll net us a 5x multiplier.
Thursday’s Best NHL PrizePicks Player Predictions
Timo Meier More Than 0.5 Points
The action gets underway with a marquee matchup in the Metropolitan Division as the Rangers (18-20-2) host the Devils (25-15-3). Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET from Madison Square Garden in New York, NY.
The Devils have decimated the Blue Shirts this season, going 2-0-0 against them while out-scoring the seventh-place team 10-1. That includes a 5-0 beatdown back on December 23rd, in a game where Timo Meier contributed a goal and an assist. Including that contest, the first-line winger has seven points (three goals, four assists) in his last nine games.
Meier has logged at least one point in five of those nine games (55.6%). I'll lock in Meier to register a point against the floundering Rangers tonight.
New York has been in shambles recently, going just 6-16-1 over their last 23 games. Over their current 2-5-1 stretch of play, the Rangers are conceding 4.25 goals per contest. They've dropped to 24th overall in defense (3.00 GAA) and have faced the fourth-most high-danger shots (161) this year. I like Meier to make his way onto the scoresheet tonight.
Connor McDavid More Than 1.5 Points
The Oilers (25-12-3) have won four straight games. They'll try to keep things rolling when they take on the Penguins (17-17-8) out east tonight. This cross-conference clash gets underway at 7:00 p.m. ET from PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA.
While the Oilers are riding a four-game heater, the Penguins are in the midst of a four-game losing streak (0-1-3). The defense has been the main issue, and that's consistent with the season as a whole. Pittsburgh is allowing 3.75 goals per game during their current slide. They're also dead last in the NHL in GAA (3.40) this season.
There's no reason Edmonton shouldn't light up Pittsburgh tonight and grab their fifth straight victory. I'll take Connor McDavid to rack up the points and score at least two points tonight. The superstar centerman has 55 points (16 goals, 39 assists) on the season.
McDavid has logged 17 multi-point games in 37 outings (45.9%) this season. Seven of those have come in the last 15 contests (46.7%), so he is cashing this more than just shy of half the time he plays. Being that it's a favorable matchup against a Pens side last in defense, 25th in SV% (.887) and faced the eighth-most high-danger shots (150), I like McDavid to clear 1.5 points.
Sebastian Aho Less Than 0.5 Assists
Two of the best defensive teams in the league square off tonight, with the Hurricanes (24-15-2) hosting the Maple Leafs (27-13-2). This Eastern Conference showdown is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET from the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC.
Under head coach Craig Berube's control, this Toronto defense has become one of the best in the NHL. They enter tonight's action ranked fifth in GAA (2.45), third in SV% (.907), seventh on the penalty kill (83.21%) and have the eighth-fewest giveaways (571) this season. The Maple Leafs have allowed two or fewer goals in four of the five games during their current 5-0-0 run.
Being that Toronto's defense is so dialed in, I'll go ahead and play Sebastian Aho to not record an assist. Aho's 30 helpers are the 16th-most in the NHL, but he hasn't logged one in six of his last nine games (66.7%).
Overall this season, the first-line centerman has hit the less than on this total in 18 of his 41 games (43.9%). This should be a low-scoring slugfest in Raleigh tonight. I like Aho's chances to stay out of the assist category on the stat sheet.
