The NHL regular season is winding down, and the league's rolling out a 10-game slate as we enter the final week of the 2023-2024 campaign. From a betting perspective, I'm heading the PrizePicks route tonight, where I've locked in three player props on the ice. If you opt for the PrizePicks Power Play, this trio provides a 5/1 payout.
Our NHL Prop Bet Cheat Sheet assists bettors by comparing lines from leading sportsbooks with our daily projections >>
Thursday’s Best NHL PrizePicks Player Projections
The Lightning basically have the top Wild Card spot locked up at this point. They'll most likely go toe-to-toe with the Bruins in the first round. One thing that's not set in stone yet is the Hart Trophy race, in which Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov are lighting up the scoring sheet to close the year.
The NHL regular season is winding down, and the league's rolling out a 10-game slate as we enter the final week of the 2023-2024 campaign. From a betting perspective, I'm heading the PrizePicks route tonight, where I've locked in three player props on the ice. If you opt for the PrizePicks Power Play, this trio provides a 5/1 payout.
Our NHL Prop Bet Cheat Sheet assists bettors by comparing lines from leading sportsbooks with our daily projections >>
Thursday’s Best NHL PrizePicks Player Projections
The Lightning basically have the top Wild Card spot locked up at this point. They'll most likely go toe-to-toe with the Bruins in the first round. One thing that's not set in stone yet is the Hart Trophy race, in which Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov are lighting up the scoring sheet to close the year.
I'll lock in the red-hot Kucherov to pick up another two points tonight. The 30-year-old is on an absolute tear right now, posting four straight three-point games (1G, 11A). This gives him five multi-point games in his last six outings.
This is a great matchup for Kucherov, as his Bolts host a Senators squad that's 29th in both overall defense (3.33 GAA) and on the penalty kill (74.57%). Ottawa is in the midst of a 1-4-0 stretch, where they're surrendering 3.4 goals per contest.
Finally, it's worth noting that Kucherov has been held off the scoresheet in two of his three games against Ottawa this year, but the third was a five-point effort (1G, 4A) back in November. Look for Kuch to light it up tonight as he continues to make his case for league MVP.
The Canadiens are coming off of an impressive 9-3 victory over the Flyers last time out, and they'll hit the road tonight as they go for their second straight win. The Habs will take on an Islanders team that's currently in possession of the third spot in the Metropolitan Division.
This will be the third and final game between these two hockey clubs. Cole Caufield has registered four SOG in each of the prior meetings. I'll bet on this trend to continue for Montreal's leader in SOG (296). His 296 SOG this season make him the eighth-highest shooting player in the league.
Caufield has been active in recent games, clearing the 3.5-SOG line in three of his last four games (1, 6, 7, 7). Finally, the winger will be shooting on an Isles team that has allowed the fifth-most 5-on-5 SOG (1,998) this season. Look for Caufield to rack up at least four SOG tonight.
It has been a disappointing season in Seattle after the Kraken made a decent playoff run last season. They'll host the Sharks tonight, who are in the cellar of the Pacific Division with just 45 points.
One of the reasons for San Jose's ugly season is their defense. Pick a metric and they're one of the worst teams in that category. The Sharks are dead last in overall defense (3.68 GAA), 31st in both 5-on-5 high-danger SOG allowed (209) and overall 5-on-5 SOG allowed (2,107), and 28th on the PK (75.20%).
I think Matty Beniers, who centers the top line with wingers Andre Burakovsky and Oliver Bjorkstrand, can muster up a point against this lowly San Jose defense. Beniers has been on a roll recently, recording at least one point in five of his last seven games (4G, 4A). Included in that seven-game sample size is a game where he scored a goal against the Sharks in a 4-2 win. Let's lock in Beniers to keep his hot streak alive tonight.
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Thursday:
