Top 3 NHL Goal In First Ten Minutes (GIFT) Odds & Picks: Wednesday (12/27)
Betting the GIFT (Goal In First Ten) is simple. Pick whether or not a game will have a goal scored in the first 10 minutes of play (00:00-09:59). It's that easy and all you have to do is root for anyone to score and you win. It is one area of hockey betting that has a nearly league-wide positive success rate with 87.5% of the league currently cashing at 50% or better this season. I have been able to use this season’s GIFT numbers to pick winners with extreme accuracy. Make sure to tail my GIFT ideas this holiday season!
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Wednesday’s Best Goal In First Ten Minutes (GIFT) Bets
2023 Season: 27-5-0 (.844) | Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook
Ottawa Senators at Toronto Maple Leafs
The Senators’ road GIFT continues to be the gift that keeps on giving with a 100% strike rate (11-for-11) on the season. Once again, let’s continue to ride that trend as far as the line will take us. The Senators' games have also cashed this prop in 20-of-29 games this season overall. Sens’ games have cashed the GIFT in four of their last five and seven of ten.
Toronto’s 19-12 (.612) season strike rate might be 16th in the league but that’s right in the middle of the pack and they have cashed in seven more games than not. The Maple Leafs have cashed in 62% of their home games which is even slightly better than their overall cash rate.
Here we go again, riding Ottawa road GIFTs until the wheels fall off and this prop could even hit -200 before the first puck drop. Vegas knows…She knows…
Pick: Goal In First Ten (-195)
Dallas Stars at St. Louis Blues
Dallas has been on an absolute GIFT heater, having cashed the prop in nine of their last ten contests and 11 of their last 12. The Stars have also cashed at a 62% rate on the road this season with road GIFTs accounting for five of the recent 11 straight cashes.
The Blues have cashed GIFTs at a 72% clip (24-for-33) this season, tied with Chicago for the 2nd second-best strike rate in the league. Their 24 GIFT hits are tied with the Wild and Blackhawks for second-most in the NHL behind only the Lightning and Canucks. They have also cashed in eight of their last ten games.
The GIFT cashed less than five minutes in the last time these two teams faced off in St. Louis back on December 16. Look for it to happen again for these top-9 teams.
Pick: Goal In First Ten (-160)
Detroit Red Wings at Minnesota Wild
The Red Wings have cashed GIFTs at a 64% clip (22-for-34) this season, good for 10th in the NHL. They have cashed in six of seven road games in December and eight of their last ten overall. This even includes a 1-0 loss to the Flyers on December 16 where the game’s only goal still came at the 6:21 mark of the 1st. The lone road contest they failed to cash this month came against the Winnipeg Jets who are dead last in the NHL, cashing this prop in a paltry 34% and making them the polar opposite of Detroit’s opponent tonight: the Minnesota Wild.
The Wild have been the gold standard this season when it comes to cashing this prop. The creme de la creme, if you will, for my French-speaking puck fans up North. The Senators' games have cashed this prop in a ridiculous 75% (24-of-32) of their games overall this season. Amazingly, when they are home in the friendly confines of Xcel Energy Center, that number jumps to 80%
Both of these squads know how to light the lamp early and tonight should be no exception.
Pick: Goal In First Ten (-160)
Parlay Odds: +299
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Wednesday:
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Luke Monaldo is a featured writer at BettingPros. Follow him on Twitter @MoKnowsSports and Discord @alydar1227 AKA The GIFTing Crooner. For more from Luke, check out his archive.