Game 3 is set to get underway in four different series on Friday night with some great angles to attack in the prop bets market. Below, I give out my three best NHL player prop bets for Friday.
As a reminder, I am playing all player props for a half-unit each during the playoffs. Follow me on Twitter to get all of my plays on days without full write-ups.
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Nikita Kucherov Anytime Scorer (+135)
I am going back to my favorite and most profitable player prop this season as the Tampa Bay Lightning return home following Wednesday’s 5-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kucherov scored in that game as he has now registered 15 goals over his last 17 games, and I think he has a great shot to get It done once again.
In Game 2, Kucherov generated plenty of high-danger scoring chances as he personally recorded 0.702 expected goals for (xGF). This is a great matchup for Kucherov to keep It going as the Maple Leafs’ weaknesses are in their defense and goaltending.
This season, the Maple Leafs rank just 19th in the league in goals allowed per game. Jack Campbell is the projected starting goaltender for Toronto and came back down to earth in Game 2 as he allowed five goals on 34 shots for a 0.853 save percentage, posting a -0.63 goals saved above expected (GSAx) in the process.
Patrice Bergeron Over 0.5 Points (-135)
The Boston Bruins return home trailing 0-2 in the series as they host the Carolina Hurricanes for Game 3. Obviously, this game is a must-win for Boston and we should expect their top-six forward group to carry the majority of offensive play.
So far in this series, Bergeron has been the only Boston forward to show up as he has scored two of their three goals through the first two games. Bergeron has led the Bruins by a wide margin in generating high-danger scoring chances in each of the first two games as he now has 2.076 xGF by himself this series.
Playing his best hockey of the season, Bergeron has now racked up 11 points over his last five games. He has not held back at all thus far as he is averaging six shots on net through the first two games of this series, and he should continue to drive play in Game 3 at home and get us at least one point.
Adrian Kempe Anytime Scorer (+150)
It is time for the leading goal scorer of Los Angeles to finally find the back of the net in this series as the Kings return home for Game 3 in a 1-1 series against the Edmonton Oilers. Kempe has been the best forward for Los Angeles to not score in this series as he generated 0.293 xGF in Game 1 and 0.661 xGF in Game 2.
Despite not scoring in either game, Kempe’s presence was noticeable in both outings. Through the first two games, Kempe leads the team in shots on goal and is due to get one past Edmonton’s Mike Smith.
Smith was incredible in Game 2 as he stopped all 30 shots he faced and finished with +2.33 GSAx. However, Smith should be due for some regression.
At even strength this season, Smith has a +0.35 GSAx per 60 minutes. While that is a good number, it is far below the +0.94 GSAx he has generated through the first two games of this series.
Best of luck!
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