The Christmas holidays are over, and we’re back with our NHL betting picks. It got difficult to find time to post picks with writeups over the holidays, but getting NHL picks up on here with more regularity is one of the new year’s resolutions for 2018.
Last time we posted, we pushed on the Maple Leafs first period moneyline +100 at Philadelphia. That kept our season record at 13-5 on the year, so hopefully we can keep on rolling after nearly a month off.
Don’t forget to check out our live odds page if you’re interested in seeing tonight’s NHL betting lines. Otherwise, here’s what we like for tonight:
NHL Betting Picks For Tonight
Vancouver Canucks at Washington Capitals
The Canucks have been a profitable team to back on the road this season, going 9-8-3 in enemy territory. But this doesn’t look like an ideal spot to bet on Vancouver, even with the Capitals surprisingly giving backup Philip Grubauer the start tonight. (Grubauer actually isn’t that bad, though he’s also not Braden Holtby.)
These are two teams going in drastically different directions. Vancouver has just 1 regulation time victory in its last 14 games, while the Caps have won 4 straight and are 7-1-2 in their last 10. But unless you want to lay -200 with the Capitals, we’ll have to find a different way to back Washington tonight.
The way to do it, in our opinion, is by betting on the Capitals Team Total. Washington’s been filling the net lately (4+ goals in 4 straight games) while the Canucks are allowing them in droves, even giving up 5 to the Canadiens the other night. If Vancouver can score a couple of goals here to force the Caps to keep their foot on the gas, even better.
NHL betting prediction: Capitals Team Total Over 2.5 +123
Calgary Flames at Minnesota Wild
Calgary’s been streaky this year, but the Flames do seem to have things together at the moment. Calgary’s won 3 straight, scoring 10 goals in the process. However, all of those wins came at home, and now the Flames need to sustain that success on the road.
Not that the road has been bad to Calgary this year. In fact, the Flames have a better record as visitors (9-5-4) than they do as hosts (12-11). But Minnesota presents a challenge for the Flames because the Wild has been playing much better in their own rink than when they’ve been away from it.
Want to see a home/road dichotomy? Consider that the Wild has outscored its last 4 opponents 19-7 when playing at home, compared to being outscored 17-4 in its last 4 on the road. That’s pretty extreme.
Minnesota is also coming off a humiliating 7-2 loss at Colorado on Saturday night, so Bruce Boudreau should have his players’ ears early in this one. Throw in the start of backup goalie Alex Stalock, and we love the Wild to bring some strong focus in the first period tonight, especially at this short price.
NHL betting prediction: Wild First Period Moneyline -111