The NHL is back and better than ever! Today there are four games for us fans to sink our teeth into. With eight teams taking the ice, it is going to be an exciting day of NHL action, so you don’t want to miss this.
What will today’s games bring? Which teams will have the ability to get the all important win on the board? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain, we are in for some great games! So gear up, sit back, relax and watch. And if you like to have a bet, then you have certainly come to the right place.
Look below to find our free NHL picks, as we preview the four games on today’s schedule.
San Jose Sharks @ Toronto Maple Leafs – 6.00PM EDT
The San Jose Sharks play on back to back days when they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Sharks are 3-0-0 in this season so far, thanks to a win last time out against the Senators. The Maple Leafs have a record of 2-1-1 so far this season, and last time out, they lost in overtime to the Rangers, 1-2.
Denis Kirilov
The San Jose Sharks travel to Canada to face off Toronto in their Scotiabank Arena. The Maple Leafs started off the season on a positive note after defeating their rivals, Montreal Canadiens with 2:1. However, they managed a win against the Ottawa Senators and lost to the New York Rangers at home. The Sharks, on the other hand, began the season with 3 wins as they seemed unbreakable at some points during their games. They defeated the Jets, the Canadiens, and the Senators and they are looking to continue their streak away from home against Toronto.
Erik Karlsson, Logan Couture, Kevin Labanc showed great combinations, most of which resulted in goals for the Sharks. Although Toronto is a fairly decent team in front of a home audience, they struggle from time to time. At this point of the season, I would rather think that the home-ice advantage wouldn’t play such a significant role and the Leafs won’t be as dominant as their fans would want them to be. I believe this game will go to the wire and may enter extra-time. Therefore, I would suggest picking up a bit safer option in the likes of San Jose Sharks covering the spread of +1.5 goals.
Denis’ NHL Pick: San Jose Sharks +1.5 (-130)
Tony Battalio
This one should be a competitive East vs West Coast matchup. The Toronto Maple Leafs come into this game at 2-1-1, following a 2-1 loss to the New York Rangers at home. This will already be the 5th game in around 12 days for Toronto. It will also be their 4th home game of the season already. However, it will only be their second game against a non-Canadian team in this young season.
Until tomorrow…
ENJOY THESE WIN HIGHLIGHTS! pic.twitter.com/5AHcx86PA0
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 22, 2021
As for the San Jose Sharks, this will be their 4th game of the 2021-22 National Hockey League season. It will also be their third game away from their home arena, so playing away from friendly confines is something they are already accustomed to on the young campaign. San Jose currently sits at 3-0-0 following last night’s 2-1 win against the Ottawa Senators. In addition to home-ice advantage, this is a game Toronto should win off of talent alone, that is why I’m picking the Maple Leafs, but only the moneyline because I think the Sharks are good enough to keep this one close.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Toronto Maple Leafs (-240)
Michael Lantz
So far, so good for the San Jose Sharks. They got off to a 3-0 start, while winning their last two on the road against the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators. They end their Canadien road trip facing the toughest team: the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto currently sits at a reasonable 2-1-1 and they only just got back Auston Matthews for their overtime loss against the Rangers. This high-powered offense hasn’t quite looked themselves yet, but having one of the league’s best goal scorers in Matthews should certainly help. That being said, they’ll face a Sharks team that hasn’t been fazed north of the border. Despite the early season Evander Kane drama, the Sharks have stayed focused and have enjoyed goal scoring from players across the board and an awesome goalie tandem in Adin Hill and James Reimar. No matter the outcome, I like the Sharks to continue their early season run and at least cover the spread.
Michael’s NHL Pick: San Jose Sharks +1.5 (-130)
Boston Bruins @ Buffalo Sabres – 7.00PM EDT
The Boston Bruins are on the road for the second game when they take on the Buffalo Sabres. This will be the Bruins third game of the season, and so far their record stands at 1-1-0. Last time out the Bruins lost 3-6 to the Flyers. The Sabres are having a great season so far winning all three of their games, and all three (four if you include this one) games have been played at home.
Denis Kirilov
Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres are taking on each other on Friday evening in KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The hosts are, without a doubt, the pleasant surprise of the first few games in the 2021/22 NHL season. Although they defeated teams like the Canucks, the Coyotes, and the Canadiens, the Sabres displayed dominance in all games. Although the result from the match against Arizona was even after overtime, Buffalo literally dictated the game in each single period.
The Bruins, on the other hand, had a tough match on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers as they suffered a 3:6 loss away from home. It’s visible that the team struggles in defense, but since nobody is injured, I am reluctant to think that there is a bit of misunderstanding in the tactics. They almost didn’t participate in the trades during the off-season, while the Sabres were big players on the market. They parted ways with Sam Reinhart and Rasmus Ristolainen and in exchange received Will Butcher from New Jersey Devils and a lot of first-round draft picks.
My pick will be based mainly on the performance that the Sabres are producing as I am expecting at least 3 goals from their side. If Boston manages to display at least 50% of their capabilities, then this will turn into a goal spectacle. Hence, I will choose “over 5.5 goals”, as it seems the safer way to go.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Over 5.5 (-115)
Tony Battalio
Nobody could have predicted that the Buffalo Sabres would be 3-0-0 at this point in this season without superstar Jack Eichel. Only time will tell if they can keep surprising everyone around the league and racking up victories every single night they hit the ice. In Eichel’s absence new faces like Zemgus Girgensons have stepped up, he has already provided 2 Goals to go along with 2 Assists in 3 games. However, compiling a 4th straight victory will be no easy task for Buffalo on Friday night.
Despite being at home, they still have to contend with one of the hottest scorers so far in this young season in Brad Marchand. He has logged 3 Goals for an average of a little over 1 per game and has been effective on the defensive end as well. Buffalo will almost certainly have to keep Marchand off the score sheet if they want to keep this miracle win streak alive and remain one of the few undefeated NHL teams through the season’s first week. Although I do not see that being the case as I have Boston taking the win in this game.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-220)
Michael Lantz
Before the season started, the Buffalo Sabres were ranked by many as the basement of the NHL. Through three games, they’ve been putting teams like Arizona and Montreal in the cellar and closing the door. While those two teams look like the worst in the league so far, Buffalo got a respectful victory against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday to up their record to 3-0.
On Friday night, the Sabres host the Boston Bruins—their toughest opponent yet. Boston handled a re-ignited Dallas Stars team at home in their season debut, but followed that performance with a stinker in Philadelphia—where they gave up 6 goals. While many believe this Bruins team is growing old, they’ve shown they can still find the back of the net, scoring three goals in each of their games. I think they bite back after the brutal loss to the Flyers and give this admirable Buffalo team (that’s missing star player Jack Eichel) their first loss.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-220)
Los Angeles Kings @ Dallas Stars – 8.30PM EDT
The Los Angeles Kings continue their four game road trip when they travel to Dallas to take on the Stars. The Kings have a record so far this season of 1-2-0, and they have lost their last two games, by just one goal. The Stars have played four games so far this season and all four of them have been close, with a season record standing at 2-2-0.
Denis Kirilov
Two of the teams that have good chances in making the Playoffs are facing each other tomorrow. The Los Angeles Kings will travel to Dallas with the hope of getting the maximum from that game. The Kings have already had ups and downs as they defeated the strong team of the Golden Knights in their opening match, but they were later crushed by the Minnesota Wild and the Nashville Predators. The 34-year-old, Anze Kopitar, has scored 5 goals in these three matches and is looking to further increase this number.
On the other side, the Dallas Stars had the same fate in the beginning of the season. They played 4 exceptionally intense games, winning two and losing the other two. Both teams are struggling with injuries as Bishop and Comeau will be certainly sidelined for Dallas for this game, while the list for the Kings is larger including Andersson, Athanasiou, Byfield, and Lemieux. Keeping this in mind and looking at the current situation in both teams, I would go for a bit risky, but logical prediction. I am expecting another close match that will go down to the wire – a tie.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Tie (+310)
Tony Battalio
This game will be an early season preview of a potential Western Conference playoff match up. Both Dallas and Los Angeles, despite slow starts from both, are teams that should be expected to be in the postseason race by season’s end. Dallas currently sits at 2-2-0 through 4 games played on the young season. In those 4 games, both of their wins have taken Overtime or a Shootout to get the job done. In their two losses they gave up a total of 6 Goals, and scored 3 total.
“Our fans are awesome. It’ll be buzzin’ tomorrow.” – @tseguinofficial
🚨 24 HOURS UNTIL #TEXASHOCKEY IS HOME 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Bkznt3wps8
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) October 22, 2021
This will also be the Dallas Stars first home game of the 2021-22 National Hockey League season, after 4 straight away from home. As for Los Angeles they come into this game at 1-2-0, after back to back losses. After opening the year thrashing the Vegas Golden Knights, 6-2, hopes were high in Los Angeles now it feels like they need a win to get back on track. I believe that is exactly what they get, while in the process spoiling the Dallas Stars 2021-22 home opener.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Los Angeles Kings (+132)
Michael Lantz
The Kings and Stars are two Western Conference teams that are sneaky good. The Stars are just a little over a year removed from a Stanley Cup final, and after being hit with some big injuries last year, they’re hungry for a return. They started off the season with two tough losses to the Bruins and Senators—that they were very much in until the end. They luckily got over that hump by beating the Pittsburgh Penguins in OT on Tuesday. Now they travel back to the American Airlines Center where they face the Los Angeles Kings.
L.A. has been seen by many as a potential playoff team due to the unpredictability of the NHL’s Pacific Division. The Kings started the season with an explosive 6 goal performance against Pacific Division favorites the Vegas Golden Knights. Since then, they’ve cooled off a bit. They lost back to back games to the Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators. Luckily both were just by one goal so it’s got to feel like the Kings are just a couple of minor adjustments away from really going on a tear. So far they’ve enjoyed outstanding performances from two beloved vets: Anze Kopitar (who is leading the NHL in points so far) and Drew Doughty. They hope to keep the points coming as they face another vet-heavy team in Dallas. These teams are pretty evenly matched but I’ve got a hunch L.A. gets it back together in the “Lone Star State”.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Los Angeles Kings (+132)
Edmonton Oilers @ Vegas Golden Knights – 7.00PM EDT
The Edmonton Oilers continue their undefeated run when they travel to Vegas to take on the Golden Knights. The Oilers will be playing in back to back games, and they won last time out against the Coyotes, 5-1. The Golden Knights have lost their last two games in a row, which takes their season record so far to 1-2-0.
Denis Kirilov
Vegas Golden Knights welcome in their T-Mobile Arena the Edmonton Oilers. The hosts are entering into this game after 2 tremendous losses against the St. Louis Blues (1:3) and the LA Kings (6:2). They will be looking to make up for the bad performance with a clean victory over the Oilers. However, the team from Las Vegas is so out of form right now that each single point might be regarded as a success.
On the other side, the Edmonton Oilers are coming into this match with 4 out of 4 from the start of the season after defeating the Arizona Coyotes with 1:5 yesterday. McDavid, Nugent-Hopkins, and Puljujarvi are feeling pretty good on the ice and there is no sign of them backing off. However, we all know sometimes it’s tough to play away at Las Vegas, even if you find yourself healthy and in nice shape. The bad news for the Golden Knights is that Max Pacioretty will miss the match, while there are lots of missing players for the Oilers and I really think this will show up towards the end of the game. That’s why I would pick to end Edmonton’s streak by choosing the Golden Knights to win this tough match-up.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-144)
Tony Battalio
After racing out to a 4-0-0 start the Edmonton Oilers do not look to be stopping anytime soon. Even though last night’s win came against the presumably National Hockey League doormat for the 2021-22 season. This team looks like a group of guys that only has one goal in mind, and that goal is a Stanley Cup trophy. Next up on the mantle for Edmonton is the Las Vegas Golden Knights, a team that is off to a 1-2-0 start this season.
Despite this being a home game for the Knights, and them being the favorites I still have to go with the Edmonton Oilers in this one as they can not seem to be stopped on the offensive end. Edmonton has already compiled double digit Goals through 4 games this season. Most impressive is the fact that 7 different players have scored for the Oilers.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Edmonton Oilers (+122)
Michael Lantz
Through four games, Edmonton have been the exact monsters we expected them to be on offense. In their last three games, they’ve scored 5/6/5 goals and are showing no signs of letting up. Vegas meanwhile has been a bit of the opposite. After an explosive period or so last Tuesday against the rookie Seattle Kraken, the Golden Knights have been on a bit of a goal scoring slump when it comes to their “golden” standards.
They first let Seattle back in the game, as the expansion franchise tied it up 3-3 before Vegas got a late goal. They followed that season debut by getting blasted 6-2 to the L.A. Kings and outplayed by the St. Louis Blues 3-1. In a potential playoff matchup against the Oilers, the Golden Knights look to get back on track.
Meanwhile, Edmonton knows they need to start striking fear in big conference opponents. Despite having two of the league’s top players (Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl), they’ve put up a couple of playoff bombs. They need to start proving to the league they’re more than just a flashy regular season offense and beat big opponents on the road. I’m not sure that happens tomorrow as this feels like more of an early season must-win for the Knights.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-144)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
