We are loving the action throughout this impressive NHL season so far. As we move into the final stretch of the season, each division’s ladder has already become well formed. This means that every single win or loss can have a significant impact on the position each team will finish in when the regular season draws to a close, so it is important that you don’t miss any of the action!
Here at SportsTips, we are just as keen on the NHL as you are! We spend each and every day going through the best games and previewing them for you. Our experts offer up their free NHL picks, which means that you not only get enjoyment out of watching some intriguing games, but also make extra cash while doing so!
Look below to find our free NHL picks, as we preview the four games on today’s schedule.
Boston Bruins @ Columbus Blue Jackets – 7.00PM ET
We kick the new week off with a game between the Boston Bruins and the Columbus Blue Jackets. This will be the second time in a row these two teams face off against each other, and in the first game it was the Bruins who came out victorious, 5-2. Will the Blue Jackets get revenge now they are playing on their home ice, or will the Bruins prove too good once again?
Marko Nadin
The Columbus Blue Jackets are 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 32-32-5 record. They have lost the last six games, most recently 2-5 against the Bruins in their previous game two nights ago. The Blue Jackets theoretically still have a chance to reach the postseason but as they have lost the last six games, they are pretty much done for the season. The Blue Jackets have lost 12 of the last 17 games as a home underdog and the last 5 games against teams with a winning record over 60%.
The Boston Bruins are seventh in the Eastern Conference with a 43-20-5 record. Boston has won 4 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 5-2 win against their tonight’s opponent. Boston has a chance to climb to third place in the conference. In order to do that, the Bruins will win this one easily, maybe not with 3 goals difference like they did two days ago at home, but will definitely defeat the Blue Jackets. They have won 7 of the last 8 games against Eastern Conference teams and 16 of the last 21 overall.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-255)
Tony Battalio
The Boston Bruins are coming into this game with a record of 43-20-5 through their first 68 games of the season. Boston currently holds onto the top wild card spot in the Eastern Conference and are still very much in the running for a top three spot in the Atlantic Division. Boston is currently on a two game winning streak after getting back to back wins over the New Jersey Devils and Columbus Blue Jackets. Boston is a dark horse team to win the Stanley Cup this season.
Looking real sharp for a Sunday. ✈️ pic.twitter.com/zHWKFJt0T8
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 3, 2022
The Columbus Blue Jackets have been an up and down team this season. As they have shown flashes of being a good team and have also gone through stretches of being less than average as well. Columbus comes into this game with a record of 32-32-5 through their first 69 games of the season. While there is still a fighting chance for them to make the Stanley Cup playoffs it’s likely not going to happen. As for the result of this game, I have the Boston Bruins getting the win.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-255)
Jeffery Thomas
Game two of a home-and-home series between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Boston Bruins shifts to Columbus on Monday night. The Bruins won game 1 by a score of 5-2 on Saturday night, making that two wins in two meetings so far this season. Columbus hasn’t been doing a good job on the penalty kill in this matchup, as Boston’s power-play is converting at a 66% clip so far. It’s a 4-1-0 stretch for the Bruins right now, scoring 26 goals during that span. Columbus on the other hand, has lost six straight games and the goaltending has been a huge problem.
Elvis Merzlikins has started the last five games and allowed 18 goals in that span. He’s their best option at the moment though so it’s likely the CBJ continue on their pace of being the third-worst defense in the league, allowing 3.74 goals a game. The win from the Bruins on Saturday was dominant and there’s no reason for us to expect anything different on Monday. They are trying to climb out of the wild card race and it has shown with their play recently, approaching every game like it’s a must-win. Boston has the advantage in every aspect and should get this one done in regulation.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Moneyline (3-way) – Boston Bruins (-150)
Toronto Maple Leafs @ Tampa Bay Lightning – 7.30PM ET
The next game up on Monday night will be a doozy, as we will see the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning, both from the Atlantic Division, face off. The Maple Leafs have won their last four games in a row, against the Panthers, Bruins, Jets and Flyers. The Lightning had their four game winning streak snapped last time out, thanks to the Canadiens, 4-5, in a shootout.
Marko Nadin
The Tampa Bay Lightning are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 43-18-7 record. The defending champions have won 4 of the last 5 games but are coming off a 4-5 shootout loss to the last team in the conference and last season’s Stanley Cup opponent, the Montreal Canadiens. Tampa Bay has won 6 of the last 10 games against Toronto. They are ranked 8th in the league scoring 3.3 goals per game and 2.8 allowed goals per game. Tampa Bay has won 51 of the last 71 home games but only 1 of the last 8 games against teams with a winning record over 60%.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are third in the Eastern Conference with a 44-19-5 record. They have won the last 4 games and are coming off a 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers in their last game. Toronto is ranked second in the league with 3.8 goals per game and is the best team in the league when it comes to power play conversion with 29.8%. Toronto has won 5 of their last 6 games played after 1 day rest, 23 of the last 31 games against Eastern Conference teams and 14 of the last 20 games against teams from the Atlantic Division.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Toronto Maple Leafs (+114)
Tony Battalio
This is going to be the best game of the evening as two of the top three teams in the Atlantic Division, Eastern Conference, and the entire National Hockey League will face off. As the Toronto Maple Leafs will face off with the two time defending Stanley Cup champions the Tampa Bay Lightning. Toronto comes into this game with a record of 44-19-5 through their first 68 games of the season. They are currently in second place in the Atlantic Division as they trail the Florida Panthers by 9 points.
Final.
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) April 3, 2022
The Tampa Bay Lightning are coming into this game in third place of the Atlantic Division as they trail their opponents in this one, by only tiebreakers and can move into second place with a victory at home on Monday night. Tampa Bay comes into this game with a record of 43-18-7 through their first 68 games of the season. With only 14 regular season games remaining including this one, they will look to build up some momentum before starting on their journey to win their third straight Stanley Cup trophy. As for the result of this one however, I have Toronto getting the win.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Toronto Maple Leafs (+114)
Jeffery Thomas
We get a potential playoff preview when the Toronto Maple Leafs travel to Tampa Bay to take on the Lightning. Heading into Monday’s game the two teams are knotted up at 93 points a piece, which is good for 2nd and 3rd place in the division. The Leafs hold the tiebreaker due to having more regulation wins but there’s still a handful of games left in the season to decide matters. Through the first two meetings the two sides have split, with Toronto taking the November 4 matchup 2-1 and the Bolts winning 5-3 on December 9.
This is the first meeting in Tampa Bay for these two teams and the Bolts hold a 21-6-5 record on home ice. These powerhouse meetings usually give us low-scoring battles but with both teams averaging a combined ten goals in their last four outings, I can’t fade these offenses. Instead, I’m going to side with the home Lightning who will hold the goaltending advantage and have the backing of the crowd to push them over the top.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-137)
Arizona Coyotes @ St. Louis Blues – 8.00PM ET
We have a Central Division rivalry next up in the NHL for Monday, when we see the Arizona Coyotes hit the ice against the St. Louis Blues. The Coyotes are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they beat the Blackhawks, 3-2, in overtime. The Blues have split their last six games, and this takes their overall record on the season to 38-20-10.
Marko Nadin
The St. Louis Blues are fourth in the Western Conference with a 38-20-10 record. They have won 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 6-4 win over the Calgary Flames. The Blues are ranked fifth in the league scoring 3.6 goals per game and third converting 26.2% of power play situations. The Blues have won 5 of the last 6 Monday games, 16 of the last 21 games against Western Conference teams and 20 of the last 28 games as home favorites. They have played over the total goals margin in 7 of the last 8 games and in 20 of the last 28 games against teams with a losing record under 40%.
The Arizona Coyotes are 14th in the Western Conference with a 21-41-6 record. They have lost 7 of the last 9 games and are coming off a 3-2 overtime win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The Coyotes are ranked last in the league with 2.5 goals and 25.7 shots on goal per game and are 28th allowing 3.6 goals per game. The Coyotes have won 6 of the last 10 games against St. Louis but have lost 8 of the last 11 games without a day off and 42 of the last 54 games against teams with a winning record.
Marko’s NHL Pick: St. Louis Blues (-420)
Tony Battalio
The Arizona Coyotes are coming into this game after playing the first game of a back to back on Sunday. In the first game of their back to back they picked up a win over the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 3-2 in overtime on the road in the Windy City. Now they will look to make it two wins in two days against another Central Division opponent. The Coyotes have had their fair share of struggles this season, as they come into this game with a record of 22-42-5 through their first 69 games of the season.
Let’s watch that Nathan Walker goal again, shall we? 😍#stlblues | @jagermeisterusa pic.twitter.com/RHDW9r9vpe
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) April 3, 2022
The St. Louis Blues are coming into this matchup with a record of 38-20-10 through their first 68 games of the season. The Blues currently find themselves in third place in the Central Division. They are on a one game winning streak after picking up a victory in their last game over the Calgary Flames by a score of 6-4 on the road. As for the result of this game, I think the St. Louis Blues are going to pick up the victory over the Arizona Coyotes.
Tony’s NHL Pick: St. Louis Blues (-420)
Jeffery Thomas
The Arizona Coyotes will be on leg two of a back-to-back after taking down the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 on Saturday. It was a nice bounce-back win for Arizona after their shutout loss to the Anaheim Ducks the game before. Now awaits a very difficult task in the St. Louis Blues who are winners of three of their last four. Last game out for the Blues was a 6-4 win on the road in Calgary, their 38th victory on the year.
The first meeting of these teams was won by the St. Louis Blues 7-4 so they were able to get the over and cover the spread. I think Monday’s game will follow a similar script as the Coyotes are just going through the motions and trying to finish this season out. Pick your poison with the over or the spread line for the Blues but I’m going to roll with the over, as we should once again see plenty of goals.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Over 6.5 (-104)
Calgary Flames @ Los Angeles Kings – 10.30PM ET
The fourth and final game on Monday night’s slate will see the Calgary Flames travel to Los Angeles to go up against the Kings. The Flames come into this clash on a three game losing streak, which includes losses to the Avalanche, Kings and Blues. The Kings have split their last four games, but they are on a two game winning streak at the moment.
Marko Nadin
The Los Angeles Kings are fifth in the Western Conference with a 38-23-10 record. They have won 3 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 3-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets. The Kings are ranked the best team in the league when it comes to allowed shots on goal with 28.6 per game and are ranked ninth allowing only 2.8 goals per game. Los Angeles has won 6 of the last 7 games when their opponent allowed 5 goals or more in their previous game but only 1 of the last 5 games as a home underdog.
The Calgary Flames have fallen to third place in the Western Conference with a 40-19-9 record. They have lost the last three games, all of them at home, and are coming off a 4-6 loss to the St. Louis Blues. The Flames are ranked second in the league allowing 2.5 goals per game and sixth scoring 3.5 goals per game. Calgary has won the last 5 Monday games and 5 of the last 6 games on the road. They have played under the total goals margin in the last two games against the Kings and in 5 of the last 6 games played after 1 day rest.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Under 6 (-104)
Tony Battalio
The Calgary Flames have been one of the best teams in the National Hockey League over the last couple of months. They stormed into first place in the Pacific Division and they will likely end up holding onto that lead and winning the division. They come into this one with a record of 40-19-9 through their first 68 games of the season. With only 14 regular season games to go they hold a slim three point lead over their opponents in this game. Which makes this contest much more important in the long run as it will likely play a difference in the final standings.
“For us, the goal is to get to the tournament. 𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬.”
– Luc RobitailleBlack & White – The Playoff Push
🎥 https://t.co/u9KSlW5yaW pic.twitter.com/hof9nZoec8
— LA Kings (@LAKings) April 4, 2022
The Los Angeles Kings are coming into this game with a record of 38-23-10 through their first 71 games of the season. The Kings are only three points behind the Calgary Flames for the lead into the Pacific Division so a win in this game would be huge for them. They are currently on a two game winning streak after getting back to back wins over the Winnipeg Jets and their opponents in this game the Calgary Flames to end March. As for the result of this game, I have the Calgary Flames getting the win.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Calgary Flames (-192)
Jeffery Thomas
The Calgary Flames are about to embark on a four-game road trip that starts on Monday and are in search of answers. They are currently on a three-game losing streak and their lead in the Pacific Division is now all of a sudden is in jeopardy. Barring the result of Monday’s game against the 2nd place Los Angeles Kings, the Flames’ lead could be down to as little as one point with a regulation loss. The Kings are coming in on two wins, including one over Calgary on March 31.
I think this game is going to be hard fought on both sides and with the two teams coming in going in opposite directions it’s hard to back the favorite that hasn’t been winning. I think the Kings have a great chance at getting their 2nd win in 5 days over the Flames but even if they don’t, it won’t be by more than a goal. Give me the Kings to cover this spread.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Los Angeles Kings +1.5 (-170)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
