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 best five games on today’s schedule.
Florida Panthers @ New Jersey Devils – 12.30PM ET
We kick off a jam-packed day in the NHL on Saturday with a game between the Florida Panthers and New Jersey Devils. In the month of March, the Panthers only lost three games, so they will be looking for more of the same this month, to keep their season record healthy. The Devils have lost six of their last eight games, including last time out when they were smashed by the Bruins 1-8.
Marko Nadin
The New Jersey Devils are 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 24-38-5 record. They have lost 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off an 1-8 loss to the Boston Bruins. New Jersey is ranked 18th in the league with 3 goals per game but 29th with 3.6 allowed goals per game. The Devils are ranked 10th in the league defending 80.9% of the power play situations. The Devils have played pretty well at home lately, winning 6 of the last 7 games at Prudential Center in Newark.
The Florida Panthers are on top of the Eastern Conference with a 46-15-6 record and have 98 points, as many as the Carolina Panthers who are second. They have won 5 of the last 6 games and are coming off a 4-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, which was their fourth shutout of the season. The Panthers have won 6 of the last 10 games against the Devils and 3 of those 10 games have finished over 6.5 goals. Florida has won 7 of the last 8 games played after one day rest and 9 of the last 11 games as road favorites.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers (-215)
Tony Battalio
The Florida Panthers come into this game as one of the best teams in the National Hockey League this season. They bring a record of 46-15-6 through their first 67 games into this contest against the New Jersey Devils. They currently hold a six point lead over the second place team in the Atlantic Division, which is the two time defending Stanley Cup champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning. Florida is closing in on the doorstep of an Atlantic Division title with only 15 regular season games left.
⭐⭐⭐ Sergei Bobrovsky posted a flawless month, going 7-0-0 as the @FlaPanthers moved seven points ahead of the closest competition in the Atlantic Division via a League-best 11-2-1 March.#NHLStats: https://t.co/lIkJkVen0B pic.twitter.com/omKIBlb2rd
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 1, 2022
The New Jersey Devils have been having a very rough season. They come into this game with a record of 24-38-5 through their first 67 games of the season. They currently find themselves in the bottom half of the standings in the Metropolitan Division as they are already officially eliminated from the playoffs this season. The New Jersey Devils are currently on a one game losing streak after dropping their last game to the Boston Bruins. As for the result of this game, I have the Florida Panthers getting the victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers (-215)
Jeffery Thomas
The Florida Panthers have a chance to match the franchise record of wins when they take on the New Jersey Devils on Saturday afternoon. Florida will come in winners of five of their last six after shutting out the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 on Thursday to extend their Atlantic Division lead over the 2nd place Tampa Bay Lightning. The Devils have been heading in the opposite direction, losing six of their last eight and are coming off an embarrassing 1-8 loss to the Boston Bruins.
It was the ninth straight loss for the Devils on the road, with all of them occurring in regulation. The Florida Panthers are one of the league’s most dangerous teams and we’ve been profiting a lot backing them in these kinds of spots all season. When they get an inferior opponent, they love to run up the score and win games easily, and I don’t see how that’s not the case again on Saturday. The Devils will have no answers for this offensive attack of Florida so give me the blowout.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers -1.5 (+118)
Pittsburgh Penguins @ Colorado Avalanche – 3.00PM ET
The Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche will face off against each other in back-to-back games, with this Saturday afternoon game being the first. The Penguins are coming into this clash having split their last six games, while the Avalanche have won seven of their last nine.
Marko Nadin
The Colorado Avalanche are the best team in the league with a 48-14-6 record. They have won 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks. The Avalanche are the second-best scoring team in the league with 3.8 goals per game and are 4th with 35.3 shots on goal per game. Colorado has won 47 of the last 56 home games and 59 of the last 80 games following a win. They have played under the total goals margin in 11 of the last 13 games against teams with a winning record.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 41-18-10 record. They have won 2 of the last 3 games and are coming off a 4-3 overtime win over Minnesota. Pittsburgh is 9th in the league with 3.3 goals per game and 4th with 2.6 allowed goals per game. The Penguins are one of rare teams in the league that has had success against the Avalanche in recent matchups as they have won the last three games. The Penguins have also won 4 of the last 5 games against Western Conference teams and 17 of the last 24 road games.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche (-152)
Tony Battalio
This is going to be the best game of the Saturday slate as one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference is set to take on the best team in the Western Conference. When the Pittsburgh Penguins travel west to Colorado to take on the league leading Colorado Avalanche. The Pittsburgh Penguins come into this game with a record of 41-18-10 through their first 69 games of the season. They currently find themselves in third place in the Metropolitan Division at the moment, six points off of the leading New York Rangers.
Wholesome content. #Real #NotAnAprilFools #WeAreSorryForThePranks #HowManyHashtagsIsTooMany#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/eFOx4s4ka3
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 2, 2022
The Colorado Avalanche have been the best team in the National Hockey League for the last couple of months now. After starting the season slowly, they charged forward and have taken a commanding lead of the Central Division since before the NHL All-Star break in Vegas. Colorado is coming into this game with a record of 48-14-6 through their first 68 games of the season. As for the result of this game, I have the Colorado Avalanche getting the victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche (-152)
Jeffery Thomas
Should be a fun one when the Colorado Avalanche host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday. These two teams have lofty playoff expectations and will square off in a nationally-televised game that should garner the eyes of all NHL fans. The Avs are the top team in all of the league and will carry a very impressive 27-4-3 home record into this one. The Penguins will not be intimidated though, having gone 6-3-1 in their last ten road games and 22-8-5 overall on the season.
Both teams are coming in off wins and will be in pretty decent form. I love when we get these powerhouse matchups with great goaltending because we usually get a close, physical battle. I see this game being low-scoring and a one goal game either way, the +1.5 for Pittsburgh could be a great look or parlay piece, but my play for this game is the under. Both teams will bring their A game against each other and the goalies will steal the show in this one.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Under 6.5 (-120)
Montreal Canadiens @ Tampa Bay Lightning – 7.00PM ET
Two teams at different ends of the Atlantic Division will face off against each other on Saturday night when the Montreal Canadiens play the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Canadiens have lost seven of their last nine games, and are currently on a three game losing streak. The Lightning will be playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they beat the Blackhawks, 5-2.
Marko Nadin
The Tampa Bay Lightning are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 43-18-6 record. They have won the last 4 games and are coming off a 5-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The defending champions have won 9 of the last 10 games over the Montreal Canadiens. The Lighting are 10th in the league with 3.3 scored goals per game and 8th with 2.7 allowed goals per game. Tampa Bay has won 50 of the last 70 home games, 20 of the last 28 games without a day off and 37 of the last 51 games as favorites.
The Montreal Canadiens are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with an 18-39-11 record. They have lost the last three games and are coming off a 0-4 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. They score the league-lowest 2.5 goals per game and are ranked second-worst allowing 3.8 goals per game. Montreal has lost 47 of the last 67 road games, 23 of the last 32 games against Eastern Conference teams. They have played over the total goals margin 6 of the last 8 games and 19 of the last 28 games as underdogs.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-335)
Tony Battalio
This one is going to be a 2021 Stanley Cup rematch as the Montreal Canadiens take on the two time defending champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning. There is no chance that Montreal gets back to the Stanley Cup Finals this season, they have been so bad that they are going to miss the Stanley Cup playoffs entirely. Montreal is coming into this game with a record of 18-39-11 through their first 68 games of the season. They have already been officially eliminated from the playoffs.
We’ll see ya tomorrow! 👋
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) April 2, 2022
The previously mentioned two time defending Stanley Cup champions, Tampa Bay, will be playing the second game of a back to back in this matchup. In the first game of their back to back, they knocked off the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 5-2. Now they will be looking to get their second win in two nights when at home. Tampa Bay comes into this game with a record of 43-18-6 through their first 67 games of the season. As for the result of this game, I don’t think the Tampa Bay Lightning will have any issues getting the victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-335)
Jeffery Thomas
The Tampa Bay Lightning will be on the back-to-back here after taking down the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night. It was a 5-2 home win for the Bolts who got two goals and an assist from Ross Colton in the win. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy improved his career mark to 13-0-0 against Chicago in the regular season and made 21 saves. Tampa will now stay home for a game against the Montreal Canadiens who are on a three-game losing streak.
They got Friday off after being shutout by the Carolina Hurricanes on the road, their fifth time being blanked on the season. Both meetings between these two teams have been one goal games so it’s enticing to take the Canadiens to cover the spread again but I won’t. They are not playing the same inspired hockey that we saw when they first brought on head coach Martin St. Louis and the lack of talent on their roster caught back up with them. Tampa Bay is gaining momentum and will carry that into another blowout victory at home.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5 (-120)
Minnesota Wild @ Carolina Hurricanes – 7.00PM ET
The Minnesota Wild kick off a four game road trip tonight when they face off against the Carolina Hurricanes, who themselves wrap up their two game homestand. All good things must come to an end, and this is what we saw last time out for the Wild, as their winning streak was snapped, at seven games. The Hurricanes have won four of their last six games, with their two losses during this span coming in either overtime or a shootout.
Marko Nadin
The Carolina Panthers are second in the Eastern Conference with a 45-15-8 record. The Hurricanes have won 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 4-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens. Carolina is ranked first in the league, allowing 2.3 goals per game and 88.5% defending power play situations. The Hurricanes have won 4 of the last 5 games against Minnesota and 25 of the last 35 games played after one day off. Carolina has played under the total goals margin in 5 of the last 6 games against teams with a winning record over 60%.
The Minnesota Wild are third in the Western Conference with a 41-20-5 record. They are coming off a 3-4 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins that put an end to their seven-game winning streak. The Wild are 4th in the league with 3.6 scored goals per game and 19th in the league with 3.1 allowed goals per game. They have won 14 of the last 17 games against teams from the Metropolitan Division and 5 of the last 7 games played after one day off.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Under 6 (-114)
Tony Battalio
At one point in the season the Minnesota Wild were the best team in the National Hockey League. As of late, they have once again been playing like the best team in the league even if they don’t currently have the best record. They have won their last seven out of eight games before dropping their last game to the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-4 in overtime to end March. Now they will look to get right back on track in this one to open up April. The Wild are currently 41-20-5 through their first 66 games.
Hello road trip, been a while 👋 #mnwild pic.twitter.com/LhYMeCCnav
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) April 1, 2022
The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the top teams in a loaded Eastern Conference this season. In my opinion they are one of my top three favorites along with the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers to win the Eastern Conference. They come into this game with a record of 45-15-8 through their first 68 games of the season, as they currently find themselves on top of the Metropolitan Division. As for the result of this game, I have the Carolina Hurricanes picking up the victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (-162)
Jeffery Thomas
The Carolina Hurricanes have found their groove once again and are currently riding a six-game points streak. A big key to this run has been their offense, which is rolling again and averaging five goals a game in the last four games. Their run is nothing compared to what the Wild have been doing though. Minnesota was in a seven-game winning streak before running into the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday and losing 3-4 in overtime. Even despite that, confidence should still be very high on both sides, setting us up for a banger of a matchup on Sunday.
This is an interesting matchup of two teams who have been winning in different ways. During the Wild’s seven game win streak, they were playing elite defense and the under was 6-0-1 and as unmentioned earlier, Carolina has been winning with elite offense. I think we see the home team dictating the play in this one, and giving the Canes a narrow victory over one of the Western Conference’s better teams.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (-162)
St. Louis Blues @ Calgary Flames – 10.00PM ET
The St. Louis Blues wrap up their three game road trip late on Saturday night when they face off against the Calgary Flames. The Blues are playing two nights in a row, and last time out they lost in overtime to the Oilers, 5-6. The Flames have split their last six games, and they are currently on a two game losing streak, after going down to the Avalanche and Kings.
Marko Nadin
The Calgary Flames are second in the Western Conference with a 40-18-9 record. They have lost the last two games to Los Angeles and Colorado. Calgary is ranked second in the league with 2.4 allowed goals per game and sixth with 3.5 scored goals per game. Calgary has won the last 8 games played on Saturday, 10 of the last 13 games played after one day rest and 14 of the last 19 games against Western Conference teams. The Flames have played under the total goals margin in the last 5 games played after one day rest.
The St. Louis Blue are fourth in the Western Conference with a 37-20-10 record. They have won 2 of the last 3 games but are coming off a 5-6 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers. The Blues have won 5 of the last 6 games against Calgary. They are ranked fifth with 3.5 goals scored per game and third with converting 26.2% off the power play situations. St. Louis has won 13 of the last 16 games against Western Conference teams and 7 of the last 8 against Pacific Division teams but has lost the last 4 games played without a day off.
Marko’s NHL Pick: St. Louis Blues (+205)
Tony Battalio
This one is going to be a good one as the St. Louis Blues travel north across the border to Canada to take on the red hot Calgary Flames. The Blues come into this game in third place in the Central Division with an overall record of 37-20-10 through their first 67 games of the season. With only 15 games left in the regular season, the Blues are still in a fierce playoff positioning battle with not only the Nashville Predators but the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets as well. As they only hold a slim lead over the rest of them for third place.
“It’s important that as a group, they pull each other and that’s the focus.”
Darryl Sutter talks about the #Flames mindset through the stretch drive. pic.twitter.com/VdipsoyI6r
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) April 1, 2022
The Calgary Flames come into this matchup with a record of 40-18-9 through their first 67 games of the season. They currently hold a five point lead over the Los Angeles Kings for first place in the Pacific Division. The Flames are currently on a two game losing streak after losing back to back games to the Colorado Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings. Now the Flames will be looking to get on track in this potential Western Conference playoff series preview. As for the result of this one, that is exactly what I expect as I have Calgary getting the win.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Calgary Flames (-225)
Jeffery Thomas
The St. Louis Blues will be on the back-to-back here after a 5-6 loss on the road to the Edmonton Oilers. It was just another high-scoring affair for the Blues who have now seen seven or more goals in eight of their last eleven contests. Their offense in that span is averaging 4 goals a game and the goaltending has been wildly inconsistent. Ville Husso has allowed three or more goals in 3 of his last 5 starts and will be getting the nod against the Calgary Flames on Saturday. This could be a huge bounce-back spot for a Flames offense that has scored just three combined goals in the last two games.
Prior to those games, Calgary was averaging 4.5 goals a game in their last six contests. On the season they are averaging 3.48 a game, so an offensive explosion is bound to happen because you just can’t keep them down for long. We’re getting a great matchup here between two teams that have had no problem putting the puck in the net this season. There has been an average of seven goals scored between them in the first two meetings, so I love for this game to go over the total of 6.5. Expect a big game from the Flames who went off for 6 goals the last time they were held to just 3 goals over a two-game stretch.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Over 6.5 (-106)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
