We are in the thick of the 2021/22 NHL season, and things are certainly heating up! Today there are heaps of games for us fans to sink our teeth into. With so many teams taking the ice, it is going to be an exciting day of NHL action, so you don’t want to miss this.
How will today’s games shake out? Which teams will be in the winners circle, and who will need to bounce back after a loss? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain, we are in for some great games! So sit back, relax 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 best five games on today’s schedule.
Los Angeles Kings @ Winnipeg Jets – 7.00PM ET
The Los Angeles Kings end their four game road trip in Winnipeg when they take on the Jets. The month of November has been very kind to the Kings, as they are yet to drop a game so far this month. They are on a seven game winning streak, which takes their season record out to 8-5-1. The Jets are looking to build on their win last time out, to the Sharks, 4-1, and their season record currently stands at 7-3-3.
Denis Kirilov
The Los Angeles Kings will try to continue their miracle run in Winnipeg on Saturday night. They have won their last 7 games in the NHL which moved them only to 8th place in the West with 17 points. The Kings had great troubles in their opening games for the season, losing 6 out of their 7 matches. They haven’t been as dominant as one would think in their 7 straight wins, but they did just enough to get the vital points. The biggest difference between this series of 7 games and the one in the entry point of the campaign is the fact that their defense is working like a well-oiled machine. They haven’t conceded more than 2 goals in a single game during this streak.
On the other hand, the Winnipeg Jets are ahead of the Kings in the overall standings as they have set their eyes on the Playoffs this year. Both teams faced each other two weeks ago and the game ended with a 3-2 win in favor of the Jets. Kyle Connor and Pierre-Luc Dubois are feeling great at the moment as they are forming a deadly duo in front positions. The game was kind of even in terms of overall statistics which further proves the equality between these two teams. I am inclined to think that this time we will see more discrepancy and I believe that the Winnipeg Jets will be able to assert their dominance over the Kings.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Moneyline Including Tie – Winnipeg Jets (-120)
Tony Battalio
Los Angeles takes a seven game winning streak on the road, north of the border to Winnipeg for what is sure to be a great matchup. It has helped them recover from a very slow start to the year that resulted in them sitting at 1-5-1 through their first seven games. Over the course of this seven game winning streak, Los Angeles has wins over teams like Toronto, St. Louis, New Jersey and the Buffalo Sabres. Even with their wins they still find themselves on the bubble of the early season playoff race, so they will need to continue to string victories together.
“They’ve won us hockey games on their play, but who you play with changes the way you play sometimes.”
Paul Maurice on making adjustments, looking at player performances, and more!
WATCH 🔽 pic.twitter.com/0IcT2M2dWX
— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) November 12, 2021
As for the Winnipeg Jets, they come into this game with a record of 7-3-3, including an impressive 5-1-1 mark at home, so they have done a good job of defending home ice thus far. Winnipeg has come into the month of November with a decent start with three victories in five games played. They will be looking to snap the Kings impressive win streak and improve their home record to 6-1-1, but it will not be an easy task at all. As for the result of this game, I look for the Los Angeles Kings to improve their win streak to eight as they have been playing great hockey as of late and will be very hard to beat. The safer bet in this one is the Los Angeles Kings moneyline, as I look for this game to go down to the final whistle in the evening and potentially even overtime or a shootout.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Los Angeles Kings (+158)
Michael Lantz
The L.A. Kings are the hottest team in the NHL—winners of seven straight. There have been some nail biters, but this team has prevailed, thanks in large part by the veteran presence displayed by Anze Kopitar, who leads the team in scoring with 16 points. In addition to Kopitr, they’ve been receiving a nice offensive push from Alex Iafallo, a guy they’ve been waiting on to break out and take the next step. The Kings will look to take it to eight as the head up to Manitoba and take on the Winnipeg Jets.
After a shaky start the Jets have got out to a 7-3-3 record and are coming off a nice win against the San Jose Sharks. They’ve been thrilled with young American Kyle Conner’s performance as he’s already recorded 10 goals and 18 points to sit among the leaders in the league. Conner vs Kopitar will be a thrill to watch, but this also should be a close game based on their matchup earlier in the season which ended with a 3-2 Winnipeg win in Los Angeles. That game was the last time the Kings lost and Winnipeg will look to spoil their current run as well. I’ll take the Jets to continue and be a kryptonite for the Kings.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Winnipeg Jets (-192)
Florida Panthers @ Tampa Bay Lightning – 7.00PM ET
This Saturday night clash will be the final road game for the Florida Panthers in this trip, and they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are in the middle of a three game home stand. The Panthers are looking to turn around a three game losing streak with a win tonight, and last time out they lost to the Penguins, 2-3, in a shootout. The Lightning have had two wins and two losses so far this month, which brings their season record to 6-3-3.
Denis Kirilov
Proclaimed by many to be the best team in the NHL at the moment, the Florida Panthers found themselves in a quite unusual and pessimistic position after losing 3 away games in a row. This streak began with a 3-4 loss to the Rangers and continued with a demolition by the Devils and a narrow defeat against the Penguins. The Panthers managed to beat the undefeated Carolina Hurricanes, but after this match things went south for them. They haven’t been the same team since either because of bad luck or due to some other circumstances. What is even stranger is the fact that their players are coming back from injuries and they started losing.
The reigning champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning, will have to work on their way back in the top 5 of the Eastern Conference. Right now, they are in 10th place which suggests that they will have to put in a bit more effort in order to climb the leaderboard. After the bad start to the season, the Lightning managed to pull themselves together and recorded 4 wins out of their last 6 matches. Their two losses came to opponents that can beat any other team in the League – the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Carolina Hurricanes. We are definitely in for a treat with this game as I truly believe it will be as exciting in the end as it is in its beginning. However, I will give my preferences to the Panthers as they have proven on several occasions that they can play on a very high level against the best teams in the NHL.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Florida Panthers (+102)
Tony Battalio
The wheels may be starting to fall off on the Florida Panthers impressive start to the season, as after a blazing start they have lost their last three games being outscored by a combined score of 8-14. Florida started the season 10-0-1 but after losing their head coach, the fallout from the Blackhawks scandal has seemingly caught up to them. While they have plenty of time to right the course of this season they will still need to find a quick fix as they have a tough stretch of games approaching throughout the rest of the month of November.
As for the Tampa Bay Lightning, they are still struggling to find the form that led them to back to back Stanley Cup Trophies in the past two seasons. Currently possessing a record of 6-3-3, their month of November has got off to a disappointing start as while they have won two games, they have also dropped two heartbreakers in overtime by the same score of 1-2. This game could be the best of the Saturday evening slate but it’s also a game of two teams who desperately need a huge win at the moment. As for the result of this one, I look for the Panthers and Lightning to be locked in a back and forth contest and for the Tampa Bay Lightning to net a late winner to come out of this big contest with an even bigger win.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-122)
Michael Lantz
In what has become one of the NHL’s great rivalries, the Tampa Bay Lightning look to avenge an October 17th loss to the Panthers where they blanked at home 1-4. The Lightning have looked better since that game, but still not like the back-to-back champs we’ve come to expect. Their defense has set the tone behind Victor Hedman, but they’ve continued to struggle to find goals when playing great teams. That’s what not having Nikita Kucherov and losing key members of your depth will do to you.
Meanwhile, the Florida Panthers have hit some bumps since starting the season 10-0-1. After a massive win against the previously undefeated Carolina Hurricanes, the Panthers have fallen flat. They’ve recorded three straight defeats, including a 3-7 loss to the New Jersey Devils. They’ll hope to get back on track vs their Florida rivals, but don’t think Tampa will forget that beating they received last month. I expect the Lightning to take advantage of a struggling Panthers team and take them out at home
Michael’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-122)
St. Louis Blues @ Carolina Hurricanes – 7.30PM ET
The St. Louis Blues have a short one game road trip when they take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night. The Blues are having a bit of a topsy-turvy start to November, winning two of their five games so far, with three of them going to at least overtime. The Hurricanes are looking to bounce back after a 1-2 loss to the Flyers last time out, and this takes their season record to 10-2-0.
Denis Kirilov
After a disappointing 1-2 loss at home against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Carolina Hurricanes take on the St. Louis Blues in a make-up test. The Hurricanes is, without a doubt, one of the best teams in the NHL this season and they will try to keep it like that for the rest of the campaign. They are 2nd in the East, just behind the Panthers, and have the best goal difference amongst all teams in the League. However, they find it hard to get the puck past the opponent’s goalie as they have scored just 2.33 goals on average in their last 6 matches. However, I am sure that Svechnikov, Aho, and the rest of the team will bounce back and start scoring like crazy.
Their opponents, the St. Louis Blues also enjoyed a great run in the beginning of the 2021/22 NHL season. They are 3rd in the Western Conference with a real chance to take the 1st place if they manage to defeat the Hurricanes tomorrow. Like Carolina, The Blues are also inconsistent in their last games winning just 3 out of their previous 7 matches. Defeats to the Avalanche, the Predators and to the high-flying Kings and Ducks stopped their momentum and they will try to find a new one. What a better way to start a streak than to defeat a top-tier team like the Hurricanes. I think this will be a tight contest, but I will give my preferences to the Hurricanes as the Blues are still without plenty of their players.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (-144)
Tony Battalio
The St. Louis Blues have found themselves in a great position through the season’s first half month. They are currently sitting at 8-2-2 through 12 games played. They have hit a bit of a rough patch dropping two of their last three games played. It will be a quick one game road trip for St. Louis against one of the top teams in the National Hockey League so they will have to play near perfect hockey to pick up a victory in this one.
Right back at it tomorrow` pic.twitter.com/VVgYY5yw5g
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) November 13, 2021
As for the Carolina Hurricanes, Friday’s 1-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers brings their record to 10-2-0 on the year. They are still off to an impressive start and one of the early Stanley Cup favorites. This will surely be the most competitive game of the evening and when the final horn sounds I expect the Carolina Hurricanes to snap their quick 1 game losing streak to play their way back into the winners column.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (-144)
Michael Lantz
Through their first seven games the Carolina Hurricanes were 7-0-0 and averaging over four goals per game. Since then, they still garnered an impressive 10-2-0 record, with their defense still (for the most part) wrecking havoc; leading the league in fewest goals given up per game. But their offense has hit a slump, they’re still among the top five in goals per game, but they’ve only been averaging two goals per game over the last five. After a 1-2 loss to the Flyers on Friday night, they’ll have to turn their focus to a Saturday matchup against the Blues to see if they can get the scoring back on track.
St. Louis is not a favorable matchup if you’re looking to turn around a scoring drought. Offensively, the Blues are tied with Carolina for goals per game with 3.5; they also are just behind the Edmonton Oilers in power play percentage. Defensively they’re sixth in least goals against per game and fourth in least goals against total—which ranks just behind a Philadelphia team that Carolina struggled against on Friday night. Still, the ‘Canes hope their home ice advantage helps them out in what should be a gritty battle. As much as I think St. Louis will be a tough matchup for them, I expect a gritty battle in Carolina’s favor, as they’re not ones to make losing a pattern.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (-144)
Minnesota Wild @ Seattle Kraken – 10.00PM ET
The Minnesota Wild end their three game road trip in Seattle when they take on the Kraken, who are one game into their seven game home stand. The Wild will be looking to bounce back after suffering their first loss of November last time out, 2-3, to the Golden Knights. The month of November has not been kind to the Kraken so far, they have only won one game, which takes their season record out to 4-9-1.
Denis Kirilov
The Minnesota Wild travels to Seattle on Saturday in a game that’s really important for the Kraken. They are in a 3-game losing streak and they are desperately looking for the flare that will ignite their game. The Kraken even lost to the worst team in the NHL at the moment, the Arizona Coyotes. The team surely consists of great players like Yanni Gourde, Jordan Eberle, Jared McCann, and Brandon Tanev. However, their defense is crumbling as that is where the team should focus their efforts on. They are frequently conceding lots of goals due to silly mistakes and such things should be minimized.
On the other hand, Minnesota’s great 4-0 run was stopped in their last match after they lost to the Vegas Golden Knights on the road. The Wild have been anything other than a dominant team in their matches so far. They have produced such a performance that is just enough for them to win their games. They showed that it will take a lot to beat them, but Seattle managed to do that two weeks ago. The game ended in a 4-1 win for the Kraken who had a fantastic 2nd Period and held on to their lead in the last part of the match when they scored two unanswered goals. However, I think it’s time for revenge as the Minnesota Wild will take measures this time and it will be a lot harder for the rookies in the NHL to outplay them. My pick here goes towards Minnesota.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Minnesota Wild (-118)
Tony Battalio
Minnesota heads into the finale of their three game road trip with a stop in the Pacific Northwest to play the National Hockey League’s newest team, the Seattle Kraken. Minnesota is currently 9-4 on the year as they are still one of the few teams in the league to have yet to lose a game past regulation this season. They opened up the month of November on a four game winning streak that ended in their last game due to a 2-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. Now they will be looking to jumpstart another streak with a win on Saturday night in Seattle.
As for the Seattle Kraken, it has been a rough introduction to the NHL, as through their first 14 games they are currently 4-9-1 on the year. They have dropped five of their last six games, and are currently on a three game losing streak, however they do own a win over the Minnesota Wild already this season. They will be looking to find a quick fix as they have a tough stretch of games ahead, luckily for them it comes in the form of a massive five game homestand. As for the result of this game, I look for the Minnesota Wild to avenge their earlier loss to Seattle and quickly get back to their winning ways with a huge win on Saturday.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Minnesota Wild (-118)
Michael Lantz
Yes, the Kraken are just an expansion team, so it’s important to be patient when it comes to the team’s process. Still, even at 4-9-1, they’ve been in a lot of games, despite losing to the Ducks 4-7 on Thursday, they were in it until the Ducks got two empty net goals in the last 2:30. They also were tied with Vegas 2-2 going into the third before allowing two goals in 46 seconds to the Golden Knights, which would result in the final score of 4-2.
The Kraken’s offense has looked a lot better than most thought it would be. They’re getting shots and after a couple games where they had finishing problems, have looked a lot better. The power play is still a problem, but it can take some time to find the right lines. Unfortunately the Kraken built a team based on defense and goalkeeping, two aspects that have been suspect, including their constant issue of giving up goals directly after they score. They’ll need to be more disciplined going forward if they want to compete in their first season.
Their next matchup comes against the Minnesota Wild, who they beat back at the end of last month. Minnesota will look to pay the Kraken back, after a 2-5 defeat during their last trip to Climate Pledge Arena; this time they’ll be pleased to have Mats Zuccarello back. Zuccarello missed time with COVID, and was the team’s leading scorer before his time on the sideline. With him back and part of the attack, expect the Wild to give the Kraken a tough time, as they look to avenge their last meeting and look to bounce back after a close road loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Minnesota Wild (-118)
Vancouver Canucks @ Vegas Golden Knights – 10.00PM ET
The Vancouver Canucks are in the middle of a three game road trip when they travel to Vegas to take on the Golden Knights. The Canucks are looking to turn around a two game losing streak on Saturday night, and their season record currently stands at 5-7-2. The Golden Knights have played six games so far in November, and they have won four of them, this brings their season record to 8-6-0.
Denis Kirilov
The Vancouver Canucks will have a difficult fixture on the road against the Vegas Golden Knights. Although the hosts are not in their top form at the moment, they can always be a tough opponent to face. After their awful start to the season where they recorded 1 win and 4 losses, they managed to find their rhythm and now, they are at 8 wins and 6 losses. However, the Golden Knights didn’t defeat any top contenders for the title in the process, but they were surely quite dominant against teams of Vancouver’s caliber.
The Canucks, themselves, are looking to avoid getting into a multiple-game losing streak as they have accumulated two in a row so far. The 1-7 loss to the Colorado Avalanche in their last match proved once again that they are far away from being a contender for anything more than just reaching the Playoffs. They have been outplayed by the better teams like the Edmonton Oilers, the Philadelphia Flyers, and the Minnesota Wild, although these were all home games. Their defense will need to be focused throughout the whole match, if they want to stop Vegas’ Reilly Smith and Chandler Stephenson. In my opinion, it will be a tough game for the Canucks and they will once again lose by a big margin.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights -1.5 (+164)
Tony Battalio
The Vancouver Canucks come into this one with a record of 5-7-2 through 14 games on the year. They will also be looking to break a two game losing streak in the process. The month of November has been a rough one for the Canucks as they have gone 2-2-1 over a span of five games. They were completely outclassed in their last game as the Colorado Avalanche seemingly scored at will on the way to a 1-7 victory against the Canucks at home in Denver. Sometimes the hardest games to respond to are the ones following a huge win or a huge loss so there is no telling what the Canucks will do when they hit the ice in Las Vegas on Saturday.
🎥 DeBoer: The one thing about our penalty kill is you’re in motion a lot. You’re not standing still. If there’s a turnover, you have an opportunity to be off to the races. pic.twitter.com/UnbrSPwtaV
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) November 12, 2021
As for the Las Vegas Golden Knights, they head into this game with a record of 8-6 through 14 games, as they have yet to lose a game past regulation so far this season. The month of November has been decent for them, as through six games they possess a record of 4-2. At the end of the day it’s clear that this is not the same Las Vegas team that made an improbable run to the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural season. They have been scrambling to find that same success since then. As for the result, in this one however I do look for the Vegas Golden Knights to pick up a victory over the slumping Vancouver Canucks and not only win but cover the spread of 1.5 goals, in what will likely result in a huge blowout victory for Las Vegas.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights -1.5 (+164)
Michael Lantz
At 5-7-2 on the year, the Vancouver Canucks have had a lot of frustrating losses. They’ve had five games where they’ve lost by one goal, and even though two of those have still resulted in one point (OT losses), the team has to be thinking “what if”. The Canucks had a chance to get closer to .500 on Thursday night against a Nathan MacKinnon-less Colorado Avalanche team. Instead, they were butchered, 1-7. Now Vancouver must face a Golden Knights team that hasn’t also let missing players get them down.
The Vegas Golden Knights have been without their two top players, Max Pacioretty and Mark Stone for a majority of the season, but they haven’t used that as an excuse. They sit at 8-6 and you have to imagine their best play is still ahead. Stone is listed as questionable and might make his return against the Canucks on Saturday. Even if he’s out, the Golden Knights have shown resilience. The Canucks will look to not make a pattern out of the disgusting loss against the Avalanche, I expect them to do what they do best in this game against the Golden Knights, lose…but cover.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Vancouver Canucks +1.5 (-205)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
