There are 9 massive games on the agenda today, with some must win matchups in the mix. Our experts have selected 5 games from the bunch which we believe are the most exciting, and the most likely to bring in the money. Have a read through below for our NHL picks.
Florida Panthers @ Carolina Hurricanes – 7.00 PM EDT
The Panthers continued their molten hot run on Sunday with a 3-0 shutout over the Blue Jackets. The win capped off a flawless 4 game homestand for the Panthers, and was their 6th consecutive win, the longest current streak in the league.
They have been dialled in over this win streak, conceding an average of 1.5 goals and scoring 3.8 over the 6 games.
Sunday’s game was just the second shutout of the Panthers this season with Chris Dreidger making all 32 saves required of him.
There were 3 different goal scorers for the Panthers, including 1 from the skipper, Aleksander Barkov, breaking the deadlock with his goal at the start of the 2nd term.
Tonight’s final! 📈 #CBJvsFLA pic.twitter.com/hwwDMS7EE8
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) April 5, 2021
The Panthers head to Carolina today to face the other titan of the division, the Hurricanes, who have been running solid, but not as consistent as the Panthers.
The Canes began a 6 game homestand earlier in the week, playing the first 2 games against the Stars, losing the first and winning the second to share the points.
The Canes are also coming into this one following a shutout win of their own after beating the Stars 1-0 on Sunday, it marks a league leading 5th shutout for the Canes.
It was a nervy win though, while the Canes were the dominant side they were holding an insecure 1 goal lead for 40 minutes of the game.
NHL Pick – Florida Panthers (+138)
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Tampa Bay Lightning @ Columbus Blue Jackets – 7.00 PM EDT
Tampa will be out for blood after suffering an embarrassing 5-1 defeat at the hands of the Red Wings on Sunday. They were looking to make it 3 wins in a row after beating them 2-1 the day before, and despite outshooting the Red Wings 28 to 17 they couldn’t find the back of the net more than once.
The loss fell at the feet of an unfortunate Christopher Gibson in between the sticks for the Lightning, it was his first start in 3 years for the club and it went terribly, allowing 5 goals from just 17 shots.
The Blue Jackets are coming into this one low on confidence following their third straight defeat, losing the most recent match 3-0 to the Panthers.
They kept the game pretty even on shots but were unable to beat Chris Dreidger in net for the Panthers, it was the 4th time the Blue Jackets have been shutout this season.
The Blue Jackets have played the last 6 games on the road, and will undoubtedly be keen to get back to Columbus after losing all but 1 game against today’s opponent, the Lightning.
NHL Pick – Tampa Bay Lightning (-200)
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Tampa Bay Lightning @ Columbus Blue Jackets – 7.00 PM EDT
The Islanders and Capitals go again today after their goal fest last Thursday, in the time since the Caps have played twice, the Islanders once.
The Capitals played a 2 game series against the Devils in New Jersey and took maximum points, winning 2-1 and 5-4 successively.
It was a good way to bounce back after their embarrassing 8-4 loss to the Islanders, but neither of the games came easy for the Caps.
The Devils outshot them by a whopping 39-19 in the second game and had them sweating in the final term when they made it 4-5 with 5 minutes left.
Not only did Alex Ovechkin play brilliantly, he made history when he scored his 275th power play goal to tie Brent Hull in 2nd place on the all time power play goal scorer list, just 10 away from 1st.
CAPS TODAY: Alex Ovechkin recorded his 265th career power play goal yesterday, tying Brett Hull for the second-most in NHL history in 83-fewer games played. More info on Ovechkin and Caps Clips at https://t.co/HecIC0ECg1 pic.twitter.com/D8JxUqEG5u
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 5, 2021
The Islanders beat the Flyers in a shootout on Saturday, it was the 6th meeting between the sides this season, with the win the Islanders tied up the record 3-3.
Anthony Beauvillier scored both of the Islanders regulation time goals, they held the lead for the majority of the game before giving up 2 quick goals in the final term to send the game to overtime.
The shootout was decided by just 1 goal thanks to Matthew Barzal who buried his shot as the Islanders’ 4th shooter.
Ilya Sorokin came up big with 2 saves in the shootout to cap off a solid performance in net, making 30 saves in regulation time to keep his team in it.
NHL Pick – Washington Capitals (+110)
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Nashville Predators @ Detroit Red Wings – 7.30 PM EDT
The Preds got back to their winning ways with a 3-0 shutout over the Blackhawks in Chicago, bringing their record to 8-2-0, the second best in the league.
It was the Preds’ 3rd shutout of the season, and the 2nd for Juuse Saros who had his work cut out for him, making 41 saves for the game. The Finnish goalie is enjoying a solid season, boasting the 4th highest save percentage in the league out of regular starting goaltenders.
The Preds will be looking to keep this surging form going as they head to Detroit to face the Red Wings, who they are 4-2 against so far this season.
The Red Wings snapped their 3 loss streak with a shocking 5-1 win over the Lightning in Tampa. It was a great result for the struggling side, however much of the win has to be credited to the Lightning being forced to play an inexperienced goalie who hadn’t started in 3 years.
Thomas Greiss did well in net making 27/28 saves attempted, while the goals were distributed amongst the team evenly with 5 different scorers. Anthony Mantha picked up 2 assists in the win, and Adam Erne extended his point streak to 3 games with his assist.
The Red Wings will be eager to be playing at home again after playing the last 4 on the road, they have won 4 of their most recent 6 games when playing at home.
NHL Pick – Nashville Predators (-156)
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Anaheim Ducks @ San Jose Sharks – 10.30 PM EDT
The Ducks went down to the Coyotes in overtime on Sunday, it was the third straight loss for the Ducks, 2 of those at the hands of the Coyotes.
The defeat was painful for the Ducks, who led 2-1 for 40 minutes of the game before conceding with just 5 minutes left to play, forcing the overtime.
No team in the league is more experienced with overtime situations this season than the Ducks, they have gone past regulation time on 12 occasions this season, with an overtime record of 4-5, and a shootout record of 1-2.
The Ducks head to San Jose for 2 games with the Sharks, the two sides have met 5 times this season, the Ducks have won just 1 of those meetings.
INJURY UPDATES: Coach Eakins said Ryan Getzlaf (upper body) did not practice today. Rickard Rakell (upper body) skated on his own and is “inching closer.” Sonny Milano (upper body) practiced with the team but in a non-contact jersey. Sam Steel (lower body) did not skate.
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) April 5, 2021
The Ducks hopes won’t get much better against a Sharks side that is experiencing a very rare hot patch of form. Having just recorded a season best 4 straight wins with their 3-2 victory over the Kings, the Sharks will be full of confidence heading into this one.
After sweeping the Wild over 2 home games, the Sharks travelled to Los Angeles and did the same thing to the Kings, winning the first game 3-0 and the second 3-2.
Martin Jones was instrumental over the 2 games against the Kings, saving 30/30 shots in the first game and 35/37 in the second.
NHL Pick – San Jose Sharks (-180)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
