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.
Toronto Maple Leafs @ Boston Bruins – 7.00PM ET
One of the first games of the night will see the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins, both from the Atlantic Division, go toe-to-toe. The Maple Leafs have been alternating between wins and losses for the last five games, but last time out they did get a big win over the Panthers, 5-2. The Bruins are building nicely, as they have won four games in a row over the Jets, Canadiens, Lightning and Islanders.
Marko Nadin
The Boston Bruins are seventh in the Eastern Conference with a 41-19-5 record. The Bruins have won 4 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 6-3 win over the New York Islanders. The Bruins are ranked 16 in the league with 3 goals per game and third with 35.8 shots on goal per game. The Bruins have won the last 6 of the last 10 games against Toronto. The Bruins have won the last 8 games when their opponent scores 5 goals or more in their previous game and the last five against teams from the Eastern Conference.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 41-19-5 record. The Maple Leafs have won 3 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 5-2 win over the best team in the conference, the Florida Panthers. The Maple Leafs are third in the league, scoring 3.6 goals per game and are the best team in the league converting 29.2% of the power play situations. Toronto has won 4 of the last 5 games against teams with a winning record and 21 of the last 28 against conference rivals.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Over 6.5 (+104)
Tony Battalio
The Toronto Maple Leafs are coming into this game with a record of 41-19-5 through their first 65 games of the season. Toronto is currently in third place in the Atlantic Division at the moment. They are seven points off the leaders, the Florida Panthers. They picked up a victory in their last game over the Florida Panthers in their last game by a score of 5-2 on their home ice. Now they will be looking to make it two in a row against the Boston Bruins on the road. Toronto is just one of many potential Stanley Cup contenders coming out of the Eastern Conference.
Dug deep 😤#LeafsForever | @LGCanada pic.twitter.com/An7g6fKe7E
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) March 28, 2022
The Boston Bruins have put together a decent season this year as we enter the last quarter of the regular season. They come into this game with a record of 41-19-5 through their first 65 games of the season. Boston is currently in fourth place in the Atlantic Division as they are tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs on points. However, they do hold onto one of the wild card spots in the Eastern Conference at the moment. As for the result of this game, I have the Toronto Maple Leafs picking up the victory over the Boston Bruins.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Toronto Maple Leafs (+106)
Jeffery Thomas
We should expect a very competitive battle here as both teams are tied in the standings with a 41-19-5 record coming in. The Bruins may be the side with the better form right now, going 8-1-1 in their last ten games including four straight. In those four games, the Bruins have scored 16 goals while only giving up 9. Jeremy Swayman has been lights out in net and will need to keep it up against a Toronto Maple Leafs team that is coming off a huge win over the Florida Panthers. Goaltending was a huge issue to start the second half of the season but they may have caught lightning in a bottle with Petr Mrazek. He is 2-0-0 in his last two starts and has stopped 54 of 58 shots he’s faced.
But the offense will always be the story for Toronto and we need to keep an eye on Auston Matthews in this one, who is only two goals away from his first 50-goal season. It’s very hard to go against a team when they are rolling like the Bruins are. They’ve seemed to hit their stride at the right part of the season and have found their true identity as a team. The Bruins also find themselves in a favorable spot when you look at a couple trends on the Toronto side. The Leafs are really good so they are rarely underdogs, but when it does happen it doesn’t go well for them. Toronto is 0-4 in their last four installments of being a road underdog, which they will be on Tuesday. This all leads me to the Bruins.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-128)
Carolina Hurricanes @ Tampa Bay Lightning – 7.00PM ET
The Carolina Hurricanes wrap up their three game road trip on Tuesday night when they face off against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Hurricanes are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they completely dismantled the Capitals, 6-1. The Lightning seems to be back on track, as they have won their last two games over the Red Wings and Islanders, after dropping their previous three in a row.
Marko Nadin
The Tampa Bay Lightning are fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 41-18-6 record. The defending champions have won the last two games and are coming off a 4-1 win over the New York Islanders. The Lightning are ranked 10th in the league scoring 3.3 goals per game and are ranked seventh allowing 2.7 goals per game. Tampa Bay has won 25 of the last 37 games against teams from the Metropolitan Division and 49 of the last 60 home games. They have lost the last 7 games against teams with a winning record.
The Carolina Hurricanes are second in the Eastern Conference with a 44-15-7 record. Recently, the Hurricanes lost 4 straight games but have won three of the next four and are coming off a 6-1 win over the Washington Capitals. The Hurricanes have won 3 of the last 5 games against Tampa Bay. Carolina is the best defensive team in the league allowing 2.4 goals per game and defending 89.2% of the power play situations. Carolina has won 31 of the last 45 games playing without a day off and 16 of the last 23 games played on Tuesday.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Under 6 (-122)
Tony Battalio
The Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning will face off in what is going to be a great back and forth game between two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference and the entire National Hockey League as well. This game could be a preview of a potential Eastern Conference Finals game and it would be a good one. As the Carolina Hurricanes come into this game with a record of 44-15-7 through their first 65 games of the season. They currently sit in first place of the Metropolitan Division at the moment as well.
Everybody stepped up 💪 pic.twitter.com/kG1Hv5GKD8
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) March 29, 2022
The two time defending Stanley Cup champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game with a record of 41-18-6 through their first 65 games of the season. They are currently in second place in the Atlantic Division at the moment, as they trail the leaders, the Florida Panthers by six points with 17 games left in the regular season. Tampa Bay is currently on a two game winning streak after getting back to back wins over the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders. As for the result of this game, I have Tampa Bay getting their third straight victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning (-144)
Jeffery Thomas
The Carolina Hurricanes will be coming into this game on the back-to-back after blasting the Washington Capitals 6-1 in the nation’s capital. The scoring got started 2 minutes into the game and they never looked back, and got an easy win for their 44th of the season. Their lead in the Metro Division is now 5 points and on Tuesday they’ll be taking on a second-place team in the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Bolts are 6 points back of the Panthers for their division lead and will need to string a run of wins together to catch up. Last time out was a road win over the New York Islanders and now Tampa has returned home, where they will stay for the next four games.
Carolina has won the first two meetings and I know revenge will be heavy on the defending champs’ mind. This is another game on the Tuesday slate that matches up two playoff teams, so once again I’m expecting some well-played hard hitting hockey. That will likely lead to lower-scoring games and if the game is slowed down that favors Carolina. They’ve already figured out the game plan on beating Tampa and even on the second night of their back-to-back, I am going to be picking the Canes to keep their winning ways going against Tampa Bay.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Carolina Hurricanes (+120)
Montreal Canadiens @ Florida Panthers – 7.00PM ET
Another Atlantic Division rivalry for your Tuesday night viewing in the NHL when we see the Montreal Canadiens travel to Florida to face off against the Panthers. The Canadiens have lost five of their last seven games, and this takes their record on the season to 18-37-11. The Panthers had their three game winning streak snapped last time out, as they went down to the Maple Leafs, 2-5.
Marko Nadin
The Florida Panthers are on top of the Eastern Conference with a 44-15-6 record. The Panthers are coming back home after a seven-road trip that finished with 4 wins and 3 losses. They are coming off a 2-5 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Panthers have won 4 of the last 5 games against Montreal. Seven of the last ten games between these two have finished over 5.5 games. Florida has won their last 6 home games following a road trip of 7 or more days and will add another one against Montreal. Florida has won 40 of the last 51 home games.
The Montreal Canadiens are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with an 18-37-11 record. The Canadiens have lost 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 2-3 shootout loss to the New Jersey Devils. The Canadiens are the worst offensive team in the league with 2.5 goals per game. Montreal has lost 24 of the last 33 games against teams with a winning record and 19 of the last 26 games coming in after one day rest. They have played over the total goals margin in 5 of the last 6 games as underdogs.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers & Over 5.5 (+100)
Tony Battalio
After making a run to the Stanley Cup Finals last season the Montreal Canadiens have plummeted to the bottom of the National Hockey League standings this year. They come into this game with a record of 18-37-11 through their first 66 games of the season. They are dead last in the Atlantic Division at the moment and are already officially eliminated from the playoffs with 16 regular season games to go. In their last game, they lost to the New Jersey Devils by a score of 2-3 in a shootout. Now they will be looking to bounce back in this one against one of the best teams in the league.
“We got four out of six points. It’s going to be nice to get home, back to our home fans and our home ice, and play solid, fast hockey like we usually do at @flalivearena.”@jamesoncoop‘s 5 Takeaways from #FLAvsTOR » https://t.co/cwc5iZu3e6 pic.twitter.com/VQV72WSJyw
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) March 28, 2022
The Florida Panthers are coming into this one as one of the top favorites in the National Hockey League this season. They are coming into this game with a record of 44-15-6 through their first 65 games of the season. They are currently in first place in the Atlantic Division as they hold a slim lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs. Florida is currently on a one game losing streak after dropping their last game to the Maple Leafs. As for the result of this one, I have the Panthers getting back into the winners column with a victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers (-400)
Jeffery Thomas
The Montreal Canadiens will travel down to Florida to take on the Panthers in search of a win to turn the tides on what’s been a really bad stretch. They have now lost seven of their last nine games after their 2-3 shootout loss to the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. Included in that span is a loss last Thursday to their opponents for this game, the Florida Panthers. That result was 4-3 in favor of the Panthers in what was a really competitive game throughout. Florida will be coming into this game off of a 2-5 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday. The Panthers outshot the Leafs by 8 but were 0-3 on the power play, which is uncharacteristic and proved to be costly.
I love the Panthers at home here of course against an inferior opponent but we have to find a way to actually get some value out of this play. Taking a moneyline over -400 really isn’t worth it so we have to take a look at the spread line and the possibilities of that hitting. Florida possesses one of the most deadly offensive attacks in the league and there’s times where they score 3-4 goals in short periods and it’s hard for a team like Montreal to keep up with that. I’m going to bank on us getting one of those eruptions of offense to blow the game open and cover this spread for us.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Florida Panthers -2.5 (+118)
New York Rangers @ Pittsburgh Penguins – 7.00PM ET
It’s a very interesting clash between two teams in the Metropolitan Division on Tuesday when the New York Rangers hit the road and take on the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Rangers have won six of their last eight games, including their last two in a row, over the Penguins (who they play again tonight) and the Sabres. The Penguins are back on track after dropping two games in a row (to the Rangers and Sabres), they dominated the Red Wings last time out, winning 11-2.
Marko Nadin
The Pittsburgh Penguins are third in the Eastern Conference with a 40-17-10 record. After losing two straight games, the Penguins went on a historic night, defeating the Detroit Red Wings by 11-2. That was the most goals a team has scored in a single game since 2003. The Penguins are the 8th best team in the league scoring 3.3 goals per game and the fourth-best defensive team with 2.6 allowed goals per game. Pittsburgh have won 5 of the last 7 games playing after one day rest and 11 of the last 16 games against Metropolitan Division rivals.
The New York Rangers are currently fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 42-19-5 record. They have won 4 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 5-4 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres. The Rangers defeated the Penguins 5-1 just five days ago. New York is the second-best team in the league when it comes to converting power play situations with 26.4%. The Rangers have won the last 5 games after scoring at least 5 goals in the previous game and the last 4 against teams with a winning record.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Under 6 (-122)
Tony Battalio
This is going to be the best game of the Tuesday evening slate as two of the best teams in the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference are set to face off. As the New York Rangers meet the Pittsburgh Penguins in the steel city. The New York Rangers come into this game with a record of 42-19-5 through their first 66 games of the season. They are currently in third place in the Metropolitan Division at the moment, as only a single point separates them and the Pittsburgh Penguins heading into this one.
“SHAKIN’ BACON MAGIC MAKIN’!”
We’re still in awe of yesterday’s 11-goal performance. pic.twitter.com/2AurhmALZl
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 28, 2022
The Pittsburgh Penguins come into this game in second place in the Metropolitan Division at the moment with 90 total points on the season. They currently have a record of 40-17-10 through their first 67 games of the season. They are definitely one of the biggest surprises of this year’s season, as not many people expected them to play this well. The Penguins are currently on a one game winning streak. As for the result of this game, I have the Pittsburgh Penguins getting their second straight victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins (-164)
Jeffery Thomas
The Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers are set to square off again just 4 days after the Rangers got a 5-1 result over Pittsburgh. The game was at Madison Square Garden and now it’s the Penguins’ turn to host and the season series will shift to PPG Paints Arena. It’s actually the third meeting of these two teams in just over a month, as the Penguins were able to get a 1-0 win over New York back on February 26. With both teams separated by just one point in the Metropolitan Division, we should expect a very well played game that could end up being a first-round playoff matchup.
This is a true coin flip game, but this is one game where I do like the revenge narrative. The Penguins were routed by the Rangers and backed that up with an 11-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. Now back at home they will try and replicate a similar score line on their division rival to maintain that 2nd-place spot in the Metro. Give me an angry Penguins team to gut out a hard-fought victory at home.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins (-164)
Colorado Avalanche @ Calgary Flames – 9.00PM ET
The Colorado Avalanche wrap up their short two game road trip on Tuesday night with a game against the Calgary Flames. The Avalanche have won five of their last seven, but last time out they were beaten by the Wild, 2-3, in overtime. The Flames will be looking to build on their modest two game winning streak they have going at the moment, which includes wins over the Coyotes and Oilers.
Marko Nadin
The Calgary Flames are the second team in the Western Conference with a 40-17-8 record. They have won 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 9-5 win over the Edmonton Oilers. Calgary is ranked second in the league allowing 2.5 goals per game and fifth in the league scoring 3.5 goals per game. The Flames have won the last 5 games after scoring at least 5 goals in the previous game and 6 of the last 7 games against teams with a winning record over 60%.
The Colorado Avalanche are the best team in the league with a 46-14-6 record. They have won 5 of the last 7 games and are coming off a 2-3 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild. Colorado is ranked second in the league, scoring 3.8 goals per game and are ranked 9th allowing 2.8 goals per game. Colorado has won 7 of the last 10 games against Calgary. They have won the last 5 games after scoring at least 5 goals in the previous games and 13 of the last 16 games when their opponent allows 5 goals or more in their previous game.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche (-106)
Tony Battalio
The top two teams in the Western Conference are set to face off in this one on Tuesday evening. As the Colorado Avalanche take on the Calgary Flames in Canada. The Colorado Avalanche come into this game as the top favorites to win the Stanley Cup finals. They were the preseason favorites to win the Stanley Cup as well. Colorado comes into this game with a record of 46-14-6 through their first 66 games of the season. They are currently in first place in the Pacific Division at the moment as they have a double digit lead and they are on the verge of clinching.
Razzle Dazzle ✨ pic.twitter.com/wZ7lnmB0wf
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) March 28, 2022
The Calgary Flames stormed past the Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings to claim first place in the Pacific Division. Now they come into this game with a record of 40-17-8 through their first 65 games of the season. Calgary currently has a seven point lead on the second place Los Angeles Kings and are currently on a two game winning streak as well. As for the result of this game, I have the Calgary Flames getting a huge win over the Colorado Avalanche in this one.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Calgary Flames (-113)
Jeffery Thomas
Tuesday’s slate offers us a possible Western Conference Finals preview when the Central Division’s first-place Avalanche face off against the Pacific Division’s first-place Flames. This is the third meeting of these teams just this month, with each squad taking a victory. Both meetings were home games for the Avalanche but were shifting over to Calgary for this one.
With the Flames coming off a blowout win over the Oilers and the Avs coming off a loss to the Wild, it’ll be interesting to see how this powerhouse matchup goes. The Flames have been dominant at home and possess two strong units with their offense and goaltending. I believe the edge the Flames will have with both of those units will be enough on Tuesday to get the job done and get this statement victory.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Calgary Flames (-113)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
