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.
Winnipeg Jets @ Buffalo Sabres – 7.00PM ET
The first game in the NHL on Wednesday will see the Winnipeg Jets hit the road and travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres. The Jets have won six of their last eight games, and this takes their record on the season to 32-25-10. The Sabres have won four of their last six, including last time out where they won 6-5 over the Blackhawks.
Marko Nadin
The Buffalo Sabres are 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 24-33-10 record. The Sabres have won 4 of the last 6 games and are coming off a 6-5 road win over the Chicago Blackhawks. Buffalo is ranked 25th in the league with 2.7 goals per game and 26th with 3.5 allowed goals per game. The Sabres have won 6 of the last 10 games against Winnipeg. They have won 4 of the last 5 games against Western Conference teams but have lost 38 of the last 56 home games. They have played over the total goals margin in the last 4 games.
The Winnipeg Jets are 10th in the Western Conference with a 32-25-10 record. They have won 4 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 2-1 overtime win over the Arizona Coyotes. The Jets are ranked 15th in the league with 3.1 goals per game and 17th with 3 allowed goals per game. Winnipeg has won 5 of the last 6 games as a road favorite and 6 of the last 8 games against teams with a losing record.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Over 6 (-120)
Tony Battalio
The Winnipeg Jets are coming into this game with a record of 32-25-10 through their first 67 games of the season. Despite being 3 games under the .500 mark at the moment the Jets are still in playoff contention. As they are only two points away from being tied for the second wild card spot in the Western Conference with 15 games to go in the regular season. They currently find themselves on a two game winning streak after getting back to back wins over the Columbus Blue Jackets and Arizona Coyotes.
“We look at it in that we have to win tomorrow. It has to stay in our focus. You hope you’re going to get help along the way, but you have to win your own games.”
Dave Lowry on the challenges of making a playoff push, Logan Stanley and Ville Heinola, and more.
WATCH 🔽 pic.twitter.com/AV2j9aWnYR
— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) March 29, 2022
The Buffalo Sabres had a shocking start to the season but quickly found themselves towards the bottom of the National Hockey League standings as the season went on. They have been one of the worst teams in the league for a few years now and it doesn’t look to be getting any better anytime soon after they traded away Jack Eichel earlier this season. Now their rebuild will likely be starting from square one next season. As for the result of this game, I have the Winnipeg Jets picking up the victory over Buffalo.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Winnipeg Jets (-162)
Jeffery Thomas
Neither the Winnipeg Jets or Buffalo Sabres are currently slated in the playoffs. Despite that fact, these are two of the most in-form teams of the past couple weeks. The Jets have won 8 of their last 11 games and are coming off a 2-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday. The Buffalo Sabres have won 6 of their last 9 games, with every win except the Blackhawks and Canucks ones coming against current playoff teams (Golden Knights, Maple Leafs, Flames).
The Winnipeg Jets are in a spot where they need to get points in nearly every game to make a legit case of the playoffs and despite how the Sabres have been playing this is a winnable spot. However, I’m not rushing to back the Jets, as the Sabres have been playing spoiler all month and when we get great value on them like this in a good spot, we have to take it. Give me the Sabres as I continue to ride the train.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Buffalo Sabres (+134)
New York Rangers @ Detroit Red Wings – 7.30PM ET
The New York Rangers wrap up their quick two game road trip tonight with a game against the Detroit Red Wings. The Rangers will be playing on two nights in a row after facing off against the Penguins yesterday, in a game they won, 3-2. The Red Wings will be looking to get back on track tonight after they have dropped their last three games in a row, to teams like the Islanders, Lightning and Penguins.
Marko Nadin
The Detroit Red Wings are 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 26-32-8 record. They have lost the last 3 games and are coming off a 2-11 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. That was the second time this season the Red Wings allowed at least 10 goals. Detroit are the worst team in the league when it comes to goals allowed with 3.8 per game. The Red Wings have won 6 of the last 10 games against the Rangers. They have lost 5 of the last 7 home games and 11 of the last 13 home games as underdogs.
The New York Rangers are third in the Eastern Conference with a 43-19-5 record. They have won the last 3 games and are coming off a 3-2 road win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Rangers are the third-best team in the league with 2.6 goals allowed per game and are ranked second with 26.8 power play conversion. The Rangers have won 3 of the last 4 games against the Red Wings. They have won 21 of the last 26 games against Atlantic Division rivals and 39 of the last 58 games against teams from the Eastern Conference.
Marko’s NHL Pick: New York Rangers (-188)
Tony Battalio
The New York Rangers have been one of the most successful and surprising teams in the National Hockey League this season. They come into this game with a record of 43-19-5 through their first 67 games of the season. They are currently in third place in the Metropolitan Division as they trail the division leading Carolina Hurricanes by a couple points at the moment. The Rangers are currently on a three game winning streak after getting wins over the Sabres and Penguins (twice). They will be playing the second game of a back to back in this one after facing the Penguins again on Tuesday evening.
It was a dream come true playing in my first NHL game! Hard to put into words how much this means to me. Thanks to everyone who helped me along the way 🙃🥲🐙 pic.twitter.com/EHiA88BylW
— Chasepearson.eth (@22CPearson) March 29, 2022
The Detroit Red Wings are coming into this game with a record of 26-32-8 through their first 66 games of the season. They are currently in fifth place in the Atlantic Division at the moment and all but officially eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoff contention this season. Detroit is currently on a three game losing streak after dropping consecutive games to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning, and New York Islanders. As for the result of this game, I have the New York Rangers getting the victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: New York Rangers (-188)
Jeffery Thomas
The New York Rangers are rolling right now and looking very dangerous for any opponent. They’ve won 5 of their last 6 games after a 3-2 win in Pittsburgh over the Penguins on Tuesday. They’ll now be on the back-to-back against a Detroit Red Wings team who has lost three straight. Detroit has been off since Sunday, when they took a 2-11 loss to the same Penguins team the Rangers just beat. The couple days off were much needed after that beating, but of course things won’t get easier against this top notch Rangers team.
The Red Wings come into this game as a rightful home underdog, a spot that hasn’t been kind to them lately. They are just 2-11 in their last 13 as a home underdog and meanwhile the Rangers have had tons of success against the teams in the Atlantic Division lately going 21-5 in their last 26. I see both trends continuing and the Rangers getting this one done with no overtime required.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Moneyline (3-way) – New York Rangers (-120)
Los Angeles Kings @ Edmonton Oilers – 9.30PM ET
Two teams from the Pacific Division will go toe-to-toe on Wednesday night in the NHL when the Los Angeles Kings face off against the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings are the king of inconsistency at the moment, they have been trading losses and wins for the last nine games, and this takes their record to 36-23-9. The Oilers have lost three of their last five, but last time out they did get the win over the Coyotes, 6-1.
Marko Nadin
The Edmonton Oilers are seventh in the Western Conference with a 37-25-5 record. The Oilers have lost three of the last five games but are coming off a 6-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes. The Oilers are ranked 7th in the league with 3.4 scored goals per game and third with 26.4% of power play conversion. Edmonton has won 6 of the last 10 games against Los Angeles. Four of their last five games between these two teams have finished over 5.5 goals. Edmonton has won the last 7 home games and 5 of the last 7 games played after one day rest.
The Los Angeles Kings are second in the Pacific Division and fifth in the Western Conference with a 36-23-9 record. The Kings have lost 3 of the last 5 games and are coming off a 1-6 loss to the Seattle Kraken. The Kings are the best team in the league when it comes to shots on goal allowed with 28.6 per game and are ranked 9th with 2.8 goals allowed. Los Angeles has won 8 of the last 9 games following a home loss of 3 or more goals and 10 of the last 13 games after scoring 2 goals or less in their previous game.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Edmonton Oilers (-215)
Tony Battalio
The Los Angeles Kings had a decent start to the season but their playoff hopes have been fading as of late. As they come into this game with a record of 36-23-9 through their first 68 games of the season. While their record would suggest they are doing just fine, the truth is they are 4-6 in their last ten and are another bad few games or so away from potentially falling out of playoff contention. The Kings come into this one on a one game losing streak which means they need to bounce back in a big way in this game.
#Oilers vs. Kings tomorrow @ 7:30pm
🔸 Leon two away from 50 🚨
🔹 Connor needs two points for 💯
🔸 A win puts us second in the Pacific 🔥
🔹 Can extend home winning streak to eight 👏Limited seats remain. Join us. 🙂#LetsGoOilers
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) March 29, 2022
The Edmonton Oilers had a slow start to the season but have turned up the heat as of late and have put themselves in a great position to compete for a Stanley Cup trophy in about a month or so. They come into this game with a record of 37-25-5 through their first 67 games of the season. They are currently in third place in the Pacific Division at the moment. They picked up a huge victory in their last game against the Arizona Coyotes. As for the result of this game, I have the Edmonton Oilers getting another win in this one, this time against the Los Angeles Kings.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Edmonton Oilers (-215)
Jeffery Thomas
Huge Pacific Division battle on tap for Wednesday when the Edmonton Oilers host the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings currently hold the 2-point edge in the standings but are coming off a 1-6 home loss to the Seattle Kraken and are still being hampered by injury. The Oilers haven’t been lighting the world on fire their last five games, going 2-2-1, but the 6-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Monday extended their home winning streak out to a very impressive seven games.
This will be the third of four meetings between the teams, with the road team winning each of the first two. The road team has won the first meetings but I think that trend ends on Wednesday. The injuries all over the Kings blue line and up front will be too much to overcome in this matchup against an Oilers team that will look to lean on their strong power-play and feed off the home fans.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Edmonton Oilers (-215)
St. Louis Blues @ Vancouver Canucks – 10.00PM ET
The St. Louis Blues are on the road tonight when they travel to Vancouver to take on the Canucks. The Blues and Canucks played each other last time out, and that game was played in St. Louis, with the Blues coming out victorious, 4-1. Can the Canucks get instant revenge now they are on their home ice?
Marko Nadin
This will be the second consecutive game between these two teams with the Blues winning 4-1 the previous one. The Vancouver Canucks are 11th in the Western Conference with a 32-27-9 record. Vancouver is ranked 22nd in the league scoring 2.8 goals per game and are ranked 10th allowing 2.8 goals per game. The Canucks have lost 5 of the last 7 games but have won 7 of the last 9 games scoring 2 goals or less in their previous game. They have also won 10 of the last 14 games as favorites.
The St. Louis Blues are fifth in the Western Conference with a 36-20-9 record. The Blues are ranked 6th in the league scoring 3.5 goals per game and fourth with 25.8% power play conversion. The Blues have won 3 of the last 5 games against the Canucks. They have won 12 of the last 15 games against Western Conference rivals and 6 of the last 7 games against Pacific Division teams. The Blues have played over the total goals margin in 6 of the last 7 games as road underdogs and in 5 of the last 6 games played after one day rest.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Over 6 (-110)
Tony Battalio
The St. Louis Blues have been one of the most consistently successful teams in the National Hockey League this season. As they come into this game with a record of 36-20-9 through their first 65 games of the season. They are currently occupying a playoff spot as they sit in third place in the Central Division with 81 total points. With 17 games to go in the regular season they are locked in a heated race for third with the Nashville Predators, which makes every single game down the stretch that much more important.
Vladi’s 500th point and a big win in front of our home crowd! See all the best photos from last night’s game, presented by @Hotshots_Bar.
📷 https://t.co/nDVCZRZCaA pic.twitter.com/pBdAdRX50O
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) March 29, 2022
The Vancouver Canucks are much improved from last season and have surpassed their win total from last year as well. They come into this game with a record of 32-29-7 through their first 68 games of the season. Despite being 4 games under the .500 mark at the moment they are still in playoff contention as they find themselves only three points out of the second wild card spot in the Western Conference, behind fellow Pacific Division member, the Vegas Golden Knights. As for the result of this game, I have the Vancouver Canucks getting the win at home.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Vancouver Canucks (-115)
Jeffery Thomas
The St. Louis Blues will travel up to Canada for game 2 of a quick home and home series with the Vancouver Canucks. The first game was on Monday with the Blues taking an early lead and never looking back, winning 4-1 at home. The loss put a bigger dent in the already bleak postseason aspirations for the Canucks, who for some reason decided to make no moves at the trade deadline. The Blues are pretty much locked in with 81 points and a 3rd place spot in the Central Division.
The Canucks will need to overcome three teams to get in the postseason so expect them to be in full desperation mode on Wednesday at home. It was a rough start to the game for the Canucks in this matchup on Monday and from then on they settled in on defense but just weren’t able to convert on their plethora of chances in front of the net. Not capitalizing on chances is how you lose games and I’m not sold that they will be able to conquer this Blues team after just one day off. Desperation won’t be enough for me to side with the Canucks.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: St. Louis Blues (-104)
Vegas Golden Knights @ Seattle Kraken – 10.00PM ET
Another Pacific Division rivalry for your Wednesday night viewing when the Vegas Golden Knights travel to Seattle and face off against the Kraken. This will be the first game of a back-to-back between these two teams, and the Golden Knights come into this game on a two game winning streak, while the Kraken were able to get the win last time out, 6-1, over the Kings.
Marko Nadin
The Seattle Kraken are 15th in the Western Conference with a 21-39-6 record. They have won 3 of the last 4 games and are coming off a 6-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Seattle is ranked 27th in the league with 2.6 scored goals and 3.5 allowed goals per game. The Kraken have lost 5 of the last 7 games played after one day rest and 15 of the last 20 home games. They have played over the total goals margin in 6 of the last 9 home games and in 19 of the last 26 games played after one day rest.
The Vegas Golden Knights are 8th in the Western Conference with a 36-28-4 record. They have won 4 of the last 6 games and are coming off a 5-4 overtime win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The Golden Knights won the previous two games against Seattle this season. Vegas is 16th in the league scoring 3 goals per game and 14th with 3.1 allowed goals per game. Vegas has won the last 4 games against Pacific Division teams but have lost the last 7 road games. The Golden Knights have played over the total goals margin in 7 of the last 9 games.
Marko’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-172)
Tony Battalio
The Vegas Golden Knights spent the majority of the regular season on top of the Pacific Division before being passed by the Calgary Flames. Since being passed by Calgary, the Vegas Golden Knights have seemingly fallen apart as they now find themselves in danger of not even making the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season. They come into this game with a record of 36-28-4 through their first 68 games of the season. They currently find themselves in fourth place in the Pacific Division and only hold onto the second wild card spot in the Western Conference by a single point.
🪃 BOOM 🪃
WE HAVE A NEW LEADER IN THE CLUBHOUSE!!! 😎 pic.twitter.com/w750hkbD0L
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) March 29, 2022
The Seattle Kraken aren’t having the inaugural season they had hoped for in their first season in the National Hockey League. As they come into this game as one of the worst teams in the league. They are coming into this game with a record of 21-39-6 through their first 66 games of the season. They are currently in last place In the Pacific Division and will likely remain there for the rest of the regular season, as they will look to build towards next year. As for the result of this game, I have the Vegas Golden Knights getting a much needed victory.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-172)
Jeffery Thomas
On Monday and Tuesday of last week, the Vegas Golden Knights looked lost and overmatched getting shut out consecutive nights by the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets. Questions were surrounding the team if they’d be able to still make the playoffs and since then they’ve bounced back with two nice wins over the Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks at home. They are now back in the second wild card spot, but just one point ahead of the Dallas Stars, so they will need to continue gathering points. A game against the Kraken is a great opportunity for that and the Knights will be happy for a trip up to Seattle. They are the better team but they’ll still have to show up, as the Kraken can sneak up on you, winning 3 of their last 4 games.
That run of wins now has the Kraken 3 points clear of the Arizona Coyotes for the worst point total in the league. Looking at how Vegas games have been going recently, it’s interesting to see that home teams have won 13 straight games the Knights have been involved in. The last time a road team won was when the Boston Bruins beat the Knights in Vegas way back on March 3. With that being said, I think we’ll finally see a road team win, when Vegas beats the Kraken and maintains their spot in the wild card race. The Kraken are only playing spoiler in this matchup and against a Vegas team that may be finding their footing, I’ll bank on them.
Jeffery’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-172)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
