Lets check out some of tonight's biggest games and cover the NHL picks I find to have the best chance of in cashing for us as the sportsbooks.
Edmonton Oilers vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL Odds: Maple
Leafs -170
Both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers head
into Monday’s meeting with plenty of momentum. Both teams are 4-0-1 in their
last six and have played considerably well.
It’s an interesting contrast in this contest as the
Oilers are playing well thanks to their offense while the Maple Leafs have been
led by top-notch goaltending.
Leafs netminder James Reimer has posted back-to-back
shutouts and the team is playing particularly well in front of him. Overall,
they’re not giving up many opportunities and they are clamping down quite well.
Look for that to be the case once again on Monday.
The Oilers netminding has been sub par even through the
recent hot streak as Devan Dubnyk has been getting the starts, but the team has
been winning in spite of his efforts rather than because of him.
With the home crowd on their side, look for the Maple
Leafs to stymie the Oilers offense and have few problems finding some goals of
their own to get the win in this spot.
NHL Picks: Maple
Leafs
Detroit Red Wings
vs. Phoenix Coyotes
NHL Odds: Red Wings -125
We’ve seen a little bit of an overreaction in price on
the Detroit Red Wings in this spot because they are going to be without
All-Star goaltender Jimmy Howard for a while. He’s been a rock for the Red
Wings between the pipes and he’s one of the foundational pieces as he leads the
league in wins. Even so, the Red Wings are a good team and are playing much
better hockey than the Coyotes right now.
Detroit is still 9-1-1 in their last 11 games while the
Coyotes have just eight wins in their last 25 games. Phoenix is one of the
weaker home teams in the NHL and on top of that, they don’t fare well in this
series. Detroit has won seven straight meetings dating back to the playoffs
last season and -125 is good sports betting value on them considering the
circumstances.
NHL Picks: Red
Wings
Detroit Red Wings
vs. Phoenix Coyotes
NHL Odds: Over/Under 5.5
We’re going to have a look at a number of Detroit Red
Wings over in the coming games as All-Star netminder Jimmy Howard is out of the
lineup. While some teams like the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks have a
reasonably comparable backup to their starter, the Red Wings do not. With all
due respect to Ty Conklin, he’s a clear step back from Howard.
We saw the type of effect it can have immediately as the
Red Wings lost 5-4 in Edmonton. Howard has won seven of his nine starts against
Phoenix while posting a 2.23 GAA, so they should have a better time breaking
through with him out of the lineup.
One other note worth mentioning is that the Red Wings are
one of the league’s best defensive teams at home but they are much easier to
score on when they are away from Joe Louis Arena. Bet the over.
NHL Picks: Over