Will the Jets continue their domination against the Wild? Will the Oilers hand the Flames a loss with Calgary playing the second game of a back-to-back? Is the total set too high in tonight’s Kraken-Stars matchup? Check out our Sunday NHL Best Bets.
Saturday NHL Best Bets Recap
My three recommendations for Saturday’s NHL Best Bets were the Panthers (-135) over the Sabres, the Senators (-155) over the Canadians and the Flames (-130) over the Canucks. Following a 3-0 Friday night, I dropped all but one of my selections on Saturday.
I can’t seem to figure out Florida to start the season. I took the under in the team’s first game and the over cashed easily. I backed the Panthers in Ottawa for their second game and they lost, 3-1. Then last night, Buffalo hands Florida a 5-2 loss. I might stay away from the Panthers until I get a better handle on the defending champs.
Meanwhile, it’s a similar situation for me with the Senators. I faded them against the Panthers in their season opener, then backed them against a Montreal opponent that Ottawa has handled over the years. Unfortunately, the Habs scored twice in the first period last night en route to a 4-1 victory.
At least the Flames came through. They opened their game with the Flyers by scoring two goals in the first period and eventually won, 6-3. With Calgary saving my night, I am now 8-7 ATS on the season. A $100.00 bettor would be down -$25.00 on the season.
Sunday NHL Best Bets: Kraken/Stars under 6 (-120), 8:00 p.m. ET
In the last 10 meetings between these two teams, the over is 7-3. That said, if you take a closer look you’ll see that the under has been more profitable in recent Seattle-Dallas installments. Last season, for example, the Stars beat the Kraken 4-3 in overtime to cash the over, but the final two games were both low-scoring. The Stars shutout the Kraken 3-0 in Seattle on March 30 and then nearly posted an identical win on April 13 when they handed the Kraken a 3-1 loss in Dallas.
The Stars continue to have one of the best puck prevention teams in hockey. Assuming they don’t find their scoring touch tonight against the Kraken, this game should fall under the total.
Sunday NHL Best Bets: Winnipeg Jets (-165), 6:00 p.m. ET
The Jets have owned the Wild in previous meetings, winning five consecutive games versus Minnesota and seven out of 10 overall. Last season, these two teams met four times and the Jets swept the season series. The games weren’t particularly close either, as the Jets won 4-2, 3-2, 6-3 and 4-2.
Winnipeg is also off to a nice start this season. After hammering the Oilers 6-0 in their season opener, the Jets rallied late to send their game with the Blackhawks into overtime. They eventually potted a goal in the extra period to earn a 2-1 OT victory.
As for Minnesota, they posted a 3-2 win as a heavy favorite against the Blue Jackets in their season opener, then fell 5-4 to the Kraken in a shootout. Both games were at home, so tonight will be their first round contest of the 2024-25 season. And in a place they’ve struggled, no less.
Sunday NHL Best Bets: Edmonton Oilers -1.5 (-110), 8:00 p.m. ET
The Flames bailed me out last night against the Flyers but the Oilers are not a team that you want to face in the second game of a back-to-back. With their speed, the deeper the game goes, the more tired you are and mistakes happen.
The Oilers have also dominated the Flames in previous meetings. While the Flames did post a 6-3 victory in Edmonton back in February, the Oilers won two of three versus Calgary last season and have won eight out their last 10 against their Canadian rivals overall.