Hopefully you were able to have a relaxing Wednesday night, because the NHL won't be having another night that slow for the foreseeable future. We have a great 10-game slate on the board tonight with some incredible matchups. That also means we have some of the best skaters on the ice, including the return of Alex Ovechkin to the Washington Capitals. While he has a great matchup against the Anaheim Ducks, we've found even better value elsewhere, and both of our favorite plays are within the first set of games.'
Along with our player props, be sure to check out all of our NHL picks for today's action.
Zach Hyman over 0.5 goals (+160)
Targeting an Edmonton Oilers game nearly always means talking about Connor McDavid or at least Leon Draisaitl. While they deserve all their praise, we're going to the unsung hero of their team. That would be their linemate Zach Hyman. One of the most surprising stats that most fans would never guess is that Hyman leads the entire NHL in expected goals, and it's not close. He's in first with 40.5 expected goals and Toronto Maple Leafs John Tavares is in 2nd with 32.7.'
To demonstrate how wide of a margin that is, Florida Panthers Matthew Tkachuk is in 3rd with 32.5 expected goals. We're looking for Hyman to find the back of the net to inch closer to a 30-goal season against the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight, who have allowed the 7th-most goals per game since the start of 2023. Hyman is also no stranger to the Pens as a former member of the Leafs. He's notched a goal in each of his last 4 meetings against Pittsburgh and 5 in total. We've targeted this exact prop just 1 other time this season, and Hyman came through at +155 odds. With another great spot for him tonight, we'll trust him to come through again.''