After an off day for every NHL team on Friday, there is a full slate with 16 games on Saturday. Read on for the best NHL picks for Saturday based on the best NHL odds.
The final weekend of the regular season is here, and boy, is it a good one. All 32 teams are in action on Saturday with the NHL's first-ever 16-game day in history.
The Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars face off this afternoon with both teams still battling for playoff position. The same goes for the Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets tonight as the latter looks to avoid disaster to stay in a playoff spot.
The slate concludes with the Colorado Avalanche facing off with Kings in Los Angeles.
Here are our best NHL picks for Saturday (odds via BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel, and PointsBet; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Saturday's NHL schedule and odds
(odds via DraftKings)
- Carolina Hurricanes (-180) vs. Buffalo Sabres (+155)
- Pittsburgh Penguins (-190) vs. Detroit Red Wings (+160)
- Vegas Golden Knights (+125) vs. Dallas Stars (-145)
- Edmonton Oilers (-275) vs. San Jose Sharks (+230)
- Anaheim Ducks (+125) vs. Arizona Coyotes (-145)
- New York Rangers (-285) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (+240)
- Montreal Canadiens (+300) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (-365)
- Florida Panthers (-180) vs. Washington Capitals (+155)
- Tampa Bay Lightning (-145) vs. Ottawa Senators (+125)
- Nashville Predators (+155) vs. Winnipeg Jets (-180)
- Philadelphia Flyers (+230) vs. New York Islanders (-275)
- New Jersey Devils (+120) vs. Boston Bruins (-140)
- St. Louis Blues (+200) vs. Minnesota Wild (-240)
- Chicago Blackhawks (+300) vs. Seattle Kraken (-365)
- Calgary Flames (-175) vs. Vancouver Canucks (+145)
- Colorado Avalanche (-120) vs. Los Angeles Kings (+100)
Saturday's NHL best bets
- Puck line: Panthers -1.5 (+140 via DraftKings) vs. Capitals ???
- Total: Jets vs. Predators Under 5.5 (-110 via BetMGM) ????
- Moneyline: Devils (+125 via PointsBet) vs. Bruins ???
- Prop: Matty Beniers to score (+188 via FanDuel) vs. Blackhawks ???
Saturday's NHL top picks
The Panthers head into Washington as winners of five straight games. They've outscored their opponents 24-7 in that span with Alex Lyon stepping up in net.
On the other side, the Capitals have lost five straight games (outscored 22-9)= and eight of their last nine, with a goal differential of 40-26 in that time. Washington's last three losses were all by at least three goals, including a 6-2 defeat at the hands of the lowly Montreal Canadiens.
Florida is playing well at the right time as it looks to secure an unlikely playoff spot.
DraftKings has this at a favorable +140 after opening at +150, while other books are down at +120 (FanDuel). Snag this value as the market moves toward the Panthers with Capitals backup Charlie Lindgren likely to start Saturday.
The Jets have stumbled over the past few weeks and are now in jeopardy of losing their playoff spot. The Predators have joined the Flames in chasing down Winnipeg, and a regulation win for them would put them in the driver's seat.
This should be a playoff-like atmosphere between two teams with struggling offenses and excellent goalies.
Juuse Saros (31-22-7, 2.71 GAA, .918 SV%) should start for the Predators against Connor Hellebuyck (34-25-2, 2.57 GAA, .918 SV%). Both netminders are at the top of their game
Winnipeg has gone Under the total in a league-best 67% of its games, with Nashville not far behind. This line has moved a bit after opening at +100, but there's some value here at BetMGM with the under at -110 (DraftKings) and -114 (FanDuel) elsewhere.
The Devils and Bruins are both more or less coasting to the playoffs with only loose ends to be tied up.
Boston has locked up the Presidents' Trophy but is still looking for the NHL single-season record for wins with four games to go. New Jersey has an outside chance at catching the Hurricanes for the top spot in the Metropolitan, but it's much more likely that the Devils will host the Rangers in the first round.
The Bruins have played a lot of close games recently, with each of their last six wins coming by one goal – including four past regulation. They've been beatable recently and New Jersey could be the team to take them down here.
The Devils just beat Columbus 8-1 and Pittsburgh 5-1. Boston is a different animal, but this line has moved from New Jersey +115 at opening to +125 at PointsBet while remaining around +118 at some other books.
Calder Trophy favorite Matty Beniers is looking to close the season with a bang. The Kraken forward has goals in two straight games and four of his last seven overall.
The Kraken are huge favorites Saturday against the Blackhawks and are expected to score at least four goals. There's no reason to think that Beniers doesn't stay hot at home against one of the worst teams in the league.
NHL picks made 4/8/2023 at 12:55 p.m. ET.
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