Sunday's eight-game card features several great matchups, including the New York Rangers visiting the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New Jersey Devils hosting the Carolina Hurricanes. See who we like in our NHL best bets for Sunday based on the top NHL odds.
The NHL serves up a strong selection of compelling matchups for hockey bettors today. An eight-game slate is highlighted by a Rangers-Penguins clash in Pittsburgh, the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the Winnipeg Jets and Stanley Cup hopefuls meet when the Hurricanes visit New Jersey.
Here are our best NHL picks for Sunday (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook, Caesars Sportsbook and PointsBet; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Sunday's NHL schedule and odds
- Boston Bruins (-250) at Detroit Red Wings (+205)
- New York Rangers (+105) a t Pittsburgh Penguins (-125)
- Vegas Golden Knights (-145) at St. Louis Blues (+122)
- Winnipeg Jets (+158) at Tampa Bay Lightning (-190)
- Carolina Hurricanes (-110) at New Jersey Devils (-110)
- Ottawa Senators (+158) at Calgary Flames (-190)
- Nashville Predators (-165) at Anaheim Ducks (+140)
- Minnesota Wild (-210) at Arizona Coyotes (+175)
(odds courtesy of Caesars)
Sunday's NHL best bets
- Team Total: Penguins Over 3.5 vs Rangers (+110 via DraftKings) ???
- Three-Way Moneyline: Golden Knights vs. Blues (+101 via Caesars) ???
- Total: Hurricanes vs. Devils Under 6 (+100 via Caesars) ???
- Moneyline: Senators vs. Flames (+165 via PointsBet) ???
Sunday's NHL top picks
Pitt sburgh has spun its wheels at home for months, but offense isn't the reason why. After scoring three late markers to pull away for a 5-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers yesterday, the Penguins now have 20 goals in their last four home games, where they've eclipsed the four-goal mark in seven of their last 12.
The Pens have a good chance to put up another big number against a Rangers team that has just one regulation victory over the past month. New York needed overtime to get past the struggling Sabres 2-1 yesterday in Buffalo, just the third time in the Rangers' last 12 games they've held an opponent under three goals.
With backup Jaroslav Halak likely in net for New York on the second day of a back-to-back, take the Pens' team total Over 3.5 as long as you're getting even money or better.
The Vegas Golden Knights' road excellence continued as they went i nto Carolina and blanked the Hurricanes 4-0, improving to 11-2-2 in their last 15 games away from home and 18-7-5 overall. They're also dialed in defensively, holding 14 of their previous 15 opponents to three goals or less – the only exception being the powerful Lightning.
Even with rookie goalie Jiri Patera making his first career start, Vegas should lock down a St. Louis Blues team that sold off veteran forwards Vladimir Tarasenko, Ryan O'Reilly and Ivan Barbashev before the trade deadline.
St. Louis won two straight and three of its last five, but those victories came against the San Jose Sharks (twice) and Columbus Blue Jackets. The Blues lost every other game they've played since mid-February, managing two goals or less in 10 of those 11 contests.
By asking the Knights to win in the first 60 minutes, you're able to get a plus-money return with a Vegas team that need ed OT in just five of 18 road victories this season. However, if you don't mind drinking a little juice, DraftKings' -145 moneyline on the Knights (including overtime) is an even better bargain.
After a hot stretch, the Hurricanes saw their offense dry up, following Thursday's 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers with a 4-0 loss at home to the Golden Knights. Defensively, however, Carolina remains solid, holding 12 straight opponents to three goals or less (if you don't count the Knights' late empty-netter last night.) The Canes also play things a bit tighter when on short rest, going 7-2 to the Under when playing for the third time in four days.
New Jersey's offense is also in a slump, needing a late empty-netter to seal a 3-1 victory in Montreal. Excluding OT and empty netters, the Devils managed just 14 goals in their last five games, and four of those came against the hapless Arizona Coyotes. Offense should be much harder to generate against a solid Hurricanes' D seeking revenge for a 5-3 loss when these teams last met in January.
Getting a total of 6 here is key, since it lets you push your bet if one team wins 3-2 late and then adds an empty netter. Play the Under 6 down to -110, but lay off if the total drops to 5.5.
Frustration officially set in in Calgary, where the Flames continue to dominate opponents but can't get results on the scoreboard. “It does feel pretty repetitive,” defenseman MacKenzie Weegar told reporters following Friday's 3-1 loss to Anaheim, a game where the Flames outshot the Ducks 37-17. “It's another night of outshooting your opponent but coming up short.”
Most of Calgary's recent struggles came at home, where the Flames lost seven of their last eight – including defeats to the Blackhawks, Red Wings, Flyers and Ducks – and ma naged just 14 goals during that span. At this fat price, fade them against a Senators team that won six of its last eight, even if Ottawa comes off a 5-2 loss last night in Vancouver.
Shop around for the best number, since PointsBet offered 10 cents better on the underdog Senators than any of our other recommended books when I bet this game Sunday morning.
Sunday's NHL Best Bets picks made 3/12/2023 at 10:06 a.m. ET.
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- Caesars: Earn Up to a $1,250 Bet Credit | Read our Caesars Review
- DraftKings: Bet $5, Get $150 in Bonus Bets | Read our DraftKings Review
- PointsBet: Earn Five Second-Chance Bets Up to $50 Each | Read our PointsBet Review
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* Bonuses not applicable in Ontario.
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