MLB Best Bets – Free (Wednesday 5/15)
Josh Gross
We have 12 games on the NHL slate for Thursday, so there’s plenty of action to be had on the ice. Below you’ll see a list of three of my favorite NHL props, with a couple of bonus NHL prop bets as well.
The odds change pretty quickly in the NHL, so take advantage of our Prop Shop for the best possible odds and check out our Pick Tracker for all of my picks.
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Be sure to check out Mean Streets for daily picks and Dangle Bet Celly for full NHL breakdowns each Tuesday and Thursday.
The Best NHL Props Bets
Matthew Tkachuk Over 1.5 Points
(+155, Bet365)
Only Connor McDavid and Nikita Kucherov have more points than Matthew Tkachuk since the calendar turned to 2024. Tkachuk has an impressive 40 points in 22 games over that span, just six behind McDavid and two behind Kucherov. Tkachuk has hit the score sheet in 21 of his past 24 games. He’s picked up at least two points in half of those games and he has five multi-point games in his last eight matchups. Since Jan. 1, the Canadiens rank third in shot attempts, shots and scoring chances allowed at 5v5/60, according to Natural Stat Trick. Over that same time frame, the Panthers are third in shot attempts, shots and fourth in scoring chances at 5v5/60. Montreal ranks sixth in penalties taken, they have the second-worst penalty kill percentage (73.8%), and the Panthers enter with the fifth-best power play (26%).
Bonus
- Panthers -1.5 (-120, Bet365)
- Sam Bennett O 2.5 SOG (-145, DraftKings)
- Sam Reinhart O 2.5 SOG (-143, BetRivers)
- Brandon Montour Point (-130, DraftKings)
- Sam Bennett Point (-115, DraftKings)
- Carter Verhaeghe, Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart Points SGP (+130, Bet365)
- Carter Verhaeghe, Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart 2 Points SGP (+1100, Bet365) 0.25 units
Auston Matthews Over 1.5 Points
(+130, DraftKings Sportsbook)
At some point the Arizona Coyotes are going to win a hockey game, and it may happen Thursday, but it’s hard to imagine the Maple Leafs not creating offensive chances in this matchup. The Coyotes have lost 13 games in a row and they’re down their best forward in Clayton Keller. Over those 13 straight losses, Arizona has scored two or fewer goals in six of those games, including their last matchup, which happened to come in Montreal. This is a much tougher spot for them against the high-powered Maple Leafs. Since Jan. 1, Arizona has a league-high 3.24 GA/60 at 5v5. They have a bottom 10 penalty kill and the Maple Leafs have the league’s best power play (29.1%). Arizona also ranks fourth in penalties taken, so I’m expecting a couple power plays for Toronto. Matthews was held off the score sheet in his last game, but he has points in 15 of his last 17 games. He also has at least two points in six of his last 10 games. He scored twice on four shots just last week in Arizona. I also added a few Tyler Bertuzzi props as he checks in riding a three-game point streak. He has four goals and 12 shots on goal over that span.
Bonus
- Auston Matthews O 4.5 SOG (+100, BetRivers)
- William Nylander O 3.5 SOG (-140, DraftKings)
- Tyler Bertuzzi O 2.5 SOG (+114, DraftKings)
- Tyler Bertuzzi Point (-105, DraftKings)
- Maple Leafs -1.5 (+100, Bet365)
- Auston Matthews Hat Trick (+2300, FanDuel) 0.25 units
Jared McCann Point
(-125, DraftKings Sportsbook)
McCann’s seven-game point streak was snapped in his latest game, but he’s been good to us and I think we should go right back to him. His last game did happen to come against the Boston Bruins, so we can give him a bit of a pass. The winger has points in 15 of his last 18 games, and he has 11 goals over that span. On the other side of this game, the Pittsburgh Penguins are extremely shorthanded up front with injuries to Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust. Both of those wingers play on the first line with Sidney Crosby, so others have had to step up. Rickard Rakell is one of those players who has filled in nicely of late. He has three goals, four points and seven shots on goal in his past two games, and he’s picked up seven points in his last six games. With the way Crosby is playing (seven points in his last three games), it’s likely Rakell gets a few good looks in Seattle.
Bonus
Mason McTavish Over 2.5 SOG
(+105, BetRivers)
McTavish has been sneaky good since he returned to the lineup, and he’s shooting the puck. The Ducks’ center has 13 shots on goal over his past three games, and at least three in each one of those matchups. He also has four goals and eight points in his last six games. Over the last two months of the season, San Jose ranks first in shot attempts, scoring chances and shots allowed at 5v5/60. They also have the highest expected goals against rate at 5v5/60 over that span. Anaheim is also bad, but their 5v5 game has been better than San Jose’s. The Sharks will once again be without their two best players and centers as Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture remain on IR. That’s a big reason why they coughed up seven goals in their last game and they’ve been outscored 19-7 over a current four-game losing streak. Mikael Granlund has picked up a lot of extra ice time since he returned to acton and he’s cleared 2.5 shots on goal in four of his last six games. If Troy Terry suits up, I’ll be looking at him, McTavish and Frank Vatrano to all hit the score sheet in a same game parlay at Bet365.
Bonus
- Mason McTavish Point (-130, DraftKings)
- Frank Vatrano Point (-140, DraftKings)
- Mikael Granlund O 2.5 SOG (+135, DraftKings)
Goal Scorers
Auston Matthews
Nathan MacKinnon
Carter Verhaeghe
Andrei Svechnikov
Matt Boldy
Brock Boeser
Frank Vatrano
Brayden Point
Tyler Bertuzzi
Gabriel Vilardi
Jason Robertson
Jared McCann
Rickard Rakell
PrizePicks
- Jared McCann Point
- Gustav Nyquist Point
- Tyler Bertuzzi O 2 SOG
- Mason McTavish O 2.5 SOG
- Andrei Svechnikov O 2.5 SOG
- Filip Forsberg O 3.5 SOG
- Rickard Rakell O 2 SOG
- Mikael Granlund O 2 SOG
- Mason McTavish Point
- Rickard Rakell Point
