Okay MyBookie ice hockey betting faithful, with five big matchups going down on Thursday night, it’s time to find out where the best betting value lies in tonight’s slate of NHL action. To that end, I’ve got a trio of matchups in the bullseye and all three are offering plenty of value for their own specific reasons. Now, let’s get started so you can make your bets against their NHL odds.
NHL Odds & Picks – Games Highlights, Top Picks, Previews
Vegas (40-24-8) vs St. Louis (42-20-10)
The Vegas Golden Knights (-1.5) have won three straight and eight of 10, including a thrilling 5-3 comeback win over Dallas on Monday night by scoring four third period goals. The St. Louis Blues (+1.5) have alternated wins and losses over their last five games, but suffered a narrow, 2-1 loss against Colorado on Sunday.
Vegas has won two straight in this series after St. Louis won the previous four meetings. More importantly, the Knights have gone a blistering 10-1 in their last 11 games against a team with a winning record, 12-2 in their last 14 games overall and 9-2 in their last 11 games following a win. St. Louis has gone 2-7 in their last 9 games as an underdog and 1-6 in their last 7 games playing on three or more days rest.
For me, Vegas’ comeback and red-hot winning ways, combined with St. Louis’ recent struggles, makes the Knights the pick to get it done again, though I’m expecting this one to be an all-out street brawl kind of clash. Vegas gets it done against the defending champs by a lone goal.
- Pick: Vegas 3 St. Louis 2
- When: Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 6:30 PM ET
- Where: Rogers Place, Edmonton
- TV: SN360, NHLN, NHL.TV, FS-MW, ATTSN-RM
- Money Lines: St. Louis Blues -105 / Vegas Golden Knights -115
- Total: 5.5
Toronto (37-26-9) vs Columbus (34-23-15)
The Columbus Blue Jackets (+1.5) have won two of three, but were on the wrong end of a 3-0 shutout loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs (-1.5) on Tuesday following their 2-0 win on Sunday. The Blue Jackets have gone an uninspiring 2-4 in their last six games. Conversely, St. Louis has gone 7-3 in their last 10 games though they’ve dropped three of their last five overall. For this matchup, I like the high-scoring Leafs to record consecutive wins after getting a real wake-up call in Game 1.
The Maple Leafs are 4-1 in their last 5 games against their Eastern Conference rivals while Columbus has gone 4-13 in their last 17 games and 2-7 in their last nine games against their Eastern Conference rivals. 63 percent of public bettors are currently backing Toronto to get it done tonight and I believe that’s the right call. Toronto wins by a pair of goals to take a 2-1 series lead.
- Pick: Toronto 4 Columbus 2
- When: Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 8:00 PM ET
- Where: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto
- TV: FSOH, NBCSN
- Money Lines: Columbus Blue Jackets +135 / Toronto Maple Leafs -155
- Total: 5.5
Calgary (38-28-7) vs Winnipeg (38-30-6)
The Calgary Flames (-1.5) will look to take a commanding 3-1 series lead against the Winnipeg Jets (+1.5) when they square off in Game 4 on Thursday night. The Flames took Game 1 on Saturday by the score of 4-1 before dropping Game 2 on Monday by the score of 3-2. Calgary then jumped all over Winnipeg en route to an emphatic 6-2 smackdown on Tuesday night.
Now as they get set for Game 4, Winnipeg has gone a pitiful 1-5 in their last 6 games following a loss of three or more goals and 0-7 in their last seven games after allowing five goals or more in their previous matchup. On the flip side of the coin, Calgary has gone a near-perfect 6-1 in their last seven games as a favorite and 5-2 in their last seven games overall.
With the favorite in this rivalry going 12-5 in the last 17 meetings and the Jets going 6-13 in their last 19 games as an underdog, I’m going with the Flames to get it done tonight to take a huge, 3-1 series lead. The under is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings between these two teams and I like it to play out again tonight.
- Pick: Calgary 3 Winnipeg 2
- When: Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 10:30 PM ET
- Where: Rogers Place, Edmonton
- TV: Sportsnet, TVAS, CNBC, NHL.TV
- Money Lines: Winnipeg Jets +140 / Calgary Flames -161
- Total: 5.5
