NHL picks: 4 best bets for Saturday
02 Apr
NHL
Guy Giles1
Chris Peters makes four money line picks for Saturday night's NHL action.

All the latest NHL lines can be found on the Betway sportsbook. Before finalising your online sports betting selections, make sure to check out our expert’s NHL picks and NHL predictions.

Jets to beat Kings 1.76

The Jets have had some very strong games of late, but most recently lost a 7-3 decision to the Toronto Maple Leafs which stopped a three-game winning streak. The Kings, meanwhile are coming off of a huge win over the Calgary Flames on the road.

The Kings have not won back-to-back games in any of their last 12, while the Jets haven’t lost back-to-back games over their last 13. Neither team has necessarily been the picture of consistency this season, but the Kings look poised to make the playoffs, while the Jets are clinging to a 4 per cent chance according to MoneyPuck.com. The likelihood of Winnipeg finding a way in seems very unlikely, but they’re still fighting.

This is a big game for both teams. For the Kings, it’s a chance to build off of a key win, for the Jets it’s a chance to boost their playoff hopes, however slimly.

The Kings are 18-9-6 on the road this year, which puts them in the upper third of the league. The Jets are mid-table when it comes to home record at 19-13-2.

I think the Jets could be playing with some desperation as they try to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Kings are playing their third road game in four days in Western Canada. Meanwhile, Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck has performed better on home ice this year with a .914 save percentage. This just seems to be setting up for a Jets win.

Lightning to beat Canadiens 1.30

This seems like a game that doesn’t require much analysis. The Lightning are rolling once again with four straight wins following an early-March swoon that saw them lose six of eight games. They’re on home ice against one of the worst teams in the league.

Montreal has really struggled since the trade deadline. They’ve lost five of their last six games and really haven’t been able to get anything going as their roster went through significant turnover. Even though the Habs have played better under Martin St. Louis, they simply don’t have the depth to compete with top teams.

The Lightning are mostly healthy and playing some of their best hockey down the stretch here. Not sure Montreal has much a fight to put up here. I’d consider a puck line play and maybe look for some player props for Tampa’s top scorers.

Maple Leafs to beat Flyers 1.32

Tonight’s game will be remembered probably not for the result, but because of what it means in the history of the game. Flyers defenseman Keith Yandle is not expected to play in the game against Toronto. He owns the NHL’s record for longest consecutive games streak, which will end at 989 games.

But when it comes to what is happening on the ice, the Flyers are trying to get some of their rookie defensemen in on the action and they’ll have to go against one of the best offensive attacks in hockey. Auston Matthews continues scoring at will, John Tavares has been on a bit of a heater offensively and the Maple Leafs have won three straight games where they scored five or more goals.

This is another game where I’d look at a potential puck line play as Toronto has been rolling.

Flames to beat Blues 1.37

This is going to be a great game between two heavyweight teams that are solidly in the playoffs. The Flames had been a dominant team on home ice, but just lost twice in a row at the Saddledome and have actually lost four of their last six home games. The Blues, meanwhile, have lost three of their last five games including a tough 6-5 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers Friday night.

With the Blues on the second half of a back-to-back, especially in a game that went to overtime, I think the needle swings a bit into the favor of the Calgary Flames, who did not play last night and have been on home ice for nearly two weeks. The schedule definitely sets up better for the Flames to be able to come away with two points here.

Even as Calgary is struggling a bit of late, its top offensive players continue to produce at a high rate. Johnny Gaudreau, Matthew Tkachuk and Elias Lindholm have been near unstoppable. They have four 30-goal scorers on the roster.

The Blues have also been without their top scorer Jordan Kyrou, who has been dealing with an illness. It sounds like he’s closer to returning, but if he’s out, the Blues have less of a counterpunch to deal with Calgary’s offensive attack.

Though the Flames have struggled on home ice in the last few weeks, the larger body of work and how well their top players have played of late suggest to me they’re due for a bounce back soon.