NHL picks: 4 best player props for Thursday
Chris Peters picks out his four best player prop bets for Thursday night's slate in the NHL.
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Sidney Crosby and Johnny Gaudreau to both score 1+ points
These are two guys riding four-game point streaks heading into tonight’s action. Crosby has seven points over his last four games and will be going up against an Ottawa team that has been a little busier coming out of the All-Star Break than the Penguins have. Crosby’s just rolling right now.
Meanwhile, Gaudreau has four points, one in each of his last four games, but has really been pouring shots on goal. Over that point streak, he has 18 total shots on goal. He’s scored goals in three of those games. While I could consider a goal-scoring play for both, I’m going to play it a little safer and bet a little more confidently in both at least notching a point.
Brady Tkachuk to score 1+ points vs Pittsburgh
The Ottawa Senators captain is coming off of a two-goal performance against Carolina and has been Mr. Reliable for Ottawa all season. The Sens are down some significant players in Drake Batherson and Josh Norris, so it puts more pressure on Tkachuk to produce. He seems to thrive in that scenario.
The All-Star replacement for Batherson, Tkachuk is in the midst of the most productive season of his career, averaging 0.82 points per game. He also has five points in seven career games against the Penguins.
Evgeny Kuznetsov to score 2+ points vs Montreal
Kuznetsov is in the midst of a resurgent season where he’s averaging over a point per game. He looks about as good as he ever has in his career, scoring goals and setting up plays with regularity while averaging over 21 minutes per game – a career high for average ice time.
The Canadiens meanwhile have been bleeding goals and even though they’ve made a coaching change, it’s hard to imagine the Caps not putting a lot of pucks in the net. Kuznetsov is likely to be at the center of those efforts. Additionally, he has 17 points in 18 career games against the Habs.
Alex Tuch to score 1+ goals vs Columbus
The former Vegas Golden Knight is feeling at home playing for his boyhood team, the Buffalo Sabres. Tuch has five goals through his first 13 games with the Sabres and is averaging a point per game. The big forward who can absolutely fly on the ice should come into the game well rested as this is the Sabres’ first game coming out of the all-star break.
In the four games prior to the break, Tuch put a total of 20 shots on goal. Columbus is a good hockey club and they are coming off of a big win against Washington, but I think Tuch has been a breath of fresh air for the Sabres and will continue to be in this contest.