After a hefty nine-game slate on last night, we have just a four-game slate on tap for Friday night. The Blues completed an exciting four-goal comeback late last night in San Jose but find themselves as +160 underdogs on the Moneyline against the Golden Knights with zero days rest. Here are my two favorite bets on DraftKings Sportsbook.
2024-25 NHL Record: 7-3
Refine your research with the DraftKings Sportsbook’s Stats Hub!
From Consistency Sheets and Matchup Tools to System Tools and Player Splits, the DraftKings Sportsbook Stats hub features tools to help with your betting research!
Tampa Bay Lightning at Carolina Hurricanes
Over 6 Total Goals (-125)
The Hurricanes at -142 on the Moneyline is enticing but I’d rather bank on two high-powered offenses doing what they do best –– score goals. Both teams went through some small roster turnover with Jake Guentzel signing with Tampa Bay in the offseason after spending the second half of last season with Carolina. He’s dealing with an undisclosed injury but is still expected to play tonight and it will be exciting to watch him play alongside both Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov on the Bolts’ first line. The Hurricanes lost some pieces to free agency but still have quality depth and dependable goaltending in Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov.
Both the Bolts and Hurricanes loved to score goals last season, ranking fifth (3.51) and eighth (3.38) in goals per game, respectively. Carolina was especially elite at scoring, ranking second in expected goal percentage (55.97%). Tampa Bay also allowed the 10th-most goals per game (3.26) and the third-most goals above expected (22.2). The goaltending on both sides is strong and could spoil a high-scoring night but it’s the season opener for both teams and the offensive talent is loaded. Carolina has been particularly strong in season openers across the last four seasons, too, averaging 4.5 goals per game.
Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets
Under 6 Total Goals (-112)
We’re going with the over in the first game of the night and the under in the second game of the night. I trusted Connor Hellebuyck to be a brick wall in the Jets’ season opener against the Oilers and I’ll be trusting him to do it again tonight against a much weaker Blackhawks squad. Don’t get me wrong, Chicago added some great pieces around Connor Bedard but it’s going to be hard for the last-ranked team in goals per game (2.17) to score on the second-ranked team in goals allowed per game (2.41).
This line is slightly concerning because Winnipeg just torched Edmonton, 6-0, and could clear it itself but that feels like an outlier considering it totaled just 20 shots. Plus, the history between these two teams suggests otherwise. The total has stayed under six total goals in eight of the last 10 matchups, including in all four matchups last season. Although the Blackhawks’ goaltenders have found some success recently against the Jets, it’s still quite bad but the veteran defensive acquisitions should help limit any scoring explosions. And, we know Hellebuyck will stand tall, per usual.
Place your NHL bets at DraftKings Sportsbook or by downloading the DraftKings Sportsbook app.
The Crown Is Yours: Sign up for DraftKings and experience the ultimate host for games and betting experiences!
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
