Game 1 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final saw a 5-4 final score that included a multi-goal comeback by the road team. Tonight, the Vegas Golden Knights take their 1-0 series lead into Lenovo Center again for Game 2 against the Carolina Hurricanes. The biggest question is whether the underdog can hang on to this newfound momentum, but regardless, there’s plenty of betting value in prop markets on the board.
Below, we’ll take a look at the best NHL player prop bets on DraftKings Sportsbook for the playoff action on Thursday night.
For up-to-date NHL betting information and data, check out the DraftKings Sportsbook betting splits and player props pages!
Best NHL player prop bets for Stanley Cup Final Game 1
Frederik Andersen over 21.5 saves (-120)
Game 1 was a very ugly one for Carolina netminder Frederik Andersen, who let five goals slip by and saved just 18-of-23 shots he faced. Now, his SV% in the Stanley Cup Playoffs is down to just .920 after what was by arguably his worst performance of the postseason. However, his SV% is still .920 and he’s still largely been hot over the full sample of 14 games. While the Hurricanes have kept opposing shot volume way down, which benefitted Andersen, it seems Vegas may test that aspect of the home team’s strategy. The Golden Knights did tally 23 shots on goal in Game 1 and should probably end up with a few more in Game 2 now that they’ve had a chance to get a feel for this opponent. I fully expect Andersen to face more pucks tonight, which should help the over on 21.5 saves cash. I’m also fairly bullish that he simply plays better after playing at such a locked-in level through the majority of the postseason.
Pavel Dorofeyev over 2.5 shots on goal (-105)
One of the star scorers for the Golden Knights, Pavel Dorofeyev has been quite the offensive threat for his team. The winger led the roster with 37 goals during the regular season and finished second in shots on goal with 230, good for an average of 2.80 per game. His success has continued during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, ranking second on the team with 10 goals and tying for the lead in shot attempts with 45. The latter mark averages out to 2.64 attempts per game, which is exactly what we want to see for this prop bet. Dorofeyev sees the benefit of playing alongside a top playmaker in Jack Eichel on the first line, which means he finds himself in position to shoot often. The winger tallied three shots on goal during Game 1 and has gone over this line of 2.5 in 10 of his 17 appearances this postseason, including in six of his last eight games following a bit of a dry spell to begin round two. A reliable option at near-even odds, I really like this pick for Game 2.
