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Thursday’s slate had a little of everything, but the common thread was finishing. One game turned on a single late power play, another needed overtime after a seven-seconds-left equalizer, and special teams kept showing up as the separator. I think the biggest bettor note is how many outcomes hinged on a handful of high-leverage moments, not long stretches of dominance.
Latest NHL Odds & Lines
If you’re tracking this league day to day, you know the board can shift fast based on goalie confirmations and situational spots. Before you lock anything in, check the moneyline, puck line, and totals on a proper odds board like this guide on how to master hockey odds. Movement matters, even when you can’t pin it to one headline reason.
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NHL Picks of the Day
These games were a reminder that your edge often comes from knowing which teams can cash in when the door cracks open. If you want a fast place to start, use this hub for the best hockey picks all season and cross-check what you like against how the game actually sets up.
Los Angeles Kings
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Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
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Nashville Predators
St Louis Blues
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Tampa Bay Lightning
Top Takeaways
- Special teams were a slate-wrecker: Calgary scored on the power play and added a short-handed goal, while Chicago went 0-for-4 and managed one power-play shot.
- One late power play was the whole game in Edmonton: the Islanders’ first man advantage produced the only goal at 13:42 of the third, and Sorokin did the rest.
- Buffalo-Montreal was pure conversion trading: four power-play goals on seven opportunities, and Thompson drove everything when the game tilted.
- Vegas-Toronto was chaos management: a late challenge erased a would-be tying goal, then Vegas still tied it with seven seconds left and finished in OT.
- Utah’s heater feels real in the standings, but bettors should respect how thin the margins were: a weird bounce goal decided it, and Vejmelka still had to steal key saves late.
- Winnipeg’s first-period burst broke Minnesota: three goals in the final six minutes of the first turned it into a survival game for the Wild.
NHL Game Recaps
Islanders wins 1-0
Ilya Sorokin made 35 saves for his league-leading fifth shutout as New York beat Edmonton 1-0. Anthony Duclair scored the only goal, finishing a third-period power-play look set up by Calum Ritchie.
This was a stalemate until it wasn’t. Edmonton pushed, including a waved-off Evan Bouchard chance early in the third that never fully crossed the line, but the Oilers couldn’t convert on their power plays. Duclair’s goal came on New York’s first power play of the game, and that single conversion was the difference as Connor McDavid’s 20-game points streak ended.
Flames wins 3-1
Calgary climbed out of an early hole to beat Chicago 3-1 behind Mikael Backlund and Yegor Sharangovich, who each had a goal and an assist. Devin Cooley stopped 22, and Matt Coronato added the empty-netter to close it.
For bettors, this one screamed special teams and execution. Sharangovich answered Chicago’s early lead with a power-play goal 36 seconds later, then Backlund put Calgary ahead for good with a short-handed breakaway goal after stealing the puck in the neutral zone. Chicago went 0-for-4 on the power play with just one shot on goal during those advantages, and Cooley’s late second-period saves kept the game from flipping.
Mammoth wins 2-1
Karel Vejmelka made 26 saves and Utah beat Dallas 2-1, with John Marino and Nick Schmaltz each posting a goal and an assist. Marino’s third-period winner came on a long-range shot that hit Jake Oettinger and deflected in.
The swing happened fast in the third. Dallas tied it on a power-play rebound finish by Mikko Rantanen at 2:04, then Utah went back in front at 4:03 on that strange Marino bounce. Utah’s points streak moved to six games (5-0-1), and Vejmelka sealed it with a huge glove save on Sam Steel and another stop on Roope Hintz’s late tip chance.
Winnipeg Jets vs Minnesota Wild Recap: Jets wins 6-2
Winnipeg rolled Minnesota 6-2 with Mark Scheifele (one goal, three assists) driving the bus. Gabriel Vilardi, Jonathan Toews, and Josh Morrissey each had a goal and an assist, and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 32 of 34.
Minnesota was buried by the end of the first, and that’s the betting story. The Jets scored three times in the final six minutes of the opening period, including two goals in the final 10.5 seconds, and Minnesota was chasing from there. Jesper Wallstedt allowed six on 20 shots before Filip Gustavsson finished clean in relief, but by then the game was already decided.
Penguins wins 6-3
Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist as Pittsburgh snapped a three-game skid with a 6-3 win over Philadelphia. The Penguins got goals from Justin Brazeau, Bryan Rust, Egor Chinakhov, Blake Lizotte, and Connor Dewar, and all 12 Pittsburgh forwards recorded at least a point.
The edge was the power play flipping from cold to lethal. Pittsburgh hadn’t scored on its last 10 power-play chances, then tied a season high with three power-play goals in this one and went 3-for-4 overall. Philadelphia’s losing streak hit five games (0-4-1), and the defensive bleed continued as the Flyers have been outscored 25-9 during that stretch.
Bruins wins 4-2
Boston jumped early and never trailed in a 4-2 win over Seattle, with Marat Khusnutdinov, Viktor Arvidsson, Mark Kastelic, and David Pastrnak scoring. Jeremy Swayman made 26 saves for his third straight win.
The turning point was Boston getting a short-handed winner instead of giving Seattle a window. Kastelic stole a puck at the blue line and scored short-handed early in the second to restore a two-goal cushion, even though Seattle went 2-for-4 on the power play overall. Seattle pushed late with the goalie pulled, but a penalty with 1:04 left killed the final surge and Pastrnak iced it into the empty net.
Golden Knights wins 6-5
Jack Eichel scored the overtime winner and added three assists as Vegas rallied past Toronto 6-5. Pavel Dorofeyev scored two power-play goals, Mark Stone had a goal and two assists, and Tomas Hertl tied it with seven seconds left in regulation before Eichel ended it at 2:44 of OT.
This was a momentum game that kept getting interrupted, which is brutal if you were holding a side and thought you were safe. Toronto built multiple leads, Dorofeyev had a would-be tying goal wiped out on an offside challenge, and Vegas still found a way to force overtime with the goalie pulled. In OT, Eichel walked into the finish after taking Stone’s pass and beating Joseph Woll.
Sabres wins 5-3
Tage Thompson did everything in Buffalo’s 5-3 win over Montreal, scoring three goals and adding two assists. Josh Doan had a goal and an assist, Alex Tuch scored, and Noah Ostlund added two assists as the Sabres won for the 15th time in their past 17 games.
The handicap angle here was special teams trading punches until Buffalo’s top-end decided it at even strength moments. The teams combined for four power-play goals on seven opportunities, then Buffalo tied it 3-3 on a Tuch one-timer set up by Thompson before Thompson scored the go-ahead at 5:12 of the third. The empty-netter sealed Thompson’s hat trick.
Blue Jackets wins 4-1
Columbus beat Vancouver 4-1 as Elvis Merzlikins made 30 saves and Kirill Marchenko and Kent Johnson each logged a goal and an assist. Charlie Coyle and Zach Werenski also scored for the Blue Jackets, who are 2-0-0 since Rick Bowness replaced Dean Evason earlier this week.
This one tilted on power-play execution and Vancouver’s inability to stop the slide. Columbus scored twice on the power play in the first two periods, then Vancouver finally got on the board with Brock Boeser snapping a 21-game goal drought on its own power play. Still, the Canucks’ losing streak hit nine, and Columbus closed the door by cashing the cleaner looks.
San Jose Sharks vs Washington Capitals Recap: Sharks wins 3-2
San Jose scored three times in a three-minute second-period burst to beat Washington 3-2, with Zack Ostapchuk, Collin Graf, and Pavol Regenda all factoring in. Alex Nedeljkovic made 21 saves as the Sharks won for the seventh time in their past nine games.
Washington led 1-0, then one strange bounce kicked off the flip. Ostapchuk tied it after a collision behind the net pushed the puck out front, Graf followed with the go-ahead, and Regenda finished the surge with a clean look created by Macklin Celebrini’s work behind the net. Ryan Leonard’s third-period highlight goal made it tight, but San Jose held.
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NHL Picks and Handicappers
If you’re betting hockey regularly, the best habit you can build is a repeatable framework, then pressure-testing it against different game types. Start with the fundamentals in how to bet on hockey and a primer like NHL betting 101 so you’re not guessing when the market gets sharp.
From there, it’s about situational edges. Knowing when you’re looking at a real opportunity versus a trap matters, especially with price and variance, so it’s worth reading pieces on NHL underdogs and using signals like NHL public betting data the right way. And if you’re playing derivatives, get comfortable with puck line wagers and NHL alternate lines so you know what you’re buying.
Playoff hockey is its own animal, too. If you’re gearing up for that style of slate, keep this bookmarked for NHL playoff betting tips and strategies.
