Thursday night gave bettors a clean mix of styles, a goalie battle in Winnipeg, several games that flipped in the third period, and one road shutout that never opened up. A few teams also kept trends alive, including Columbus staying hot and Tampa Bay sliding again. Late execution mattered across the board.
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NHL Picks of the Day
If you want quick-hit plays tied to the slate, focus on where shot volume, special teams, and third-period finishing showed up clearly. For a clean list of daily angles, check today’s NHL picks.
Top Takeaways
- Winnipeg won a goalie matchup where both starters stopped 26, and the Jets still created separation with second-period finishing plus an empty-net closer.
- Tampa Bay’s skid continued even with Brayden Point scoring, the Lightning could not turn good goaltending into enough offense.
- Toronto gave up five straight after leading early, that kind of collapse is brutal for live bettors backing the front-runner.
- Ottawa broke through in the third to win, and Linus Ullmark’s personal streak stayed intact, a tight game that turned on late execution.
- Columbus nearly coughed up a 3-0 lead but held, and it did it again without Zach Werenski, which matters in how they’ve survived recent games.
- Utah controlled a road shutout with second-period goals and limited shot volume against, a clean, low-event win.
NHL Game Recaps
Tampa Bay Lightning vs Winnipeg Jets Recap: Winnipeg Jets wins 4-1
Connor Hellebuyck won the goaltending duel as Winnipeg beat Tampa Bay 4-1. Hellebuyck made 26 saves, and Andrei Vasilevskiy also stopped 26 shots in the matchup.
Winnipeg’s separation came with second-period goals from Morgan Barron and Mark Scheifele, then Gustav Nyquist scored his first goal for the Jets and Kyle Connor added an empty-net goal. Brayden Point scored Tampa Bay’s only goal, and the Lightning dropped their fourth straight after going 20-1-1 from Dec. 20 to Feb. 25.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs New York Rangers Recap: New York Rangers wins 6-2
Alexis Lafreniere scored the tiebreaking goal on a third-period redirection, and the Rangers pulled away to beat Toronto 6-2. Will Cuylle scored in the first and added an empty-netter late, while Vladislav Gavrikov scored a power-play goal in the second, plus goals from Jaroslav Chmelar and Mika Zibanejad.
Toronto struck early, Matias Maccelli scored 13 seconds in and rookie Easton Cowan scored in the second, but then the Maple Leafs allowed five straight goals. Toronto matched a season worst with its sixth straight loss, and the third-period break was where it got away fast.
Ottawa Senators vs Calgary Flames Recap: Ottawa Senators wins 4-1
Dylan Cozens broke a third-period tie as Ottawa rallied for a 4-1 win in Calgary. Lars Eller, Tim Stutzle and Shane Pinto also scored, and Linus Ullmark made 19 saves while extending his personal run to 8-0-3.
The key was Ottawa finding the next goal in the third, turning a tie into a controlled finish. Martin Pospisil scored for Calgary, which has dropped four straight (0-3-1) and has three wins in 13 games (3-7-3), leaving the Flames a dozen points outside a Western Conference playoff position.
New York Islanders vs Los Angeles Kings Recap: Los Angeles Kings wins 5-3
Artemi Panarin scored his first goal for the Kings as Los Angeles beat the Islanders 5-3. Panarin, Adrian Kempe and Mikey Anderson each had a goal and an assist, Samuel Helenius and Alex Laferriere also scored, Brandt Clarke posted two assists, and Darcy Kuemper made 31 saves.
The betting story is Los Angeles finally pairing offense with enough saves after losing six of its previous seven (1-5-1). The Islanders got goals from Bo Horvat, Adam Pelech and Emil Heineman, with Jean-Gabriel Pageau recording two assists and Ilya Sorokin stopping 30 shots.
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Florida Panthers vs Columbus Blue Jackets Recap: Columbus Blue Jackets wins 4-2
Ivan Provorov had a goal and two assists and Mathieu Olivier scored twice as Columbus beat Florida 4-2 for its third straight win. Boone Jenner also scored, and Jet Greaves made 26 saves.
Columbus snapped a 0-6-3 slide versus Florida and nearly coughed up a 3-0 lead, but held on after the Panthers finally scored with 10:52 left in the third. Daniil Tarasov made 24 saves for Florida, and the Panthers’ playoff hopes continued to fade with a fourth straight defeat amid a 2-9-0 rut.
Utah Mammoth vs Philadelphia Flyers Recap: Utah Mammoth wins 3-0
Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller scored second-period goals and Vitek Vanecek made 16 saves as Utah shut out Philadelphia 3-0. Michael Carcone also scored, and Dylan Guenther added two assists.
The second period decided it, Utah got its goals there and kept Philadelphia from generating enough volume to change the script. Vanecek, in his first start since Jan. 27, recorded the 100th win and 11th shutout of his career, while the Flyers played without Travis Konecny (upper-body injury) for the second straight game and saw a three-game winning streak end.
Buffalo Sabres vs Pittsburgh Penguins Recap: Buffalo Sabres wins 5-1
Josh Norris and Owen Power each had a goal and an assist as Buffalo beat Pittsburgh 5-1 for its fifth straight win against the Penguins. Ryan McLeod, Alex Tuch and Mattias Samuelsson also scored, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 27 saves.
Buffalo created separation with balanced scoring and steady goaltending, and Pittsburgh never matched it. Bryan Rust scored for the Penguins, Arturs Silovs made 21 saves, and Pittsburgh has lost three of four (1-2-1).
Boston Bruins vs Nashville Predators Recap: Nashville Predators wins 6-3
Nashville broke the game open late in the second period, scoring three straight to turn a one-goal game into a win over Boston, 6-3. Filip Forsberg had a goal and two assists, Matthew Wood scored twice in a four-goal middle frame, and Nicolas Hague, Erik Haula and Luke Evangelista also scored, with Steven Stamkos adding two assists.
That second-period burst decided it for bettors, one tight game became a multi-goal separation quickly. Juuse Saros made 20 saves as Nashville snapped a three-game skid (0-2-1), while Boston got goals and assists from Charlie McAvoy and Viktor Arvidsson, plus a goal from Morgan Geekie and two assists from Pavel Zacha, and the Bruins’ road skid hit six games (0-3-3).
NHL Picks and Handicappers
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