NHL Picks For MLK Day: Wild & Panthers Present Value as Underdogs
- There are 4 games on January 21st (Martin Luther King Jr Day) in the NHL
- The Knights host the Wild and are 16-4-3 at home this season
- See our best bet for each of the games on the schedule
It’s a quiet day in the NHL on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as we’ve got just four games on the docket.
Let’s take a closer look at all four contests and see if there’s any value on the side or total.
Predators vs Avalanche
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nashville Predators | +1.5 (-280) | -106 | O 6 (-111) |
| Colorado Avalanche | -1.5 (+235) | -104 | U 6 (+101) |
*All odds taken 1/21
Start time: 3:00pm EST
The Predators have been the significantly better team this season and are currently eight points better than the Avs in the standings. But it’s Colorado who is a slight favorite for Monday’s matchup.
That’s because the Preds come into this contest in a funk. They’ve dropped four of five, looking quite awful in the process.
The team that allowed the third-fewest goals per game (2.43) in November and 11th-fewest in December (2.86), is actually giving up a whopping 4.0 goals per game over their last six.
That’s one for the highlight reel. Grimaldi scores a spinning bakchander. 5-1 Predators. #CapsPreds pic.twitter.com/BozmKPKLlG
— NBC Sports Capitals (@NBCSCapitals) January 16, 2019
The challenge is that on the other side, we have an Avs team that has just five wins in their last 17 games.
The OVER looks like the best play as the Predators are struggling at the back end while Colorado has had issues with that all season. Goaltender Semyon Varlamov allowed just one goal in his latest outing but that was the second time in 11 starts that he’s allowed less than three.
Pick: OVER 6 (-111)
Blues vs Kings
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis Blues | -1.5 (+230) | -116 | O 5.5 (+113) |
| Los Angeles Kings | +1.5 (-275) | +105 | U 5.5 (-124) |
Start time: 4pm EST
Outside of a few brief spurts, the Kings have been a mess this season as they are 19-30 overall. However, they are 8-6-1 in their last 15, so they are treading water more so than being straight up awful these days.
They’ve been a bit better at home where they are 5-3 in their last eight.
Vladimir Tarasenko made his NHL debut & became the 2nd St Louis Blues player to score 2 Goals in 1st NHL game; named #1 star on January 19 2013 in Blues 6-0 Win vs Detroit Red Wings.
Clip contains both Goals & #1 star. Thanks to @low_defBlues for combing the @FSMidwest video. pic.twitter.com/LTpmKwGvDq
— STL Blues History (@STLBlueshistory) January 19, 2019
On Monday, they’ll host a Blues team that’s dropped two of three, but is 6-3-1 in their last 10. Oddly enough, they’ve won six of their last nine away games.
For whatever reason, they’re allowing just 2.55 goals per game on the road (third-best) compared to 3.41 when playing at home (second-worst).
I’ll go with the under in this game as under has cashed in seven of 10 road games for the Blues where the total is 5.5. Under is also 6-3 in the Kings last nine.
Pick: UNDER 5.5 (-124)
Wild vs Golden Knights
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Wild | +1.5 (-170) | +155 | O 6 (EVEN) |
| Vegas Golden Knights | -1.5 (+150) | -175 | U 6 (-120) |
Start time: 6pm EST
The Knights are playing some of their best hockey of the season right now as they have cashed in nine of their last 11 contests.
Meanwhile, Minnesota is in a bit of a funk as they have just three wins in their last seven. Overall, they’ve been an untrustworthy team since starting 14-7-2. Since then, they are just 10-14-1.
A heavyweight slug fest in Vegas tonight. McQuaid vs. Reaves I.#NYR @GoldenKnights pic.twitter.com/mkEmUv0sqF
— MSG Networks (@MSGNetworks) January 9, 2019
The challenge for the Wild here is that the Knights are 16-4-3 at home, which is among the best home-ice advantages in the NHL. They are also 9-4 when at home with a total of six or greater.
The Wild have won three of four in this series with the lone loss being in a shootout, so they play this team tough. I won’t lay -175 with the Knights here, so it’s either a small flier on the Wild here or a pass completely.
Pick: Wild +155
Sharks vs Panthers
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose Sharks | -1.5 (+200) | -125 | O 6.5 (-115) |
| Florida Panthers | +1.5 (-240) | +105 | U 6.5 (-105) |
Start time: 7pm EST
The Sharks are 17 points better than the Panthers in the standings but that may not fully tell the story here.
The Panthers have won two in a row (after losing seven in a row) as they’ve been buoyed by the return of Vincent Trocheck. They are now 10-10 with him in the lineup, compared to 9-18 without him.
He knows they won by 3 goals right? pic.twitter.com/6eZcdYHAsS
— Sharks on NBCS (@NBCSSharks) January 20, 2019
Meanwhile, the Sharks enter on a brief two-game losing streak (after winning seven in a row) and they have some injury concerns of their own as star defenseman Erik Karlsson has been seen limping around.
The Sharks are just 7-11 SU when on the road with a total of six or more. That being the case, and given the momentum of the sides, I’ll take a shot with the Panthers as a dog in this spot.
Pick: Panthers +105
For over 15 years, Dave has been working in mainstream media and sports betting. He hosted a station on Sirius Satellite Radio for four years, and is currently a senior writer for AskMen. He's interviewed hundreds of hundreds of high-profile sports stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Floyd Mayweather.
