NHL Hockey Best Bets for October 16, 2015
Here are the NHL best bets for Friday Night:
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS AT COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS:
Someone’s ‘0’ has got to go….a matchup of winless teams means that one *has* to win. The Blue Jackets are definitely the more talented team but that hasn’t done them much good so far. In fact, they’ve been horrible with the entire lineup underachieving. That includes usually solid goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky who now has to listen to a growing chorus of fans (and media) suggesting that he should take a seat for awhile and give Curtis McElhinney a shot. That’s probably not going to happen–in fact, the team’s GM has defended the goalie while placing the blame on the defense. In all honesty, no one is playing well including the offense which scored more than two goals for the first game last time out–though it was in garbage time of a 7-3 loss to Ottawa.
Former Maple Leaf David Clarkson will make his debut for Columbus tonight. Things are getting ugly in Columbus, to the point that fans are unloading their tickets on the secondary market for bargain basement prices. Head coach Todd Richards is on the hot seat and that’s never good. Meanwhile, Mike Babcock has all the time in the world. Toronto is well rested, having last played on Saturday. Toronto is the better rested, looser team and they’re worth a shot as a decent sized dog.
BET TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS +150 OVER COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
SAN JOSE SHARKS AT NEW JERSEY DEVILS:
West against East, the Sharks have done everything right in the young season. The team got some bad news today as Logan Couture has a broken leg and will miss at least six weeks. Sharks have plenty of weapons, however, and are playing great hockey no matter how you slice it at 3-0. They’ve scored 12 goals and allowed only one. The Sharks have won 3 of 4 from the Devils including their last two trips to Newark. New Jersey not scoring and not getting much defense either. When you average 1.66 goals per game you don’t have any margin for error on the other end of the ice. Always tough to lay a big price with a road team but this is just a terrible matchup for the Devils who are winless on the young season and in a ‘lookahead spot’ to a Saturday night game at Madison Square Garden against the hated New York Rangers.
BET SAN JOSE SHARKS -150 OVER NEW JERSEY DEVILS
MINNESOTA WILD AT LOS ANGELES KINGS:
Simple value play. The Kings are struggling and have put up worse offensive numbers than New Jersey with only two goals in their first three games. Like New Jersey, the goaltending and defense hasn’t been there as LA has allowed 12 goals for a brutal -10 goal differential. Wild are 3-0 on the season with solid wins at Colorado, St. Louis and against a resurgent Arizona team. The Kings ‘brand name’ dictates the price and we’ll play against that.
BET MINNESOTA WILD +140 OVER LOS ANGELES KINGS