NHL Best Bets: Anytime Goalscorer Picks and Predictions (Saturday, April 20)

Check out Tony Sartori's NHL best bets and anytime goalscorer picks and predictions for Saturday, April 20.

Today's NHL slate is modest with just two games as the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway, but I still have two NHL anytime goalscorer picks for the the action.

Betting on NHL anytime goalscorers is simple enough: If your player scores a goal at any point in the game, your bet is a winner. MLB has its dingers; the NHL has its anytime goalscorers. And with both types of player props, the bets usually come with plus-money odds attached to them, so they're a favorite among all types of sports bettors.

Check out all of the analysis with my favorite anytime goalscorer predictions for tonight's NHL games below.

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NHL Expert Picks – Anytime Goalscorers Best Bets

The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our NHL betting staff is targeting from today's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.

Kicking off the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs is a Metropolitan Division series between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Islanders. Carolina is laying north of two dollars on the moneyline in what is expected to be a lopsided affair, and one of the reasons for this expectation is New York's poor defensive play.

Surrendering high-danger scoring chances at a high rate, the Islanders rank in the bottom half of the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) at 5-on-5. Subsequently, the team ranks in the bottom half of the league in both goals allowed per game and shots on goal allowed per game.

However, the Islanders not only struggle at even-strength, but they also rank last in the league in penalty kill percentage. That bodes well for the Hurricanes' power-play unit, considering it ranks second in power-play percentage.

Assuming Carolina is going to take advantage of this disparity in special-teams efficiency, then Seth Jarvis is likely to serve as the greatest beneficiary. Not only is he second on the team in goals, but he also leads the way in power-play goals.

Finally, Jarvis enters this contest in great form, scoring four goals over his final three games of the regular season. Two of those four goals came on the man-advantage, which is likely to come into play once again on Saturday.

Pick: Seth Jarvis (+240 at FanDuel)

The second game of Saturday's postseason doubleheader features the Boston Bruins hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs. Boston forward Brad Marchand is our second player to target in the goalscoring department as he ranks second on the Bruins in both goals and power-play goals.

While Marchand may not quite stack up to David Pastrnak in terms of goalscoring prowess, +250 is just too long to pass up on a guy who is the second-most likely to score against a Toronto team that bleeds goals. This season, the Leafs rank in the bottom half of the league in goals allowed per game, shots on goal allowed per game, penalty kill percentage and penalty minutes taken per game.

Backing up this defensively poor group is goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who has unsurprisingly struggled with the product in front of him. Through 40 starts in the crease this year, Samsonov possesses a .890 SV% and 3.13 GAA.

This lack of success is likely to continue against Boston, a team he possesses a .899 SV% against through seven career outings. Marchand scored in four of those seven outings, making a +250 a very intriguing proposition to make.

Pick: Brad Marchand (+250 at FanDuel)