Every week, I single out two NHL best bets that seem appealing to me and tonight's slate just may have the answers.
For Thursday's best bets, I'm zeroing in on the Los Angeles Kings vs Buffalo Sabres, as well as the Washington Capitals vs Detroit Red Wings.
Let's dive into my NHL best bets, prediction and pick for Thursday, January 29.
Jonny Lazarus' NHL Best Bets for Thursday, January 29
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 7:00 p.m. | |
  | 7:30 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NHL Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Kings vs. Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres continue to be one of the hottest teams in the NHL, and tonight, they return home after getting eight of a possible 10 points on their five-game road trip. The KeyBank Center should be absolutely rocking tonight, considering that this team has been the best in the league for over a month.
The Los Angeles Kings have been playing a little better as of late as well, as they're coming into Buffalo on a three-game win streak of their own.
Offensively speaking, the Sabres have been a wagon over their past 20 games. We're going to use the December 17th date as a benchmark for this run that they have been on. In that span, the Sabres are 16-3-1 and are averaging 4.00 goals per game.
Tage Thompson has been leading the charge, scoring 12 goals while adding 14 helpers in that span, but the Sabres are getting production throughout the entire lineup. Behind Thompson is a massive surprise in Mattias Samuelsson, who is having an incredible season. Samuelsson, a defenseman by the way, has tallied 19 points in his last 20 games, and he is skating to an outstanding +18 rating.
Not only are things going well for the Sabres offensively, but they've also gotten outstanding goaltending from Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
Lyon is the expected starter tonight, though it hasn't been confirmed at the time of writing this. You can't go wrong with either guy at the moment. Lyon has skated to a 6-0-0 record in his last six starts, while boasting a .927 save percentage with a 1.97 goals against average.
Despite winning three straight contests, the Kings have played subpar hockey over this same span. In their last 19 games, they have gone 8-7-4 and are averaging just 2.63 goals per game while allowing 3.00 goals against each contest. Darcy Kuemper is expected to start for Los Angeles, and in this span, he has gone 3-3-3 with a .866 save percentage and 3.46 goals against average.
Not going to overthink this one, the Sabres are 16-6-3 on home ice this season and have been playing amazing hockey. I'm riding the hot hand.
Pick: Sabres ML -125
| |
Capitals vs. Red Wings
The Washington Capitals are in the midst of a lengthy road trip, and things have not been looking good for them. The Capitals have dropped four of the first five games of the trip, and it doesn't seem to be getting better. Since December 17th, the Capitals are 7-11-3, which is the fifth worst in the league in that span.
As far as the Detroit Red Wings go, they have been right at the top of the league in the same span. Detroit has skated to a 13-5-3 record over its last 20 games, which is the third-best in the league in that span and the story with the Red Wings has been the play of their goaltender, John Gibson.
Gibson is 11-3-0 over his last 14 starts, while boasting a .927 save percentage and a 2.00 goals against average. Gibson has been a massive reason for the success that the team is having this year and over this latest stretch, he leads all goalies with a +11.5 GSAx, fully immersing himself in the conversation for the Vezina Trophy.
On the flip side, the Capitals have not been defending very well as of late and the goaltending performances have been a bit disappointing. At even strength, the Capitals have allowed the seventh most high-danger chances per game over this span, surrendering 12.71 against per 60, and as a team, they have been allowing 3.57 goals against per game.
It could be a historic night at Little Caesars Arena. Patrick Kane is one point away from surpassing Mike Modano as the leader in points for American-born players. Kane and Modano currently share 1,374 points and Kane has assists in back-to-back games. If you're looking for a prop to play, Kane to have a point is a good one.
Either way, one team is playing great, and well, the other… not so much.
Pick: Detroit Red Wings 3-Way Money (+130)
| |
