Yet another 2-for-5 effort with NHL props on Wednesday, with a pair of easy winners on Gabriel Landeskog’s assist prop and Paul Stastny’s points prop. (We even told you that we wouldn’t be surprised to see Landeskog score a goal, and the Avs’ forward ended up with a hat trick, but no assists.) Unfortunately, we missed badly with our other three NHL props.
Dating back to last week, that’s now four consecutive 2-3 efforts. Let’s see if we can at least flip that record around with our five NHL props for Thursday.
Odds via DraftKings and FanDuel as of 3:20 p.m. ET on Feb 24.
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Florida Panthers: RW Sam Reinhart
The Prop: 2.5 Total Shots (vs. Columbus)
The Odds: Over +104/Under -136
While Reinhart has shifted into somewhat of a third-line role this season, he’s still managed to rank second on the team in points (49) while simultaneously jump-starting the careers of rookie linemates Anton Lundell and Mason Marchment. Reinhart also sees a ton of power play time.
Sam Reinhart is all about the angles. 📐 pic.twitter.com/ELj3prRrfG
— NHL (@NHL) February 23, 2022
As for this particular prop, there are several things working in Reinhart’s favor Thursday — most notably the opponent. Regular readers of this NHL props article know we’ve recommended backing shooters against the Columbus Blue Jackets all season. The reason: Columbus allows a league-worst 35.3 shots per game, with a slight increase to 35.5 against on the road. Meanwhile, the Panthers lead the league with 36.5 shots on goal per contest, and that number jumps to a blistering 39.4 at home.
Reinhart has beaten this prop number in five of his last seven outings overall and three of his last four home games. In fact, the 26-year-old Canadian has fired 13 shots on net in his last two at home!
This feels like a slam dunk. But if Reinhart still isn’t your guy, nearly anyone on the Panthers is fair game to hit the Over on their shot prop.
Pittsburgh Penguins: C Evan Rodrigues
The Prop: 2.5 Total Shots (vs. New Jersey)
The Odds: Over +106/Under -138
With all the high-volume shooters Pittsburgh puts on the ice, you might be surprised to learn Rodrigues ranks second on the team in shots on goal with 155 in 52 games. He’s only 10 behind Jake Guentzel for the team lead.
New Jersey has been one of the better shot-suppressing teams this season, yielding 30.7 per game (31.4 on the road). However, that average is up to 31.2 over the Devils’ last 10 games, including 35 against Pittsburgh on Sunday. Rodrigues had three shots in that one, and he’s gone Over 2.5 in two of three meetings against New Jersey this season.
Additionally, the seventh-year pro has cleared this prop number in 28 of 52 games overall (53.9%), 18 of 27 against Eastern Conference opponents (62.1%), and 14 of 26 at home (53.9%), where he’s averaging 3.19 shots per contest.
While +106 may not seem overly generous, it’s still plus money on a player who this year has proven to be worth the investment.
Editor’s Note: New to NHL props? Get up to speed with our complete NHL Props Betting Guide!
New York Rangers: LW Chris Kreider
The Prop: Score Anytime Goal (vs. Washington)
The Odds: +130
Heading into the All-Star break, Kreider led the NHL in goals. However, in three games since the break, the Rangers’ former first-round pick hasn’t scored despite putting 12 shots on net.
That's NHL GOALS LEADER Chris Kreider to you. pic.twitter.com/6jxqggXqkb
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 23, 2022
So why back Kreider to break through against the Capitals on Thursday? Because despite the recent slump, the 30-year-old still has 26 goals in 50 games. He’s tickled the twine in 15 of 26 games against Eastern Conference foes (57.6%), and he’s been lights out in 23 contests at Madison Square Garden, where he’s scored 13 times. Also, in his only game this season against the Caps, Kreider scored his team’s only goal in a 3-1 season-opening loss.
Washington goaltender Vitek Vanecek and defenseman Justin Schultz are expected to miss Thursday’s game. That’s an obvious bonus for Kreider, as is this: The Capitals have allowed an average of 32.6 shots in their last five games, and they’ve surrendered 23 goals in their last seven.
Boston Bruins: LW Brad Marchand
The Prop: 0.5 Total Goals (at Seattle)
The Odds: Over +152/Under -192
Marchand is back after serving a six-game suspension for his bush-league antics against Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry earlier this month.
No doubt, the serial agitator will have a chip on his shoulder Thursday night. Despite his recent absence, Marchand still ranks second on the Bruins in goals with 21 in 39 games, and his 64.40 expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) is second among Boston forwards.
Elite 200ft Combo- Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand #NHLBruins #NHL pic.twitter.com/xfvgZPO854
— NHLineCombo (@NHLineCombo) February 17, 2022
Seattle allows a league-worst 3.82 goals per game at home, while Boston scores 2.87 per contest on the road. Marchand tallied two assists against the Kraken on February 1, but failed to slip the puck across the goal line that night. Count on him to come out of the gates firing Thursday and light the lamp for just the second time in his last nine games.
New York Islanders: D Noah Dobson
The Prop: 2.5 Total Shots (at San Jose)
The Odds: Over +110/Under -140
It’s almost always a surprise to see a defenseman leading his team in shots on goal, but that’s the case for the Islanders and Dobson. The 22-year-old blueliner has 108 shots in 44 games this season, which is one more than center Mathew Barzal and two more than winger Oliver Wahlstrom.
Despite Dobson’s ability to put the puck on net this season, the Under is the play here. Dobson failed to record a shot in Tuesday’s 5-2 rout of the Kraken in Seattle, just fifth time this season he got shutout in that department. The previous four times it happened, he finished with two shots or fewer in the next game.
Also, Dobson has hit the Over in just 10 of 21 road contests and nine of 23 against teams with a losing record.
San Jose ranks 15th in shots-against this season at 31.3 per game, and that number dips to 30.7 at home. Throw in the fact that the Rangers average the fifth-fewest shots per game overall (29.1), and it’s difficult to see where Dobson breaks through in this one.
