After a chaotic weekend in the NHL, with suspensions and coaching changes galore, it’s nice to see the league’s focus shift back to the ice with 10 games on the Tuesday night schedule. The robust slate includes five games north of the border and another five in the U.S. stretching from the East Coast to the West Coast — and they all provide numerous NHL prop betting opportunities.
Here are our top five NHL prop bets, starting with a rookie from Detroit who is putting up big numbers.
Odds via DraftKings and FanDuel, updated at 11 a.m. on Dec. 7.
Detroit Red Wings: Lucas Raymond
The Prop: Score Anytime Goal (vs. Nashville)
The Odds: +190
Raymond is off to a scorching start to his NHL career. The 19-year-old Swede leads all rookies with 10 goals and 12 assists in 25 games. Half of those goals have come at home (13 games), including in three of his past four in Detroit.
Just some Lucas Raymond highlights to brighten your day.
You're welcome 😀@DetroitRedWings | #IceTime pic.twitter.com/K81VwYEyZq
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) December 6, 2021
The resurgent Red Wings have won five straight games, with Raymond putting the puck in the net in three of those contests. All three were in Motown, where Detroit is 9-2-2 this season.
On Tuesday, Raymond faces a Predators squad that has surrendered six goals in each of their last two road games and 18 goals in their last four on the highway.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Ondrej Palat
The Prop: 0.5 Total Points (at Montreal)
The Odds: Over +104/Under -124
Palat has tallied at least 34 points in each of his first eight full NHL seasons, including 40-plus points six times. So with 14 points in 24 games, the 30-year-old is having somewhat of a down year by his standards. Still, playing on a Lightning team loaded with explosive offensive talent, Palat ranks fourth among forwards in total points.
Palat only has two points in his last five games, but he’s historically played very well against Montreal. In 25 regular-season games against the Canadiens, he’s accumulated 18 points (three goals, 15 assists). He also added four points in five games against the Habs during the 2021 Stanley Cup final.
With Montreal allowing 3.48 goals per game (fourth-most in the league), expect an offensive breakout from the Lightning in this one. And don’t be surprised if Palat joins the scoring party.
Editor’s Note: New to NHL props? Check out our complete NHL Prop Betting Guide to get up to speed!
Columbus Blue Jackets at Toronto Maple Leafs
The Prop: Team to Score First Goal (regulation time only)
The Odds: Columbus +145/Toronto -180
The Blue Jackets snapped a four-game losing streak with an offensive outburst Sunday, rolling to a 6-4 win over the San Jose Sharks. The six goals matched Columbus’ cumulative total in during its losing skid.
Meanwhile, Toronto is coming off back-to-back losses to the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets, and will be without star winger Mitch Marner and defenseman Rasmus Sandin in this one. The Leafs also could be without Jason Spezza (fourth on the team with seven goals), pending the results of Monday’s disciplinary hearing for kneeing Winnipeg’s Neal Pionk in Sunday’s 6-3 road loss.
Although Toronto scored eight goals in its most recent home game, it found the net just eight times in its previous five at Scotiabank Arena.
That said, Columbus has scored first on the road just once in 11 games this season.
Anaheim Ducks: Troy Terry
The Prop: Score Anytime Goal (at Buffalo)
The Odds: +180
Terry has been one of the NHL’s breakout players this season, as his 15 goals are tied for sixth most in the league. Not only does that number match Terry’s goal total from his first three NHL seasons combined, but with 26 points he’s on pace to double his career point total (he had 40 entering this season).
Terry has been scoring at a point-per-game pace, and on Tuesday, the 24-year-old right wing will lead the Ducks against a Buffalo Sabres team that has struggled in net all season.
The Sabres have three goaltenders unavailable for Tuesday’s game: Dustin Tokarski is in COVID-19 protocols; Craig Anderson is still recovering from a lingering upper-body injury; and recently acquired Malcolm Subban left Saturday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes with a lower-body injury.
That leaves Buffalo’s netminding duties to Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who has a career 3.88 GAA and will be making his first start of the season. That’s a scary thought for Buffalo, which has allowed the fifth-most shots and second-most goals per game — including 18 in the last three contests.
Calgary Flames at San Jose Sharks
The Prop: Team to Score First Goal (regulation time only)
The Odds: Calgary -130/San Jose +105
The Flames lead the league in first-goal percentage this season, scoring the opening goal in 18 of 25 games this season. However, among the seven games Calgary failed to light the lamp first, four occurred on the road.
Meanwhile, San Jose has scored first in 13 of 25 contests, but the Sharks have allowed the first goal in half of their 10 home games. That mirrors their 5-4-1 overall home record.
