RADIO
Coming out of the NHL All-Star break, there are six games on the schedule tonight, which means lots of chances to play props and win with Monkey Knife Fight.
Heading into the unofficial second half of the season, there are a few prime matchups on the schedule as the Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Dallas Stars and the St. Louis Blues are in Vancouver to take on the Canucks.
Alex Ovechkin will be out of the Washington Capitals lineup in Montreal while the Toronto Maple Leafs will have Auston Matthews and Jake Muzzin in the lineup.
Here are some angles to consider when making today’s hockey prop picks on Monkey Knife Fight.
WASHINGTON-MONTREAL
MORE OR LESS
John Carlson MORE THAN 0.5 ASSISTS – Even without Alex Ovechkin, who is suspended for one game after skipping the NHL All-Star Game, Carlson enters the game with 25 assists in 25 road games, which is enough to like his chances to pick one up against the Habs.
RAPID FIRE
Braden Holtby +3.5 saves vs. Carey Price – This isn’t so much a vote of confidence for Holtby, who hasn’t been great this season, but it’s more a reflection of the likely shot disparities between the two teams. Montreal at home is averaging 36.0 shots per 60 while Washington is averaging 30.6 shots per 60 on the road and that number includes games with Alex Ovechkin. With Ovechkin out, the Capitals are likely to generate even fewer shots, which is going to make it more difficult for Price to create a big saves margin against Holtby.
NEW JERSEY-OTTAWA
MORE OR LESS
Brady Tkachuk MORE THAN 3.5 FANTASY POINTS – While this hasn’t been an ideal sophomore season for Tkachuk when it comes to scoring, he has 15 points in 24 home games and is generating more than three shots on goal per game at home. Facing a New Jersey team that is below average defensively, Tkachuk ought to have a good chance to have a productive night.
RAPID FIRE
Nico Hischier +0.5 points vs. Thomas Chabot – Although Hischier hasn’t been hugely productive on the road, managing 13 points in 23 games, it’s not like Chabot has been a big scorer either, putting up 15 points in 24 home games. That level of production is close enough to prefer Hischier as the underdog.
TORONTO-NASHVILLE
MORE OR LESS
Mitch Marner MORE THAN 0.5 ASSISTS – Oddly, Marner has just eight assists in 15 road games (compared to 26 in 23 home games) but he also has 20 assists in his past 20 games overall. With Nashville’s shaky goaltending, it seems like a reasonable play to take Marner for at least one helper tonight.
RAPID FIRE
Roman Josi -0.5 shots plus blocks vs. Auston Matthews – In 24 road contests this season, Matthews has averaged 4.1 shots plus blocks per game, which is very impressive yet he’s clearly an underdog against Josi, who is averaging 5.1 shots plus blocks per home game.
TAMPA BAY-DALLAS
MORE OR LESS
Tyler Seguin MORE THAN 3.5 SHOTS + BLOCKS – While Seguin hasn’t been scoring as much this season, that doesn’t mean he isn’t generating shots. In 24 home games, he is averaging 4.54 shots plus blocks per game.
RAPID FIRE
Andrei Vasilevskiy -0.5 saves vs. Ben Bishop – Two high-end goaltenders make this a compelling matchup but the Lightning are not great at generating shots on the road (27.9 shots per 60 ranks 29th in the league) while Dallas is creating 33.1 shots per 60 at home and that differential in the respective shot rates for these teams makes Vasilevskiy the better play.
ST. LOUIS-VANCOUVER
MORE OR LESS
Alex Pietrangelo MORE THAN 4.5 SHOTS + BLOCKS – The Blues defenseman is having an outstanding season and is probably on the fringe of the Norris Trophy discussion. He’s averaging 4.5 shots plus blocks per game on the road, which is a big number to ask of a defenseman, but the Canucks are giving up 31.8 shots per 60 at home, which ranks 27th in the league, so the Blues – and Pietrangelo by extension – should be more likely to generate shots on goal.
RAPID FIRE
Brock Boeser +0.5 points vs. Elias Pettersson – Pettersson is great and has 28 points in 24 home games and while Boeser isn’t quite at that level, producing 22 points in 24 home games, getting that extra half point in the deal makes Boeser more appealing.
ANAHEIM-SAN JOSE
MORE OR LESS
Aaron Dell LESS THAN 30.5 SAVES – This is a bit of a battle because Dell has had quite a few games with big save totals but the Ducks don’t generate a lot of offense, managing 29.1 shots per 60 minutes on the road. If Dell is going to save at least 31, the presumption would have to be that the Ducks get 33 or 34 shots and that’s a lot for them.
RAPID FIRE
Rickard Rakell +0.5 points vs. Erik Karlsson – While Karlsson has a special track record, this season has been relatively underwhelming, and he has 18 points in 25 home games. Rakell has 15 points in 22 road contests, which is close enough to like Rakell as a lively underdog.
