Expert NHL Best Bets and Predictions for Friday, April 5

NHL Best Bets

The month of April is off to a bang right now.  I don’t want to push my luck, so we’re just going to take a look at one of the six NHL games tonight. The Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers are facing off tonight. This game has a little more to it, considering the fact that Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid are both in the running for the Hart Trophy and the Art Ross Trophy. Let’s look at my NHL best bet.

Colorado at Edmonton (-130, 6.5)

The Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers have had some incredible battles in recent memory. In fact, their last five straight meetings have gone to overtime. 

The Avalanche are playing the second leg of a back-to-back tonight, and MacKinnon is coming off of a one-goal, two-assist effort in a 5-2 win against the Minnesota Wild. MacKinnon has 130 points in 78 games this season and is just three points behind Nikita Kucherov for the league lead. 

The Oilers, however, are coming off a rough loss, falling 5-0 on the road in Dallas the other night. McDavid has 126 points in 72 games and is three assists away from 100 this season. The Oilers have dropped two straight, but both games were on the road, so they will be fired up to be back on home ice tonight. 

McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have combined for 40 points in the Oilers’ last 10 games, but the Oilers have only scored two goals in their last two games combined. I don’t think they’ll be held off the scoreboard in tonight’s game. Alexandar Georgiev will get the start for the Avalanche tonight. While the 4-0-1 record in his last five starts is impressive, his numbers are not. Georgiev has a 2.89 GAA and a .894 save percentage in that span. 

Stuart Skinner is the likely starter for Edmonton. He is 3-1-2 in his last six with a 3.10 goals against and a .901 save percentage. 

The Oilers and Avalanche are two of the highest-scoring teams in the NHL. The Avalanche are number one as they’re averaging 3.72 goals per game, while the Oilers are fourth, scoring 3.54 goals per game. 

I’m expecting a high-scoring game and a show by MacKinnon and McDavid. 

NHL Best Bet(s): Over 6.5 -130 (play to -145) | Connor McDavid over 1.5 points -110 (play to -125) | Nathan MacKinnon over 1.5 points -110 (play to -125) 

April Record: 4-1 (+3.00 units)

2023-24 record: 133–133 (-25.31 units)