A busy NHL weekend got started on Saturday with 10 games going on across the league. From the Boston Bruins winning again to the Calgary Flames shutting out yet another opponent to the New York Rangers posting a seven-spot, it was an eventful day in hockey.
Let’s check out how each of Saturday games went to see how you fared if you were betting online:
Blues Hold On in Wild One
The tilt between the St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators was about as crazy as it gets. St. Louis scored the first three goals and then Nashville followed with three straight goals to tie it up. Then, the Blues scored again and the Predators responded with another goal 40 seconds later. Finally, St. Louis scored three more unanswered goals in the third period to secure the 7-4 victory.
Robert Thomas led the way for the Blues with two goals and two assists and David Perron had two goals of his own as well. Matt Duchene scored twice and assisted on another goal for the Predators. St. Louis won outright as road underdogs to snap Nashville’s three-game winning streak. The over was never in doubt.
Hurricanes Handle Flyers
It wasn’t the most impressive 3-1 win, but the Carolina Hurricanes got good goaltending from Frederik Andersen in his return from injury and used a timely Jordan Martinook third period goal to skate by the Philadelphia Flyers. Sebastian Aho’s empty-netter helped Carolina cover the puckline as huge home favorites on the BetUS sportsbook.
Andersen saved 28 of the 29 shots he faced as the Hurricanes swept the season series from Philadelphia. Carolina has won four straight and is in a groove. Martin Jones (33 saves) played well but Philadelphia’s skaters didn’t give him much help.
Smith Paces Bruins In Win
Craig Smith’s pair of first-period goals set the tone for the Boston Bruins’ 3-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes. Arizona fought back to tie things up in the third period on a goal from former Bruin Nick Ritchie but Charlie Coyle scored with a few minutes to break the ice and give Boston the win.
The Bruins won straight-up as massive favorites but didn’t cover the puckline. Jeremy Swayman’s continued strong net play helped the under hit. Arizona’s winning streak was snapped at a season-high four games.
Kraken Prevail in Shootout
It wasn’t exactly how the Seattle Kraken would draw it up, but their 4-3 shootout win over the Montreal Canadiens was much needed for a Seattle that had lost four in a row and 11 of 12 overall.
Seattle led 3-1 after two periods before the Canadiens scored twice in the final frame — on goals by Alexander Romanov and Nick Suzuki — to force overtime. Then the game went to a shootout, where the Krakens’ Marcus Johansson was the only shooter in seven rounds to find the back of the net. The Kraken won as slight road underdogs.
Blackhawks Win With Huge Second Period
Thanks to a four-goal second period — and two scores apiece from Caleb Jones and Jonathan Toews — the Chicago Blackhawks cruised by the Ottawa Senators in a 6-3 win on Saturday.
The Senators scored twice in the opening period and looked like they were well on their way to an easy win before Chicago stormed back to score six of the game’s final seven goals. The loss snapped a two-game winning streak the Senators were working on. The Blackhawks won as very small favorites but this game was essentially a pick’em.
Devils Prevail in Goalie Showcase
Both Nico Daws and Anthony Stolarz were on top of their respective games on Saturday in Newark so the New Jersey Devils needed to go to a shootout in order to beat the Anaheim Ducks 2-1. New Jersey converted on its first two shootout chances — by Tomas Tatar and Jesper Bratt — while the Ducks were stopped by Daws twice.
Troy Terry kicked off the scoring in the first period with his 29th goal of the season and Tatar followed that up with his 11th goal a few minutes into the second period. But, that was basically it for either offense, with Daws and Stolarz combining to make 72 saves.
New Jersey won as a home favorite but didn’t cover the puckline. The under was a lock from the get-go. The Devils have now won three of four while Anaheim has dropped three in a row.
Markstrom Shuts Out Detroit
For the ninth time this season, the Calgary Flames’ Jacob Markstrom pitched a shutout in net as Calgary easily took down the struggling Detroit Red Wings 3-0. Markstrom only faced 19 shots from Detroit but he stopped them all to continue his magical campaign.
The Flames peppered Thomas Greiss with 43 shots en route to their sixth win in their last eight games. Elias Lindholm, Tyler Toffoli, and Blake Coleman all found the back of the net for Calgary, which was a big home favorite and covered the puckline with room to spare. It was another lopsided defeat for Detroit, which has lost five straight.
Rangers Explode for Seven Goals in Win
The New York Rangers broke out of a little funk with uncharacteristically dynamic offensive play in a 7-4 win over the Dallas Stars. New York scored four times in the first period after Dallas got on the board with two goals in the game’s first five minutes. The Stars fought to get back within a goal twice but the Rangers held them off behind a weaker-than-normal performance from Igor Shesterkin.
Artemi Panarin scored once and had four assists to lead the Rangers, whose play has been all over the place lately. It was a good way for New York to end a four-game road trip, particularly as underdogs. Jake Oettinger, Dallas’ normally stout goalie, had no answers for New York as the over hit comfortably.
Sharks Crush Kings
For the second time in three days, the San Jose Sharks took down the surging Los Angeles Kings. On Thursday, San Jose needed overtime to beat Los Angeles but, on Saturday, it was a one-sided game from the start. The Sharks scored three times in the first period on Calvin Petersen and kept it going all night.
Adin Hill notched his second shutout of the season in his first start in over a month for San Jose. The Sharks cruised as home underdogs on the NHL betting lines.
McDavid Keys Oilers’ Win
Connor McDavid did what Connor McDavid does in the Edmonton Oilers’ 4-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night. He scored in the first and second period to set the tone for the Oilers, who had 49 shots on goal and got a great performance from Mikko Koskinen in net. Leon Draisaitl also added his 39th goal of the year.
Tampa Bay has had a rough time of it lately, losing three games in a row on the Western Canada portion of their road trip. The Lightning have allowed 15 goals to the Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, and Calgary Flames in their three losses.
