Scott “The Bulldog” Rickenbach Wednesday NHL Free bets OVER 6 in St Louis Blues vs Seattle Kraken @ 8:05 ET – The Kraken have trended toward higher-scoring games the past 5 weeks. Seattle had one 3-0 loss during this stretch but in the other 13 games since then they went 6-6-1 and the games averaged 6.5 goals per game. I like the value here because the Kraken would love to play the role of spoiler here and so they will force the Blues to outscore them in what will turn into a high-scoring affair. St Louis has won 7 of 13 games and the reason they have not won more games during this critical stretch has been shaky goaltending at times. Husso is off a strong game in between the pipes but the Blues last 13 games have averaged totaling nearly 8 goals per game! Solid line value with this total in my opinion. Free Pick OVER 6 in St Louis.
Scott “The Bulldog” Rickenbach Saturday NHL Free Pick OVER 7 in New Jersey Devils vs Florida Panthers @ 12:35 ET – The Devils off an 8-1 loss which was the 16th time last 24 games in which a New Jersey game has totaled 7 or more goals. Now the Devils are back on home ice after getting destroyed at Boston and I do expect New Jersey to score better here but the Devils problems will be at the other end of the ice in this one. NJ will be unable to stop the highest scoring team in the league. Indeed, the Panthers are in town and enter this game off a rare shutout win. Florida scored 4 goals which is normal for them as that is their average but the shutout was a rarity and certainly unlikely to be repeated. The Panthers entered that game with 19 of their last 25 games having totaled 7 or more goals. More of the same expected here. Free Pick OVER 7 in New Jersey Devils.
Scott “The Bulldog” Rickenbach NHL Friday Free Pick Vegas Golden Knights Money Line +150 @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET – I know Vegas has been struggling and not scoring well. I know they are in a B2B after a loss at Buffalo last night. However, that marked Jack Eichel’s return to face his former team and it was an ugly environment. That said, there is sense of relief for Eichel and the Golden Knights to have that game out of the way. Look for Vegas to respond big tonight and get back on track. So much value here with a good team in the +150 price range and I feel the Golden Knights are absolutely worth a look in this one! Knights are 16-10-1 in road games this season and Penguins have lost 14 of 29 home games this season! The fact is that Vegas has been better on the road than at home this season and the same holds true for Pittsburgh but of course normal home ice pricing is baked into this line. The result is exceptional value and I will take it! Free Pick VEGAS +150
Scott “The Bulldog” Rickenbach EPL Thursday Free Pick Wolverhampton -115 vs Watford @ 2:30 ET – Both clubs off defeats last week but Wolverhampton fired up off an embarrassing performance in a 2-0 home loss to Crystal Palace. As for Watford, they battled hard to come back against Arsenal and it was the kind of loss that can leave a club a bit frustrated in their next match. I look for the hosts to prove to be the much hungrier and determined club here. I know the visitors are desperate to avoid relegation but their 18 defeats this season tied for most in the league and I expect another one here! Free Pick WOLVERHAMPTON -115
NHL Free Pick Thursday Minnesota Wild Money Line +125 @ Toronto Maple Leafs @ 7 ET – The Wild are expected to start Kahkonen between the pipes tonight and I expect Minnesota to get a boost with the goalie switch. The regular starter, Talbot, has struggled but Kahkonen has played well overall of late. As for Toronto, they are struggling and not getting good goaltending from either Campbell or Mrazek recently. The Maple Leafs have lost 5 of 7 and have allowed 4.7 goals per game in regulation time of last 3 games. The Wild had won 12 of 15 before the loss at Ottawa in most recent game. Solid underdog value here is absolutely worth a look in this one. Free Pick MINNESOTA +125