Toronto -110 (3-1-0) @ Montreal -110 (1-3-0)
Montreal has not had a great start to the season, having won just 1 game and are having trouble scoring. The Leafs have really come out of the gate strong, are scoring goals, but also playing a little sloppy and coach has been on them about effort. They lost their last game and coach now has something to use to show them what he has been trying to tell them. I like the Leafs this year and they have a great team with youngsters so I think that last loss was good for them and at the right time.
This is a traditional Hockey Night in Canada game and is fun for fans of either team as they love to chirp at each other. I think the Leafs will win this one by a couple goals, even though they are on the road for this one.
Pick: Toronto
Carolina +115 (1-0-1) @ Winnipeg -135 (2-2-0)
The Jets have had a good start to the year and like I said before, I like their team but not sure about the goaltending. I have not paid much attention to Carolina so far, they have only played a couple games and both were close, they lost one in overtime and won the other in a shootout. I see the Jets winning this one at home, but suspect it will be a 1 goal game, possibly going into overtime to decide it.
Pick: Winnipeg
Calgary (3-2-0) @ Vancouver (1-1-1)
Well, here we go. A matchup of my favorite team from my hometown growing up in Vancouver, where I have a lot of sad tales of supporting the team, with a few great experiences/memories of playoff runs that fizzled out in Game 7 of the finals… against a team I am a fan of this year who I should hate, the Flames. Calgary has a good team that plays well together, but give up a lot of goals; Canucks, although they are a ‘rebuild season, have some veterans and some youth, but typical Canucks fashion, struggle when it comes time to put it all together on a regular basis. Calgary had a terrible game last night, played lazy. Could motivate them but Canucks also have something to prove after losing their last couple games and these teams will play physical against each other.
Pick: Vancouver
Ottawa (2-0-2) @ Edmonton (1-2-0)
Well, I am having trouble with this one. On paper before the season, I think Edmonton is the easy pick. Ottawa is still waiting for the return of Karlsson to supplement their backend, and they did play great last night against the Flames. However, the Oilers have not been playing as well as a team it seems. They won their first game and then lost the next 2. If teams focus on McDavid and shut him down or minimize his impact, it seems to slow down the Oilers but they have others who are capable of getting the job done. I am going to go with the Oilers in this one.
Pick: Edmonton
I will play a 4 team parlay for $10 later today (odds for a couple games not posted yet)