NHL Free Bets: Two Teams To Bet On Friday in the NHL
NHL Free Bets
Friday's NHL action features six games with plenty of betting opportunities. Whether you want to take on each game individually or go all-in on a major parlay, there are a couple of bets to strongly consider before you place your wagers.
Here are two bets, in particular, to consider Friday night in the NHL.
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Boston Bruins -135 over Washington Capitals
The Bruins and Capitals are set to face off once again in Boston. Although the Capitals squeaked out the win on Wednesday, consider the Bruins to get their revenge in the rematch.
First, the 2-1 win for Washington was decided in a shootout, with Jakub Vrana scoring the lone goal. Boston scored the game's opening goal about 100 seconds into the third period before giving up a goal five minutes later. It also stayed fairly even in hits, faceoffs, and penalty minutes. So it's not as if the Bruins were totally outplayed on Wednesday.
Although Boston has dropped three of its past four games, signs are pointing up. After giving up seven and six goals in back-to-back games, the Bruins have allowed just one regulation goal in each of the past two heading into Friday.
It has been much more of a representation of their overall numbers on the season, where they rank sixth in the NHL with 2.55 goals allowed on a league-low 26 shots. Washington has been playing excellent hockey, for what it's worth. The Capitals have ripped off five straight wins, their longest win streak of the season.
However, they haven't exactly coasted through their matchups with the Bruins. Wednesday was actually their most-impressive outing versus Boston, outshooting it 28-19.
In their first game against each other at the end of January, the Capitals won 4-3 in overtime despite blowing a 3-0 lead and getting outshot 43-23. Two nights later, they managed to blow yet another three-goal lead, giving up five unanswered to lose 5-3. Look for the studs like Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak to show up when Boston needs them the most and to translate their solid play against the Capitals into a Friday night win.
Betting Tip: Using BettingData's odds comparison page, you can see there are a few sportsbooks that are offering quite a few different lines. Fanduel, which is usually a good sportsbook for NHL Odds has the Bruins at the highest moneyline odds. Where as PointsBet is offering -135 for the Bruins to win.
Vegas Golden Knights -210 over San Jose Sharks
The first game to consider betting on was a contest between two evenly-matched teams. However, Friday night's game between the Golden Knights and Sharks is about as lopsided as they come and should result in a win for Vegas. The Knights are playing some excellent hockey. Since its loss in the outdoor Lake Tahoe game, Vegas has won its last four games, with five goals scored in each of the last two games.
The Knights will now be rolling into town to play a Sharks team that has lost three of their last four, allowing six goals in one, seven in another, and getting blanked 4-0 in their most recent game.
Even though this will just be the second time these teams have faced off against each other this year, one thing really stood out when they faced off in San Jose back on Feb. 13. In a game that had eight total power-play opportunities, the Knights scored all three of their goals with the extra attacker in their 3-1 win. Vegas' power play was able to take advantage of a San Jose defense that allows the second-most goals and third-most shots per game, so look for that success to return. On the other side, the Knights did a good job of countering San Jose thanks to a defense that ranks within the top three in goals allowed, shots allowed, and penalty kill rate.
That defense, as well as its goaltending, is what makes a team like Vegas such a bad matchup for San Jose. Marc-Andre Fleury is having arguably his best season yet, going 11-3-0 with a 1.71 GAA and .939 save percentage. He should be able to handle a Sharks team that, aside from a few players on its top lines, doesn't have a ton of elite offensive talent this season.
But even when that defense isn't at its best, Vegas' offense has the potential to be lethal every night. Their leading point producer, Mark Stone, has a goal and six assists in the past two games, five of those coming on Monday.
On the receiving end of a couple of those was Max Pacioretty, who now owns a team-high 10 goals. Role players Alex Tuch and Chandler Stephenson are also each entering Friday with point streaks in hand, showcasing the depth of Vegas' roster. San Jose's attack, which includes hot players like Evander Kane and Timo Meier, will have to be at its absolute best to win, something it wasn't close to being at when it first encountered this golden group.
For your second bet, have confidence in the favorite to take care of business. Take the Golden Knights to win outright on the road.
