Top Shelf Picks: NHL Best Bets Today (How to Bet Hurricanes vs. Stars)

The Stars are home favorites to the Hurricanes in Tuesday night's NHL action.
The Stars are home favorites to the Hurricanes in Tuesday night's NHL action. / James Guillory-Imagn Images

We took a step back on Monday night, going 1-2 with my picks as my strategy of fading my Toronto Maple Leafs continues to not pay off.

We move on to Tuesday's action and as always, I have three bets locked in including a play on the potential Stanley Cup preview between the Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars. Let's dive into them.

  • Season-to-date record: 95-92-6 (-4.16 units)

NHL Picks Today

  • Senators vs. Rangers UNDER 5.5 (+100) via BetMGM
  • Stars -126 vs. Hurricanes via FanDuel
  • Sabres vs. Canucks OVER 6 (-104) via FanDuel

Senators vs. Rangers Prediction

The Ottawa Senators have begun playing an extremely defensive style of hockey and it's been made very clear over their last 10 games. Over that stretch of games, they have an expected goals against per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play of 1.99 but also an expected goals for of 2.08. They're preventing their opponents from creating high-danger scoring chances but at the cost of creating high-danger scoring chances themselves.

That paired with the fact the Rangers will likely be starting a red-hot Igor Shesterkin in net, leads me to believe there's value at plus-money on the UNDER 5.5 in this Eastern Conference showdown.

Pick: UNDER 5.5 (+100)

Hurricanes vs. Stars Prediction

The Carolina Hurricanes' advanced numbers are extremely impressive, ranking amongst the top of the NHL in most underlying metrics you can find. Unfortunately, they're having trouble putting the puck in the net and preventing their opponents from doing so, which is a quick way of nullifying the success you have between the blue lines.

Over their last 25 games, the Hurricanes are 29th in 5-on-5 shooting percentage and 30th in 5-on-5 save percentage. That's a recipe for disaster when they take on a team like the Stars who both have the great advanced metrics and simple metrics, being able to cash in on the high-danger chances they create for themselves.

At -126 on their home ice, the Stars are worth a bet tonight.

Pick: Stars -126

Sabres vs. Canucks Prediction

We cashed in on the OVER in the Sabres game on Monday night so I'm going to go back to the well and place the same bet in their game tonight against the Canucks. These two teams rank inside the top 15 in the NHL in 5-on-5 shooting percentage over their last 25 games.

The Sabres actual goals for and against are much higher than their expected goals. They've failed to get any consistency between the pipes and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will start for them tonight and he has an .896 save percentage on the season.

Give me the OVER once again.

Pick: OVER 6 (-104)


Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Iain MacMillan
IAIN MACMILLAN

Originally from Nova Scotia, Iain MacMillan is a senior editor covering betting, with a focus on NFL, NHL, and golf. He hosts the Bacon Bets Podcast and has been featured on VSIN, BetQL and Monumental Sports Network. He is a member of the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association and his beloved Falcons and Maple Leafs break his heart on a yearly basis.