Top Shelf Picks: Best NHL Bets Today (Kings Will Upset Oilers in Game 3)

Iain MacMillan | Apr 25, 2025

The Kings are underdogs against the Oilers in Game 3 of their Western Conference Playoff Series. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The opening round of the NHL Playoff marches on with three games set to take place on Friday night.

All three series set to continue tonight have a chance of getting out of hand. The Capitals, Hurricanes, and Kings all have a chance to improve to 3-0, one game shy of a sweep, when they head to their respective opponents' home ice.

Let's take a look at my picks for tonight's action.

NHL Picks Today

• Capitals -120 vs. Canadiens via BetMGM
• Hurricanes vs. Devils UNDER 5.5 (-120) via FanDuel
• Kings +122 vs. Oilers via Caesars

Capitals vs. Canadiens Prediction

The Washington Capitals have done the same thing through the first two games in this series that we saw them do all season. They posted solid expected goals numbers, but took advantage of their scoring opportunities and played great between the pipes. They have an expected goal differential in this series of +0.72 per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play. They have also posted a shooting percentage of 9.38% and a save percentage of .950.

The Canadiens have worse expected goals numbers while also scoring on just 4.92% of their shots on goal thus far. I see no reason why the Caps won't take a commanding 3-0 series lead tonight.

Pick: Capitals -120

Hurricanes vs. Devils Prediction

The Hurricanes and Devils both had some issues when it comes to finding the back of the net at times this season, and we're seeing that problem pop up again in the playoffs. Carolina has a shooting percentage of 9.59% through the first two games, and the Devils have scored on just 4.00% of their shots on goal, the lowest mark amongst all postseason teams thus far.

It's also worth noting that these two teams had the top two powerplay units in the regular season. That has carried over to the playoffs. There has only been one powerplay goal scored through the first two games.

Pick: UNDER 5.5 (-120)

Kings vs. Oilers Prediction

The Kings were my pick before the series started, and I'm going to ride with them again tonight. This does not seem to be the Oilers' year. They're getting outplayed in almost every facet in this series, especially on special teams, which has been a strength of theirs the past few years. The Oilers have yet to score on a powerplay while the Kings have already scored five.

I look at this game as a near coin flip, leaving me to believe there's some value on the Kings as +122 underdogs.

Pick: Kings +122

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