There are just three games on Wednesday in the NHL. Read on for today’s odds, schedule and betting advice.
Today’s NHL Odds
- Florida Panthers (+130) at Toronto Maple Leafs (-150)
- New York Islanders (-110) at Washington Capitals (-110)
- Minnesota Wild (+130) at Colorado Avalanche (-150)
Visit VSiN NHL Odds to see the full board.
NHL Schedule Breakdown
The following table highlights tired spots and/or days’ rest.
|
Rest
|
Visitor
|
Home
|
Rest
|
|
1
|
MIN
|
COL
|
3/4
|
|
4/6
|
NYI
|
WSH
|
3
|
|
1
|
FLA
|
TOR
|
2
|
Today’s NHL Games
Florida Panthers at Toronto Maple Leafs
After dropping their last four games in a row, including a 6-2 loss to the Maple Leafs at home last week, the Florida Panthers have fallen to ninth in the Eastern Conference and sit three points back of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final wild card spot. Florida should have a winning record down the stretch, but with three of their final eight games coming against Carolina and Toronto, it’s unlikely the Panthers will be able to come close to running the table and making the playoffs.
Florida’s only at their best when their offense is firing on all cylinders. Lately, it hasn’t been. The Panthers rank 13th in goals for in the month of March and their defense and goaltending hasn’t been holding up. Florida ranks among the bottom-10 in goals against in the month of March. But, of course, they still have something to play for.
The Maple Leafs haven’t been playing well, and the first home game after a long road trip can be tough, but the market isn’t oblivious to this and -150 is an appropriate price given the Panthers current form and the fact that Toronto has had two days off.
New York Islanders at Washington Capitals
The Capitals have won five of 12 games in March. Those five wins came against Chicago, Buffalo, San Jose, Anaheim and, you guessed it, the New York Islanders. Washington beat the Islanders 5-1 on Long Island back on March 11th. Semyon Varlamov was the starting goaltender in that game, but it could be Ilya Sorokin this time around.
New York is about to play three road games in four days against Washington, Tampa Bay, and Carolina and teams typically start their backup in one of the two back-to-back games. So, Sorokin will likely start on Wednesday, leaving Varlamov to start on Friday or Saturday. Nothing has been confirmed by the team, though.
Meanwhile, the Capitals will play again on Thursday when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning, and that means there’s a chance that Charlie Lindgren could start in goal on Wednesday. Lindgren started off the season strong, but since January 1st he has allowed more than eight goals above expected, so he’s been well below average for the better part of three months.
The goaltending matchup matters here, and it’s the difference between this game being a coin flip or the Islanders being a small favorite. If Sorokin and Lindgren start, the Islanders should win the game around 54 percent of the time.
Minnesota Wild at Colorado Avalanche
Colorado is just one point behind the Minnesota Wild in the standings and they have one game in hand, so a win on Wednesday would do a lot for their chances of winning the Central Division. If the Avalanche can win the game, they’ll be in sole possession of the top spot.
The Wild have won 15 of their last 20 games, including six of nine games since losing star forward Kirill Kaprizov to injury, but they’ve been the beneficiaries of an easy schedule and that changes on Wednesday. The Avalanche have also had an easy schedule, but they’ve won 10 of their last 12 games and their defensive play has been good.
Colorado has allowed two or fewer goals in seven of their last 12 games, which doesn’t bode well for Minnesota. The Wild’s offense has been hot, but without Kaprizov in the lineup, it doesn’t seem sustainable. I mean, this team was ranked 27th on offense prior to the injury, and they’ve shot up to the top-five in the time since.
Minnesota will have an edge in goal if Filip Gustavsson starts. Alexandar Georgiev has been excellent this season, but Gustavsson has been better than just about every goaltending in the league for the better part of three months now. Still, +130 is not enough to justify betting on the Wild to beat the Avalanche given the current states of each team.