NHL parlay picks Jan. 6: Bet on Sharks to cover against Maple Leafs

A dozen NHL games provide plenty of parlay fodder for Saturday.

The pregame narrative: The San Jose Sharks may just be the worst team in the league, but they're my pick to cover an alternate spread against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Columbus Blue Jackets host the Minnesota Wild in an evenly-matched contest, but there's value to be had with the home underdog. Lastly, the over seems like the right play when the Nashville Predators battle the Dallas Stars.

NHL oddsas of 11:18 a.m. on 01/06/2024.

NHL parlay picks

Parlay: Sharks +2.5 + Blue Jackets moneyline + Predators vs. Stars over 5.5 goals (+398)

Let's make the obvious abundantly clear. The Sharks have lost 10 consecutive contests ahead of this one and own the NHL's worst record at 9-27-3.

But San Jose isn't such a bad bet when backing it with a pair of goals plus a hook. The Sharks have covered this spread in 10 of their last 16 games.

The Maple Leafs don't win by three-plus goals very often, either. They've failed to cover this number in seven of their last 10 outings.

Other parlay picks

Blue Jackets moneyline (+102): It's fair to label Minnesota and Columbus as bottom feeders, which is why the latter is a nice plus-money pick.

The Wild have been a brutal road outfit this season. They're an underwhelming 6-10-2 as a visitor, which is significantly worse than their home record (10-7-2).

Columbus' young roster is showing some signs of improvement. The team has picked up points in six of its last eight games while scoring wins over playoff teams like the Maple Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers.

There's little that separates these expansion brothers, which is why the home squad is worth playing at this price.

Predators vs. Stars over 5.5 goals (-167): On paper, these should be two of the better goaltending teams in the league.

That's not how it's played out this season, however, for Nashville and Dallas. The two teams rank 16th and 17th, respectively, in team save percentage.

But both offences are capable of doing some damage — especially on the Stars' side. They're fourth in the league in goals per game (3.59) while the Predators are 18th (3.08).

The over on this total has come through in 14 of Dallas' last 17 games and six of Nashville's last 10.