NHL parlay picks March 24: Bet on Devils and Rantanen
We’re using Friday’s three-game NHL slate to build a parlay.
The pregame narrative: Mikko Rantanen continues to be one of the NHL’s most under-appreciated players, but we’re showing him some love. The New Jersey Devils are an elite road team and should handle the floundering Buffalo Sabres. Lastly, we’re teasing down the total between the New York Islanders and Columbus Blue Jackets for a more appealing over wager.
NHL odds as of 10:40 a.m. on 03/24/2023.
NHL parlay picks
Parlay: Rantanen over 3.5 shots + Devils moneyline + Islanders vs. Blue Jackets over 5.5 goals (+309)
Rantanen over 3.5 shots (-162): Rantanen simply doesn’t get enough recognition for what he does on a nightly basis.
The Colorado Avalanche superstar has the third-most goals in the league (47) and is tied for 13th in points (85). Most importantly for this wager, he ranks 13th in shots on goal (258) and isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.
Rantanen has 27 shots in his last six contests, an average of 4.5. Even his season-long shots per game average of 3.69 is higher than this line.
He’s staring down a plus matchup, too, as the Avs host the Arizona Coyotes. The Yotes are allowing the second-most shots per contest (35.6) this season.
Other parlay picks
Devils moneyline (-190): If there’s a good reason to pick Buffalo, we apologize for missing it.
The Sabres are falling apart just as the finish line approaches. They’ve lost eight of their last nine by an embarrassing margin of 45-22, allowing more than twice as many goals as they’ve scored.
Buffalo is also at home, which is normally a good thing, but not for this team. The Sabres are an unacceptable 13-20-3 at KeyBank Center this season, the fourth-worst home record in the league. They’ve lost each of their last five games in Western New York.
The Devils, meanwhile, are an excellent road squad. Their 26-5-4 away record is the best in the NHL.
Islanders vs. Blue Jackets over 5.5 goals (-155): New York’s not a team one typically associates with an over bet, but the squad is on quite the run of high-scoring games.
The Islanders have gone over this mark in five of their last six, including three of their last four on the road. An uptick in goal-scoring is the main reason for this trend, as they have 17 goals across their last three outings.
Their opponent, Columbus, is actually one of the better over teams in the league. The Blue Jackets rank ninth in over percentage (53.6%) this season. The main reason for that, of course, is their inability to keep the puck out of the net. They’re allowing the second-most goals per game (3.89) this year.
Columbus’ offence is showing some signs of life, too, scoring 20 goals in the squad’s last five games.
