NHL Expert Picks: Best Bets for Wednesday, October 16

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Published on October 16, 2024

NHL Best Bets Tonight: Expert Hockey Parlay Picks for
Wednesday, Oct. 16

The National Hockey League has a total of four games on tap for Wednesday night. However, we'll focus on the nationally-televised doubleheader on TNT.

The puck drops at 7 p.m. ET for the Buffalo Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the game can also be streamed on truTV and/or Max. In the second end of the twin bill, the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche square off at Ball Arena, with a puck drop at 9:30 p.m. ET.

We'll provide a couple of parlay opportunities, as you look to build that bankroll for later in the season. Let's get started.

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Best NHL Picks Tonight

Buffalo Sabres at Pittsburgh Penguins

The Sabres (1-3-0) and the Penguins (2-2-0) do battle in the first game of the TNT double dip.

Buffalo opened the season with three straight losses, including a back-to-back in Prague, Czechia to open the season against the New Jersey Devils in the NHL Global Series. The Sabres had scored just a single goal in each of the first three games, but they exploded for a 5-3 win Saturday against the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers as short 'dogs (-102) at home.

The Penguins have been a little difficult to figure out in the first four outings. Pittsburgh lost 6-0 against the New York Rangers at home, while winning 6-3 the next night in Detroit behind backup tendy Joel Blomqvist. They gave Blomqvist the start Saturday in Toronto, and the Maple Leafs doubled them up 4-2.

It was back to Tristan Jarry for Monday's game in Montreal, and it was another 6-3 win. Jarry took an inadvertent stick to the neck, right underneath the mask, in the third period. However, he was able to stay in the game and finish up for the win.

In Monday's win, Lars Eller scored a pair of goals, joining Kevin Hayes, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin and Rickard Rakell on the scoresheet. Malkin, in particular, is off to a red-hot start. He has the goal and six assists to lead the team with seven points. No other Pens player has more than three points.

For the Sabres, Alex Tuch leads the team with two goals and four points, including a shorthanded goal. Tage Thompson also has two goals, the only other multi-goal scorer for Buffalo to date.

The projected tendies are Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (0-2-0, 2.56 GAA, .886 SV%) for the Sabres and Jarry (1-1-0, 4.50 GAA, .866 SV%) for the Pens.

We're backing the Penguins at home, hoping they can break their erratic pattern of either playing terrible, or really, really well. The Over is 2-1-1 for Pittsburgh, but the Under is 3-1 for Buffalo. The Under has cashed in four straight meetings, while going 7-2-1 in the past 10 in the series since May 8, 2021, so let's go low on the total, too.

Penguins ML (-128 at FanDuel Sportsbook)
Under 6.5 (-122 at FanDuel Sportsbook)

Boston Bruins at Colorado Avalanche

In the nightcap, the Bruins (2-2-0) have beaten everybody else but lost a pair to the Panthers. The team's only road game resulted in a 6-4 loss on Oct. 8 in Florida as the Over (5.5) cashed.

The total has hit in three of four games for the B's, with the team allowing four or more goals in three outings, giving up 3.8 goals per game (GPG). Boston has also averaged 3.8 GPG on offense.

For the Avalanche (0-3-0), they've inexplicably dropped the first three games of the season. While it's understandable losing to Vegas in the opener as a slight underdog, it was alarming that they fell 8-4. However, Colorado returned home and lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the opener at Ball Arena as a giant favorite (-320). The Avs followed that up with a 6-2 defeat at moderate favorites (-146).

The Over has cashed in all three games to date for Colorado, averaging 3.4 GPG on offense, while allowing six or more goals in all three outings, or 6.7 GPG.

Casey Mittelstadt and Mikko Rantanen lead the team with three goals in three games, while Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar have managed a team-leading five points.

Jeremy Swayman (2-1-0, 2.98 GAA, .893 SV%) is expected to go for the B's, while Alexandar Georgiev (0-2-0, 6.58 GAA, .790 SV%) is projected for Colorado. Neither Georgiev nor Justus Annunen (0-1-0, 4.69 GAA, .765 SV%) are playing with a lot of confidence right now.

Back the Bruins on the road, especially at even-money, as the Avalanche just cannot be trusted right now. The defense and goaltending have been awful to date. In addition, let's go high on the total since Colorado has coughed up six or more goals in each contest.

Bruins ML (+100 at Caesars Sportsbook)
Over 6.5 (+100 at Caesars Sportsbook)

Before placing wagers on your must-trusted sports betting apps ensure you have the most up-to-date and competitive NHL odds so you're making informed betting decisions.