NHL PrizePicks Today: Top NHL Player Props & Picks for March 31 – Best Plays

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Note: Time on Ice projections and picks can change frequently throughout the day due to injuries and changes to line combinations, especially power-play lines. I encourage readers to check the comments section below for any last-minute updates prior to puck drop.

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Analyzing NHL Time on Ice PrizePicks Plays

Card Overview: 3-3 on Saturday, but it should have been better. Have I told you how much I hate OT? For those unfamiliar, prior to this season, the TOI stat did not include OT, so once you got to the 60-minute-mark, you were good with your unders. Now, what was an easy under can flip to an over very fast, as the top-tier guys can play over three minutes in OT, if it goes the distance, but I digress. 

As for tonight, again, not a great card, and that's because the lines have shifted against us already, but there are still some good plays out there. If you've followed me closely, you know that I've leaned towards the less option for often than not over the past couple months, but considering the time of the season and the urgency involved, I'm leaning towards the more option tonight and likely will be on that side more often down the stretch. 

For reference, here are the teams fighting for playoff spots as we enter the final couple of weeks: NYI, DET, COL, PIT, BOS, OTT, PHI, WAS, NASH, LAK, SEA, SJ, WIN and STL. These are the teams that might be pushing their best players a little more. 

BUILDING BLOCKS

Zach Werenski 28.25 vs. San Jose Sharks  - 7:30 p.m. ET (MORE) 

I don't like that this line has risen so high, but Werenski has proved time and time again that this number is nothing as long as the script is right. With Damon Severson out, however, we don't need a trail script; a neutral one will suffice, heck, even a positive script with a tight game might be all we need. This number is really big, but Columbus doesn't have many defensemen that it can trust, so Werenski is going to get all the time he can handle. 

(This line started at 27.5, which I liked a lot, but it has ballooned to 28.25, which is still okay, but it's obviously not ideal.)

Moritz Seider 26.5 at Pittsburgh Penguins - 7:00 p.m. ET (MORE) 

It's no coincidence that the first two plays involve defensemen on teams that are in the playoff hunt. I've done well with taking less on Seider for most of the past month or so because the Red Wings had dialed back his time in positive and neutral scripts, but that time is over now as they need to win almost every game down the stretch. Seider has played over 28 minutes in each of his past three games, and while two of those were in trail scripts, one wasn't, so it shows that the Wings are ready to give Seider a ton of minutes. 

Travis Sanheim 25.25 at Washington Capitals - 7:00 p.m. ET (MORE) 

I had more on Sanheim this past Saturday, and he hit with ease, even in a positive script, but then I made that same play on Sunday, and he went well under, even in an OT game, but I think I picked up on something. Sanheim's pair got a ton of time on Saturday, but on the second night of a back-to-back, the Flyers played their 2nd pair more. It was obvious from the start that they planned it that way. Now with a day off, and essentially his turn for more minutes, look for Sanheim to get the heavy load tonight in a must-win game. 

Matthew Schaefer 26.75 at Buffalo Sabres - 7:00 p.m. ET (MORE) 

Schaefer was playing a ton of minutes with Tony DeAngelo out, but similar to Sanheim, the Islanders intentionally dialed back Schaefer's minutes in his most recent game. The results for the Islanders were disastrous, however, as Pittsburgh destroyed them on Sunday. There's no room for error anymore, so look for the Isles to give Schaefer all the time he can handle down the stretch, which we've seen is quite a bit. Considering the opponent, I'm expecting a negative or neutral script tonight, which should be all we need in this spot. 

SCRIPT/LINE/INJURY DEPENDENT

Charlie McAvoy 25.5 at Dallas Stars  - 7:00 p.m. ET (MORE) 

McAvoy is not a name you've seen much in this column, but I do have plenty of experience with him. He's a guy who plays a lot, but more often than not, he's been script defendant. That's changed a little recently, though, as he's gone over his number in four of his past five games, and with a likely trail script tonight, he should see 26+ minutes tonight. The only downside to McAvoy is that he's generally not going to blow his number out of the water, so it will likely be a sweat, but if he gets there, then who cares? 

Evan Bouchard 25 vs. Seattle Kraken 9:00 p.m. ET (LESS) 

I have to put a less option in here, right? Why not go to the guy who has burned me more than anyone not named "Hughes"? Seriously, though, Bouchard has gone under in two of his past three, and as you might have guessed, those were games where Edmonton was ahead most of the game. I'm expecting that to be the case tonight, though, as Seattle has just not played well over the past few weeks, and even though the Kraken are in the playoff hunt, it hasn't really translated to better results.