NHL Best Bets and Betting Picks: January 30th
Welcome to Tuesday hockey fans and the 2nd to last day before the hockey world heads to Toronto for the NHL All Star break. This will be the final best bets article until next week but worry not I will be back refreshed and ready to go, but also check out my twitter account during the All Star games as I will likely be betting on them! As for today we have a pair of games in the NHL tonight and I have a Puck Line and player prop for all of you to take a gander at. If you like the rationale then tail the picks, if you don't feel free to fade as sometimes the best bets are the ones not taken!
- Season Record: 88-72-3
- Bankroll: +9.15 units
- Dog of the Day Record: 9-10 (+2.35 Units)
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**all bets are one unit unless specifically mentioned.
NHL Best Bets for January 30th
Seattle Kraken at San Jose Sharks
Its been a ton of fun riding the Kraken bandwagon over the past month and change and a ride that has been rather lucrative! Seattle has won 13 of their last 20 games heading into tonight and they have a real good shot at continuing their winning ways tonight against a lowly Sharks team. The Sharks are a rough 8-15 straight up this season on home ice and average the fewest goals in the NHL at home at just 2.19 goals per game. Hard to see that number jumping tonight either as the Kraken have allowed just 2.9 goals per game on the road this season and Joey Daccord in net has been formidable. Its yet to be announced who will start in goal for Seattle but if it is Daccord with his 2.36 GAA they should roll on to a win and in convincing fashion seeing as they are also 16-9 against the spread in road games this season. With the chalk on the Money Line look to the Puck Line at some plus money and for the Kraken to continue their push to the playoffs.
Pick: Seattle Kraken Puck Line -1.5 (+110 on BetMGM)
Columbus Blue Jackets at St. Louis Blues
One more pick for today's best bets and it will come in the form of a player prop! With the lines a little strange in this game I would rather attack a Blue Jackets team that is allowing 33.96 shots on goal per game this season, the 4th highest average in the NHL. Enter Colton Parayko who for a blue liner is oddly efficent when it comes to putting puck on net as he has averaged 2 shots on goal this season for the Blues. His line is 1.5 shots on goal which is fair but seeing as he has topped the this number in 60% of games this season and 7 of the last 10 games I think its a prop worth exploiting. He sees big minutes with Justin Faulk out injured and this Blue Jackets team is just a mess so let's pick on them and nail this prop!
Pick: Colton Parayko Over 1.5 Shots On Goal (-160 on Caesars)
Player News
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that Zach Eflin (lat) is likely to return and start Sunday against the Angels
It was assumed that Eflin would be back this weekend, but now we have a concrete date. The 31-year-old may not be at full strength after throwing fewer than 60 pitches in his rehab start, but the Orioles feel confident enough to have the right-hander back on the bump for the series finale against the Angels.
Riley Greene is not in the lineup for the first game of a doubleheader against the Rockies on Thursday.
Greene will get a break and likely return to the lineup for the second game of the twin-billing. Zach McKinstry will get the start in left field while Greene rests.
Panthers released TE Jordan Matthews.
Matthews converted to tight end a few years ago and hasn’t made much noise at the position. The change has, however, likely kept him in the league for a few more seasons. He appeared in four games with the Panthers last year but didn’t record any stats on offense. The Panthers also released or waived WR Dax Milne, C Andrew Raym, and TE Colin Granger.
Yu Darvish (elbow) is facing live hitters on Thursday.
Darvish has been throwing bullpen sessions and traveled to the team’s complex in Arizona to face live hitters on Thursday. It will be his first time facing live batters since a spring training appearance on March 13th. He will likely need a few sessions like this before the Padres can map out a rehab appearance timeline for him.
Adael Amador is starting at second base and batting ninth for the Rockies on Thursday.
Amador has now started three of the last four games at second base for the Rockies. He’s gone just 7-for-43 this season with 15 strikeouts in 16 games. He’s just 22 years old, so there is plenty of time for him to adjust to the MLB level, but he doesn’t need to be on redraft radars right now.
Jackson Holliday is playing second base and batting second for the Orioles on Thursday against the Twins.
With Cedric Mullins sitting out on Thursday, Gunnar Henderson will bat lead off, and Holliday will jump up from sixth in the order to second. Holliday is riding a hot streak right now, and the Orioles are taking advantage. This is likely just a one-game sample with no Mullins or Adley Rutschman in the lineup, but Rutschman has been struggling, so perhaps it could become a more permanent spot in the lineup for Holliday moving forward.