NHL Best Bets and Betting Picks: January 4th
Welcome to the first big time Thursday of the 2024 NHL calendar year! With NFL TNF in the rearview its time to hop on the bandwagon of hockey and what better way than a 13 game slate to dip your toes in the water. In today's article you will find a Money Line wager, game total bet, team total wager and a player prop, PLUS the Dog of the Day returns once again! 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: 59-53-2
- Bankroll: +2.71 units
- Dog of the Day Record: 4-5 (+0.95 Units)
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**all bets are one unit unless specifically mentioned.
NHL Best Bets for January 4th
Colorado Avalanche vs Dallas Stars
Death, taxes and the Stars getting into goal bonanzas at home this season in the Big D. I'm not kidding when I tell you the trend is remarkable with 15 of 19 games going over this season the money is smart on that to repeat again. I am actually a bit surprised the number isn't 7 goals either as both of these teams can score in bunches with the Stars scoring 4.1 goals per game at home and the Avalanche averaging 3.6 goals per game overall. The goalies help the cause too as Scott Wedgewood has been average in relief of Jake Oettinger and Colorado has been a revolving door of goaltenders trying to find the right one. Love this play tonight and who doesn't want to root for goals galore, take the over.
Pick: Avalanche & Stars Over 6 Goals (-120 on DraftKings)
Calgary Flames at Nashville Predators
Going back to the well tonight on fading the Flames as they are a bad team but get good odds for some reason on the books around NHL betting. This team has a -11 goal differential on the season and is 7-13 straight up on the road this season, why are they getting respect with the odds? Nashville on the other hand have been very good on home ice this season allowing just 2.4 goals per game over the past month in front of Smashville. They are also 12-9 straight up in Music City and have the better roster over Calgary as well as their goaltender Juuse Saros who was off a bit to start the season but he's locked in now. I expect this one to be lower scoring and a tight game but I think the Preds pull this one out tonight and take it on the Money Line
Pick: Nashville Predators Money Line (-120 on BetMGM)
Chicago Blackhawks at New York Rangers
This game is just begging to be bet on but the Money Line is past -400 on the Rangers and the total is hard to predict because will Chicago pull their weight? I will opt out of that question because I am not really sure but what I do know is that the Rangers are prime to score some goals tonight as they host a Chicago team that is allowing 5.7 goals per game on the road over the past 30 days! That's San Jose Sharks this past October bad and that has me on the Rangers team total. You can grab it at 4+ or 3.5 on varying books right now but I opt for the 4 or more as the odds are just a bit better around -150. Going to eat some juice but this game is going to be a blowout and I want to cash in on that!
Pick: New York Rangers Team Total 4+ Goals (-150 on PointsBet)
Player Prop- Cam Atkinson, Philadelphia Flyers
This slate is loaded with big prop spots but none bigger for the Flyers taking on the Blue Jackets who are allowing 38 shots per game on the road over the last month plus. Enter Atkinson who has been up and down this season when it comes to shots on goal but he has gone over his 2.5 shots total in 62% of games this season and I am betting he tops it again. Lifetime he also has gone over 2.5 shots in 5 of 6 meetings with the Blue Jackets so he knows them well and its a revenge game!
Pick: Cam Atkinson Over 2.5 Shots On Goal (-120 on DraftKings)
DOG OF THE DAY
Minnesota Wild Money Line vs Tampa Bay Lightning (+115 on Caesars)
Player News
Rangers released RHP Adrian Houser.
The 32-year-old right-hander had an opt-out clause in his minor league deal that he planned to exercise. The Rangers would like to bring him back — preferably on another minor league pact — but Houser is now free to peddle his wares on the open market. He made nine appearances (eight starts) at Triple-A Round Rock, registering a 5.03 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and a 37/15 K/BB ratio across 39 1/3 innings.
White Sox released INF Brandon Drury.
The 32-year-old had been stationed on the injured list at Triple-A Charlotte since April 26 when he injured his wrist on a hit by pitch. It’s unclear if Drury plans to look for opportunities elsewhere or if this could be the end of the line for him. Prior to the injury, he was hitting .179/.319/.282 with one homer, three RBI and a 10/7 K/BB ratio through his first 47 plate appearances at Triple-A Charlotte.
Shohei Ohtani homered twice and drove in six runs on Thursday evening as the Dodgers annihilated the Athletics 19-2 in Los Angeles.
Ohtani delivered a sacrifice fly in the second inning that extended the Dodgers’ early lead to 4-2. He then helped to break the game open with a 382-foot (102.9 mph EV) three-run blast off of Jason Alexander in the third inning that made it 10-2. He victimized Alexander again the following inning — that time for a 418-foot (109.6 mph EV) two-run blast that made it 15-2. The 30-year-old superstar finished the evening 2-for-5 and is now slashing .310/.409/.673 with 15 homers, 28 RBI and 10 stolen bases. The 15 long balls tie him with Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber for the most in all of baseball.
Hyeseong Kim went 3-for-3 with a double, four runs scored, two RBI and a stolen base as the Dodgers pummeled the Athletics on Thursday evening.
Kim smacked a one-out single off of Osvaldo Bido in the second inning, swiped second base and scored on an RBI single off the bat of Mookie Betts. He then delivered a run-scoring single of his own in the second inning and rode home on a three-run shot by Shohei Ohtani. Kim also walked and scored on Ohtani’s two-run shot in the third inning. He then punished catcher Jhonny Pereda with an RBI double in the eighth before scoring on Max Muncy’s sacrifice fly. He has been awfully impressive to start his big league career, hitting .429/.467/.571 with a homer, five RBI and three stolen bases in his first 30 plate appearances.
Max Muncy went 3-for-4 with a homer and four RBI on Thursday as the Dodgers demolished the visiting Athletics.
After hitting just one home run in his first 154 plate appearances on the season, Muncy launched a three-run homer in his final at-bat on Wednesday and followed it by crushing a 408-foot two-run shot off of Osvaldo Bido in his first trip to the dish on Thursday. He also added an RBI single in the second inning and a sacrifice fly in the eighth that capped the scoring in the ballgame. With his three-hit attack, the 34-year-old slugger is now hitting .207/.323/.341 with three long balls and 16 RBI.
Justin Wrobleski picked up his first big league victory of the 2025 season on Thursday, firing four innings of shutout baseball against the Athletics.
Wrobleski came on in the sixth inning with the Dodgers leading 15-2 and all he needed to do was keep the train on the tracks to earn a victory in this one. He did much better than that, allowing just one hit while striking out four batters over his four scoreless frames. It looks like Landon Knack has the leg up on the open spot in the team’s starting rotation, so expect Wrobleski to head back to Triple-A Oklahoma City soon.