Richard Masana 
It’s the final Thursday of the NHL regular season and there are nine games to look forward to. It has been a lot of fun and we will be continuing with NHL content for at least the first couple of rounds of the playoffs so be sure to stay on the lookout!
4/28 NHL Main Slate of Games – Beginning 7 p.m. ET
Buffalo Sabres (+260) at Boston Bruins (-330) – 6 Projected Goal Total
Florida Panthers (-285) at Ottawa Senators (+225) – 7 Projected Goal Total
Tampa Bay Lightning (-275) at Columbus Blue Jackets (+220) – 6.5 Projected Goal Total
New Jersey Devils (+265) at Carolina Hurricanes (-340) – 6.5 Projected Goal Total
Washington Capitals (-135) at New York Islanders (+115) – 6 Projected Goal Total
Nashville Predators (+190) at Colorado Avalanche (-235) – 6.5 Projected Goal Total
Calgary Flames (-110) at Minnesota Wild (-110) – 6 Projected Goal Total
Los Angeles Kings (+105) at Vancouver Canucks (-125) – 6 Projected Goal Total
San Jose Sharks (+275) at Edmonton Oilers (-350) – 6.5 Projected Goal Total
4/28 NHL Favorite Lines Per Dollar
Top Line – Edmonton One ” Connor McDavid ($8,400), Evander Kane ($5,800), Kailer Yamamoto ($2,800)“
The Oilers have been absolutely on fire as of late. They are coming in this matchup against the Sharks after cruising over Pittsburgh on the road. The Oilers might have things wrapped up but are still playing hard as they look to build some momentum.
Over the last ten games, Edmonton One’s 113 SATF “which includes all shot attempts, even missed shots” is good for fifth-best among all NHL lines. However, they only have a paltry three goals to show for it. I would expect some positive regression here as the most talented grouping “excluding Draisaitl just referring to who’s made up this line” has returned.
Secondary Line – Colorado One “Nathan MacKinnon ($8,900), Mikko Rantanen ($7,200), Valeri Nichushkin ($5,500)”
Nashville has played admirably defensively all season. However, after indirectly clinching a playoff spot and also losing star goaltender Jusse Saros, that might be about to change. Colorado put up an impressive home win the other night against the red hot Blues. They are -235 favorites on the money line for this one with a 6.5 game total. Mikko Rantanen did sit the other night so you will have to double-check lineups before puck drop. However, that goes for virtually every game tonight.
4/28 NHL Honorable Mention/Value Line: Carolina Three “Jesper Fast ($2,500), Nino Neidereiter ($3,600), Jordan Staal ($3,600)”
For the final Honorable Mention/Value Line we have yet another off-the-board, giant mass entry tournament style play. As you can see from the screenshot above, this line has had strong peripheral stats for a third line recently. Really they’ve been fairly solid all season. I wouldn’t play them in a smaller single-entry tournament but they make for a great large tournament flyer. Carolina has a terrific matchup as they enter the night as -340 money line favorites against the struggling Devils in a 6.5 total game.
Top Defender
Jordan Spence – L.A. Kings- $3,000 – Sean Durzi has been bumped from the quarterback role on the Kings’ power play with Drew Doughty still out. For this price, just $500 over the dead minimum, we can’t find much more value. If looking to correlate, Spence plays on the second line but I don’t think there’s any need to go there tonight with such a large slate.
Top Goalie
Andrei Vasilevskiy – Tampa Bay Lightning – $8,100 – Tampa Bay couldn’t be hotter right now and Vas is getting ready for another playoff run. For the $8,100, priced below a number of other goalies, why wouldn’t we just take the most consistent man in the business? The Lightning are -275 money line favorites tonight and there should be at least some shot volume from Columbus.
4/28 NHL Best Bet
Colorado Avalanche 60 Minute Moneyline (-143) – 1 Unit – Bet Rivers – It seems like Mikko Rantanen might return but even if not, the Avs have enough firepower here at home. The loss of goaltender Jusse Saros for this game due to injury is a big loss for the traveling Predators. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them rest a number of other players after just clinching a playoff spot the other night. Thus, the current -143 on the Avs 60-minute money line makes sense on a Thursday night where you have a lot of huge favorites against terrible underdogs.
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