Getty Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning, and David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins
The Eastern Conference takes over the NHL’s two-game slate on Wednesday with two Atlantic Division matchups. The Ottawa Senators will face the Buffalo Sabres before the Boston Bruins take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The latter in particular features two teams battling for playoff seeding, as the Bruins look to strengthen their hold on the top spot in the division and the Lightning seek to widen their lead over the Washington Capitals for the first Wild Card spot in the East.
Let’s dive into some of our dfsPro model’s favorite player props!
See also: Heavy’s March 26 NHL player props: 2-for-4 (50% accuracy)
Ottawa Senators vs. Buffalo Sabres
Brady Tkachuk: Anytime Goalscorer (+125, DraftKings)
Tkachuk has three multi-point games over his last six contests, racking up a combined four goals and five assists in that span. The winger leads the Senators in goals at even strength (31) and on the power play (9), reaching the 30-goal mark for the third straight season. He is within striking distance of his career high of 35 goals from last season.
He has yet to record a point against the Sabres this season, but he has been heating up with five goals in his last 10 games for the Senators. Our model projects nearly a 33% uptick in Tkachuk’s goal potential against the Sabres, from 0.45 to 0.6.
Dylan Cozens: Over 0.5 Points (-125, DraftKings)
Cozens has just three points (1 goal, 2 assists) over his last 1o games, but our model likes him against Ottawa. He has points in 10 career games against the Senators, including three points over the teams’ three meetings earlier this season.
Cozens has been a bit of a streaky scorer this season, so he could be due to put up a point or two against Ottawa. Our model projects an 11% increase in Cozens’ point potential in Wednesday’s matchup, from 0.49 to 0.66.
Boston Bruins vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Nikita Kucherov: Over 3.5 Shots on Goal (-135, DraftKings)
Kucherov is putting up historic numbers for the Lightning this season, including 15 points over a four-game span earlier this month. He has a goal in 30 of 70 games this season, with multiple goals in 10 of them. However, our model projects a 27% downturn in his point potential against the Bruins tonight, from 1.76 to 1.27 (below the points line).
Kucherov leads all Tampa Bay skaters in points vs. Boston this season with five (2 goals, 3 assists). Even if he doesn’t score, however, Kucherov is still a threat to put the puck on the net. He has scored 41 goals this season on 273 shots, leading to a shooting percentage of 15.0%. In three games against the Bruins this season, he has found the back of the net twice on 18 shots. He averages 3.91 shots per game, and our model projects a 3% increase to 4.03 in tonight’s game.
Jake DeBrusk: Over 0.5 Points (-105, DraftKings)
DeBrusk has one point in three games against the Lightning this season, but he could be poised to add to that total in tonight’s matchup. Our model projects a sizable 25% increase in his point potential against Tampa Bay tonight, from 0.55 to 0.69.
DeBrusk registered just two points in all of February, but he seems to have rediscovered his scoring touch. He failed to find the scoresheet in the Bruins’ March 26 win over the Florida Panthers, but DeBrusk is still averaging a point per game over his last 10 contests thanks in large part to a five-game point streak from March 14-23.
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