Getty Warren Foegele and Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
The NHL‘s brightest stars take center stage on March 26 as part of a 12-game slate with Stanley Cup playoff berths hanging in the balance.
The night kicks off with a battle between two Eastern Conference powerhouses as the Florida Panthers host David Pastrnak and the Boston Bruins. Elsewhere in the East, as Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals face off against the Detroit Red Wings in one of the biggest games of the year, with a 27 percentage-point swing in playoff odds on the line for both teams.
Out west, the red-hot Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche host the Montreal Canadiens, while two of the top-5 teams in the conference square off as Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers visit the Winnipeg Jets.
There should be plenty of star power on display tonight; let’s dive into some of our dfsPro model’s favorite player props!
See also: Heavy’s March 25 NHL player props: 2-for-4 (50% accuracy)
Beasts of the East: Capitals & Bruins
Alex Ovechkin: Anytime Goalscorer (+120, DraftKings)
Ovechkin’s Capitals host the Red Wings in what’s sure to be an intense battle for the final playoff spot in the East. Washington has won two in a row entering Tuesday’s matchup and currently holds the second Wild Card spot with a one-point lead and a game in hand over Detroit.
Ovechkin is riding a five-game goal streak into Tuesday’s game, scoring eight goals over that stretch. Though he only managed an assist in Washington’s game vs. Detroit on Feb. 27, he has 23 goals in 33 career games against the Red Wings. Our model projects him at 0.83 goals against Detroit on Tuesday, a 112.13% increase over his average of 0.39.
David Pastrnak: Over 0.5 Points (-245, DraftKings)
Two of the NHL’s top teams face off in a battle for Eastern Conference supremacy as the 97-point Boston Bruins visit the 98-point Florida Panthers. The teams are meeting at relative low points in their respective seasons, however; the Bruins are coming off back-to-back losses, and the Panthers had lost four straight before defeating the Philadelphia Flyers on March 24.
Our model gives the edge to Florida in this one, but win or lose, there’s a very good chance that Boston’s David Pastrnak finds the scoresheet at least once. The model actually projects 1.08 points for Pastrnak, down 23.22% from his average of 1.36; still, when a player is projected to get anything over one point, it’s smart to take the over on the 0.5 points line.
Best of the West: Avalanche & Oilers
Nathan MacKinnon: Over 0.5 Assists (-195, DraftKings)
MacKinnon is currently riding an 18-game point streak – his second of the season – and a 34-game home point streak. In other words, he has a point in every single one of Colorado’s home games this season. It’s reasonable to assume that Tuesday night against Montreal will be no different for MacKinnon, especially when it comes to finding his teammates in the right spots.
MacKinnon has dished out at least one assist in each of his last nine games, most recently putting on a two-assist performance against the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 24. He ranks third in the NHL with 78 assists on the season, averaging just over one per game. Our model projects a 31.69% drop-off against the Canadiens at 0.62, but that still puts MacKinnon over the 0.5 line.
Connor McDavid: Over 1.5 Points (-115, DraftKings)
McDavid likes facing the Jets; he has racked up 54 points in 31 career games against Winnipeg, his second-highest point total against any single NHL team. (His highest is 55 points in 40 games against the Calgary Flames.)
McDavid is averaging 1.75 points per game this season and has logged four straight multipoint games ahead of tonight’s matchup against Winnipeg. Our model projects a slightly more modest 1.61 points for McDavid against the Jets, but it’s still a good idea to take the over on this one.
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