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NHL Predictions and Picks

Free NHL predictions and picks for every game. Each one sets our chance for each team against the moneyline and says bet or pass in its first lines.

Upcoming games

Thursday 8 October10 games
NHLThu 8 Oct
Dallas Stars
at
Buffalo Sabres
SpreadTotalMoneySTA+1.5U 6.5-115SAB-1.5O 6.5-105
Our call

No bet on the Sabres or the Stars. Buffalo becomes a bet at +111, Dallas at +135.

Tyler WilliamsRead the predictionStars at Sabres prediction
Friday 9 October4 games
NHLFri 9 Oct
Anaheim Ducks
at
Winnipeg Jets
SpreadTotalMoneyDUC+1.5U 6.5+100JET-1.5O 6.5-120
Our call

No bet on the Ducks at +105. Either side turns into a bet at +123 or longer, and neither is there.

Tyler WilliamsRead the predictionDucks at Jets prediction
NHLFri 9 Oct
Seattle Kraken
at
Detroit Red Wings
SpreadTotalMoneyKRA+1.5U 5.5+120WIN-1.5O 5.5-142
Our call

No bet on the Red Wings at -142. Detroit turns into a bet at -109 or better, Seattle at +166 or longer.

Tyler WilliamsRead the predictionKraken at Wings prediction
Saturday 10 October14 games
NHLSat 10 Oct
Minnesota Wild
at
Florida Panthers
SpreadTotalMoneyWIL+1.5U 6.5+130PAN-1.5O 6.5-155
Our call

Our number makes this a coin flip, and the price makes the Wild a 42.8% underdog. Take the Wild at +124.

Tyler WilliamsRead the predictionWild at Panthers prediction
Sunday 11 October3 games
Monday 12 October3 games

NHL teams

What to look for first

Open any of our NHL predictions and look at two numbers. Our chance for each team. The market’s chance, with the book’s margin taken out. The gap between them decides everything else.

At five points the side becomes a play, with a cut-off price printed beside it. Under five, we pass. Each team’s home and road record, its season and the meetings between the two are on the page too, so you can see what the market might be reading that our number does not.

Backing one team all season

Try this. Stake one unit on a single club in each of its 82 games, at the posted moneyline, and add it up. In 2025-26 Buffalo returned 14.6 units on 50 wins. Boston returned 12.4 on 45, Montreal 12.1 on 48.

Backing one team on the moneyline all season, 2025-26: units won or lostBuffalo Sabres+14.6 (50 wins)Boston Bruins+12.4 (45 wins)Montreal Canadiens+12.1 (48 wins)San Jose Sharks+11.3 (39 wins)Philadelphia Flyers+8.8 (43 wins)New York Islanders+5.3 (43 wins)New York Rangers-15.0 (34 wins)Winnipeg Jets-15.1 (35 wins)Vegas Golden Knights-16.8 (39 wins)Toronto Maple Leafs-17.1 (32 wins)Los Angeles Kings-17.2 (35 wins)Vancouver Canucks-23.0 (25 wins)
One unit on the team in every regular-season game at the pre-game price; the six best and the six worst of 32; wins in brackets, overtime and shootout wins included. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

Now look at San Jose: 39 wins, and still 11.3 units ahead. Vegas also won 39 and lost 16.8. Same wins, opposite results. The difference is the price each win came at. A win at plus money pays more than a loss costs; a win at minus money pays less. Vancouver, with 25 wins, lost 23.0 units.

One season of this describes the prices. It does not tell you who profits in the next one.

Favorites, home and away

Backing every favorite lost money in 2025-26, at home and on the road. Home favorites won 457 of 815, 56.1%, and returned -74.3 units. Road favorites won 248 of 456, 54.4%, and returned -32.8.

Home favorites and road favorites, 2025-260%20%40%60%80%56.1%Home favorite54.4%Road favoriteFavorite won
Games outside neutral sites with a favorite: home favorites 815, road favorites 456. One unit on every favorite returned -74.3 at home and -32.8 on the road. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

The reason is simple. A favorite that wins 56% of the time is priced as one that wins more, once the margin is in. Hockey favorites lose often enough that the margin decides the season. Back a favorite only when the payout beats the odds of it winning.

The back-to-back

NHL schedules put clubs on the ice two nights running. In 2025-26 that left 286 games with one side on its second night and the other rested. The second-night side won 125, 43.7%.

Teams on the second night of a back-to-back, 2025-260%20%40%60%80%43.7%Won the game71.3%Was the underdogTeam on a back-to-back
286 games where one team had played the day before and the other had not: the tired team won 125, was the underdog in 204 of 286, and one unit on it every time returned -13.8. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

The market saw it coming. The tired team was the underdog in 204 of the 286 games, and one unit on it every time lost 13.8. So the tired team lost more than it won, the price knew it, and backing it blind still lost. On a back-to-back, check who starts in goal before you bet.

Betting the total

NHL totals sit at 5.5 or 6.5 goals almost every night. In 2025-26 games posted at 5.5 went over 294 times in 562, 52.3%. Games at 6.5 went over 373 times in 746, exactly half.

How often the over came in, by size of total, 2025-260%20%40%60%80%52.3%Total 5.550.0%Total 6.5Over
Pushes left out. Games per band: 5.5 562, 6.5 746, Other 1. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

Scoring moved a little through the season. November was the lowest month at 6.02 goals a game, January the highest at 6.43. February had only 74 games.

Goals per game, month by month, 2025-26024686.33Oct6.02Nov6.12Dec6.43Jan6.30Feb6.29Mar6.35AprGoals per game
Both teams combined. Games per month: Oct 180, Nov 225, Dec 226, Jan 240, Feb 74, Mar 242, Apr 125. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

The swing between months is less than half a goal. Totals move in half goals, so a swing that size is worth knowing. Read the total with the starting goalies and the schedule in front of you.

The long shots

Underdogs won 568 NHL games outright in 2025-26. Most at short prices. The longest was Vancouver over Colorado on 1 April, 8-6, at +360. Vancouver did it again on 12 April, over Anaheim at +260.

The longest prices that won, 2025-26Vancouver Canucks +360 over Colorado Avalanche, 8-6, 1 AprChicago Blackhawks +285 over Dallas Stars, 4-3, 27 DecAnaheim Ducks +280 over Colorado Avalanche, 2-1, 21 JanSan Jose Sharks +270 over Carolina Hurricanes, 4-1, 7 DecChicago Blackhawks +270 over Utah Mammoth, 4-0, 1 MarVancouver Canucks +260 over Anaheim Ducks, 4-3, 12 Apr
Underdogs that won outright, by their pre-game moneyline; 568 underdogs won outright all season. Source: ESPN results and pre-game lines (DraftKings or ESPN BET).

Look at who lost them: Colorado twice in the top three. In a league where a quarter of games go past regulation, no favorite is safe for long.

How our NHL number is built

We take two rates from the season before and average them: the home team’s win rate at home and the visitor’s loss rate on the road. A win in overtime or a shootout counts as a win. Every NHL prediction we publish states the method and shows both rates with their records.

NHL futures and guides

The long markets are on their own pages: Stanley Cup odds, the Hart Trophy, the conference races and the Presidents’ Trophy. Our NHL betting guide covers the moneyline, the puck line and totals in detail.

NHL betting tips worth the ink

  • Wins are not profit. San Jose won 39 games and made money; Vegas won 39 and lost it. The price paid for each win decides.
  • Favorites cost. Backed blind, NHL favorites lost money in both buildings.
  • The second night is priced. Back-to-back teams were underdogs seven times in ten. Fade them only at a price.
  • 5.5 or 6.5 is the whole question. Know which side of it the goalies point to.
  • Wait for the gap. Under five points, we sit out.

Every club, every game

All 32 clubs have their own pages, linked here, with the schedule and our predictions for each. Choose a club to reach its next game.

Questions and answers

Do NHL favorites make money?

Not over 82 games. In 2025-26 one unit on every home favorite returned -74.3 units over 815 games, and on every road favorite -32.8 over 456.

How do NHL teams do on the second night of a back-to-back?

In 2025-26, clubs on their second night won 125 of 286 games against rested opponents, 43.7%. They were the underdog in 204 of them, and backing them every time lost 13.8 units.

How often does an NHL total of 6.5 go over?

In 2025-26, 373 times in 746 games, exactly half. Totals of 5.5 went over 294 times in 562.

Past games

  1. 7 Oct 2026Avalanche at Jets
  2. 7 Oct 2026Oilers at DucksDucks +114
  3. 7 Oct 2026Penguins at CapitalsPenguins +138 or longer
  4. 6 Oct 2026Blues at BlackhawksNo bet
  5. 6 Oct 2026Knights at KrakenKraken +123 or longer
  6. 6 Oct 2026Hurricanes at CanadiensNo bet
  7. 6 Oct 2026Islanders at RangersIslanders +130
  8. 6 Oct 2026Mammoth at DevilsMammoth +114
  9. 6 Oct 2026Panthers at KingsNo bet
  10. 6 Oct 2026Predators at LeafsPredators +129 or longer
Show all 55 past predictions
  1. 6 Oct 2026Senators at WingsNo bet
  2. 6 Oct 2026Wild at SabresNo bet
  3. 5 Oct 2026Flyers at Lightning
  4. 5 Oct 2026Jets at Penguins
  5. 5 Oct 2026Senators at Bruins
  6. 5 Oct 2026Sharks at Stars
  7. 4 Oct 2026Flames at Kraken
  8. 4 Oct 2026Knights at Canucks
  9. 4 Oct 2026Jets at Wings
  10. 4 Oct 2026Mammoth at Rangers
  11. 4 Oct 2026Panthers at Ducks
  12. 3 Oct 2026Blackhawks at Sabres
  13. 3 Oct 2026Blues at Avalanche
  14. 3 Oct 2026Bruins at Wild
  15. 3 Oct 2026Canadiens at Penguins
  16. 3 Oct 2026Capitals at Lightning
  17. 3 Oct 2026Devils at Islanders
  18. 3 Oct 2026Flames at Canucks
  19. 3 Oct 2026Hurricanes at Flyers
  20. 3 Oct 2026Kings at Sharks
  21. 3 Oct 2026Kraken at Oilers
  22. 3 Oct 2026Mammoth at Jackets
  23. 3 Oct 2026Senators at Leafs
  24. 3 Oct 2026Stars at Predators
  25. 2 Oct 2026Blues at Stars
  26. 2 Oct 2026Bruins at Jets
  27. 2 Oct 2026Capitals at Hurricanes
  28. 2 Oct 2026Ducks at Knights
  29. 2 Oct 2026Rangers at Wings
  30. 1 Oct 2026Blackhawks at Mammoth
  31. 1 Oct 2026Flyers at Devils
  32. 1 Oct 2026Kraken at Flames
  33. 1 Oct 2026Lightning at Rangers
  34. 1 Oct 2026Oilers at Canucks
  35. 1 Oct 2026Panthers at Sharks
  36. 1 Oct 2026Sabres at Jackets
  37. 1 Oct 2026Wild at Predators
  38. 30 Sep 2026Islanders at Leafs
  39. 30 Sep 2026Kings at Avalanche
  40. 30 Sep 2026Penguins at Flyers
  41. 29 Sep 2026Blackhawks at Knights
  42. 29 Sep 2026Canadiens at Leafs
  43. 29 Sep 2026Canucks at Oilers
  44. 29 Sep 2026Panthers at Hurricanes
  45. 29 Sep 2026Rangers at Bruins