NHL best bets for Saturday: Islanders-Stars, Predators-Red Wings, Ducks-Sharks

· New York Post

Saturday’s 13-game NHL slate has something for every kind of bettor.

There are some big underdogs, some coin flips and a couple of intriguing opportunities to buy low on teams that have stumbled out of the gates.

Here are three bets that caught my eye on a very crowded betting board for Oct. 12:

Islanders (+150) vs. Stars (-182), 8 p.m. ET

The Islanders were a mixed bag in their season opener against Utah and now face a daunting three-game road trip through Dallas, Colorado and St. Louis over the next handful of days. 

The Stars, on the other hand, put the pedal down on the road against the Predators in their curtain-raiser and were full value for their 4-3 victory in Nashville. 

On paper the Isles should profile as a team you’d want to bet as an underdog.

Their defensive structure under Patrick Roy should be a strength, they’ve got a great goaltending tandem and there’s enough offensive spark to make them dangerous, but the Islanders made a concerning amount of mistakes against Utah and that sloppiness will be punished dearly against the Stars. 

Instead of backing a side here, the best value on the board is to back Maxim Tsyplakov in the anytime goalscorer market.

The Russian import was arguably the Isles’ best player in his NHL debut on Thursday and did nothing that would make Patrick Roy reconsider his spot on Brock Nelson’s wing or the first power play unit. 

He’s sitting at +375 at BetRivers.

The Bet: Maxim Tsyplakov to score (+375, BetRivers) 

Nashville Predators (-111) vs. Detroit Red Wings (-108), 7 p.m. ET

I would argue that both of these teams were a little overrated by the betting market and hockey public coming into 2024-25, but there’s no doubt in my mind that Nashville is the stronger team in this matchup.

The logic behind this game being lined as essentially a pick’em is because Juuse Saros is questionable for Nashville, but the goaltending situation in Detroit is pretty pedestrian so it’s not a huge concern.

The Preds were brilliant down the stretch last season and added some serious scoring talent to their roster in the offseason, so I’m OK with backing them to -120 on the road against a flawed Red Wings team.

The Bet: Nashville Predators -120 or better

Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros (74) tends the net during the first period of an NHL preseason hockey game, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. AP

Anaheim Ducks (-115) vs. San Jose Sharks (-105), 10 p.m. ET

The Sharks could be a trendy underdog in this contest for a few reasons.

First and foremost is that their No. 1 overall pick, Macklin Celebrini, brought the goods in his NHL debut on Thursday with a goal and assist. He was terrific. 

Secondly, the Sharks are at home and have played a game, while the Ducks will be making their season debut.

And lastly, the betting market perceives these two clubs as relative peers at the bottom of the Pacific Division.

Betting on the NHL?

While you can certainly construct a good argument with those first two points, I would push back pretty strongly on the last one.

The Ducks are the deeper team, they have as much scoring upside and they project to have the better goaltender in this contest. 

Anaheim could be a sneaky underdog all season, but I like them as a slight favorite against the Sharks.

The Bet: Anaheim Ducks -120 or better