NHL Betting Guide: Lines, Trends & Picks For Tuesday, Dec. 27

NHL Betting Guide: Today's Lines, Trends & Picks

I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas weekend, and little Johnny got his brand-new shiny bike that you purchased with winnings from our hockey bets. Today, we have a huge 11-game NHL slate, and a great time to replenish the money you lost buying gifts. So be ready to make some wagers and let's cash. BetQL subscribers can see more betting trends and all of our best bets with star ratings for every pick.

Take advantage of BetQL's free trial and see all of today's best NHL bets, plus what the model is projecting for every NFL, NBA and NCAA football and basketball game this week! Start your free trial today!

We'll start out down in Carolina, where the Chicago Blackhawks will travel to take on the Hurricanes. This might be one of the more obvious games of the day, but sometimes that's where you have to go to make a profit. Chicago is terrible, one of the worst teams in the NHL, and they travel to a team that has now won eight straight games. The Blackhawks are scoring a pitiful 2.34 goals per game and getting just 26.8 shots on net per game. The defense also is bad, allowing 33.4 shots against, and the goaltending is allowing 3.75 goals per game. They managed to beat the Blue Jackets, who proved to be just as bad, last time out but have still lost four of their last five.

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes look unstoppable, and we knew this type of run was coming. It was a struggle early for them, but the numbers showed they were far better than what they were showing, and now that has come to light. They are scoring 3.06 goals per game, not great, but also averaging 34.5 shots per game. They are strongest on defense, where they allow just 2.62 goals per game and 26.5 shots.

MY PICK: Don't think twice about it, you know the Blackhawks aren't winning two games in a row. Ladder this one to Hurricanes -2.5 or more. It should be a bloodbath.

This game should be far more competitive, but also tougher to make a wager on. The Vegas Golden Knights will be traveling to Los Angeles to take on the Kings. Vegas has won three of their last five games, most recently a win against the St. Louis Blues in OT. The Golden Knights are scoring 3.31 goals per game and getting 32.7 shots on goal per game while allowing just 2.78 goals per game. I thought after all the changes this offseason, they would take a step back, but that has not happened, and they looked poised for another playoff run.

LA has been one of my favorite play-on teams this season because they are often undervalued for the team they are. The Kings are scoring 3.19 goals per game and allowing 3.43, but that goals against number is starting to go down. They are getting 32.9 shots on goal per game while allowing just 29.4 against. A lot of people get scared off from betting them because of how much their goaltending has struggled, but it has gotten much better since the start of the year. This is a good hockey team that should make the playoffs.

MY PICK: However, in this game, the Kings are actually the favorites here at -115. I consider these two teams to be pretty even, and I don't see a huge difference between the two of them. LA is getting a home-ice advantage as part of this number, but Vegas has proven they can win on the road. I'll take the Knights at the better number of -105.

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Here is my play for today, using the strategy of taking both teams to go under their maximum goal total in the 1st period (gimmie legs), taking the favorite at their maximum spread, and adding the most likely goal scorer; you can apply this strategy to any game, any night: 

Svechnikov Anytime Goal
Blackhawks Under 2.5 1P
Hurricanes Under 3.5 1P
Hurricanes +2.5
(OGP odds: +115)

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Take advantage of BetQL's free trial and see all of today's best NHL bets, plus what the model is projecting for every NFL, NBA and NCAA football and basketball game this week! Start your free trial today!