This article is part of our NHL Picks series.
The National Hockey League has just two playoff games on tap for Monday night. It's our lightest night in some time. One game is from the Eastern Conference, while the other is from the Western Conference, and both series have seen the road team win on a rather frequent basis. We'll try and put together a few winning parlay opportunities to build that bankroll for the remainder of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Let's get started.
Top up your bankroll thanks to sportsbook promos like this BetMGM bonus code offering $1,500 in bonus bets.
NHL Playoff Picks: Expert Bets and Parlay Opportunities for April 28
For the latest NHL Odds, including NHL Futures and NHL player props, visit RotoWire's NHL Betting page. For up-to-date NHL player news and NHL Injury Report info, head to RotoWire's NHL Lineups page. You can find more picks at Bookies.com/picks. Here are our NHL Best Bets today, featuring expert NHL picks for an action-packed slate of games.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers: Expert Analysis
The Lightning and the Panthers meet at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla. for Game 4 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and the home team is still looking for its first victory in this series.
This has been an odd series, to say the least. The Florida Panthers welcomed Matthew Tkachuk back in Game 1 in Tampa, a 25-game absence due to a groin injury sustained at the 4 Nations Face-off Tournament.
Tkachuk immediately made his presence felt with two goals and an assist in 6-2 rout at Amalie Arena. After going scoreless in Game 2, a 2-0 victory by the Panthers, he lit the lamp in Game 3 back on home ice. Tkachuk was also up to 16:10 of ice time, easily his most since returning, after going for 11:43 of TOI in Game 1, and 13:31 of TOI in Game 2.
It isn't just Tkachuk doing big things for the Panthers offensively. Aleksander Barkov has no goals and three assists in this series, but it's the little things most don't talk about that make the difference between winning and losing. In Game 1, he was 77.8 percent (14-of-18) on faceoffs, and he had two blocked shots and three hits. He routinely wins more faceoffs than he takes, going 62.0 percent (31-of-50) in this series with four blocks and six hits. It isn't just about goals and assists.
For Tampa Bay, Nikita Kucherov had managed just one helper in the first two games, but he was good for three assists in Game 3. He is still searching for his first goal of the series, but the 5-1 win was easily his best performance. Jake Guentzel also had a goal and three points, while Gage Goncalves and Ryan McDonagh chipped in with two apples apiece.
The Lightning showed tremendous depth, as Anthony Cirelli, Luke Glendening and Nick Paul notched goals, while Guentzel and Brayden Point had the others. It isn't just about the big names for the Lightning, as the role players often show up in the postseason, too.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, who had a career-best 2.18 GAA in the regular season, easily had his best showing of the series. He allowed just a single goal on 34 shots in the 5-1 win.
Sergei Bobrovsky didn't have a great game, but he is just two games removed from that shutout in Game 2 in Tampa. He allowed four goals on 21 shots in Game 3, but he is still 2-1-0 with a 2.01 GAA and .903 save percentage in these playoffs.
Eventually, the home team is going to break through, and you feel like it will be the champs to do it in Game 4. This could be decided in overtime, but we'll side with the Panthers in a 3-2 type game. Go low on the total, too.
- Panthers ML (-142 at DraftKings Sportsbook)
- Under 5.5 Goals (-110 at Caesars Sportsbook)
Don't make any bets on your favorite sports betting apps without first consulting the latest NHL odds.
Colorado Avalanche vs Dallas Stars: Winning Betting Strategies
This has been a series where nobody seems to want home-ice advantage, either.
Dallas earned home-ice advantage by finishing in second place in the Central Division, but it frittered it away in Game 1 with a 5-1 rout by the Avalanche. The Stars made a series of it, coming back in Game 2 to force overtime, as Colin Blackwell was the hero with the winner.
As the series shifted to Denver, we had a low-scoring 2-1 OTW in favor of the Stars, as Tyler Seguin delivered the goods in the extra session to take a 2-1 series lead.
However, in Game 4, Mackenzie Blackwood showed out with a 23-save shutout. Jake Oettinger was rested after two periods, down 3-0, as Casey DeSmith stopped 13 of 14 shots in the third period in his first action of the series. Logan O'Connor had a shorthanded goal, and Nathan MacKinnon had a power-play goal, while Gabriel Landeskog streaked in for an even-strength tally in the second period. It was Landeskog's first NHL goal since June 20, 2022, as he has been crushed by injuries in recent seasons.
Going back to Oettinger, coach Pete DeBoer was simply resting Oettinger, and the pull was not indicative of displeasure with his performance. Oettinger made some amazing saves; he was just under siege all night, forced to make 31 saves in 40 minutes. He'll be back in the crease for Game 5.
The rest might help Oettinger, as the Stars return to home ice. They need to get off to a better start in front of the home fans, though. Still, Dallas hasn't played great at home, yet we head to this pivotal Game 5 with the series knotted. Look for it to play the best game of the series on home ice, getting the win, perhaps in OT again.
- Stars ML (+120 at ESPN Bet Sportsbook)
- Under 6.5 Goals (-135 at ESPN Bet Sportsbook)
Best NHL Parlays Today
4-Leg NHL Super Parlay (+1013 at ESPN Bet Sportsbook)
- Panthers ML (-145) vs. Lightning
- Under 5.5 (-110) - Panthers vs. Lightning
- Under 6.5 (-135) - Stars vs. Avalanche
- Stars ML (+120) vs. Avalanche
2-Leg NHL Sides Parlay (+272 at ESPN Bet Sportsbook)
- Panthers ML (-145) vs. Lightning
- Stars ML (+120) vs. Avalanche
2-Leg NHL Totals Parlay (+232 at ESPN Bet Sportsbook)
- Under 5.5 (-110) - Panthers vs. Lightning
- Under 6.5 (-135) - Stars vs. Avalanche
