NHL Best Bets Today: Expert Picks for Friday, November 22

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Published on November 22, 2024

NHL Best Bets Tonight: Expert NHL Picks for
Friday, Nov. 22

The National Hockey League has two games on the schedule for Friday, but that's plenty to cobble together a nice parlay opportunity or two. The Winnipeg Jets and the Pittsburgh Penguins square off at 7 p.m. ET in the NHL Network game, while the Buffalo Sabres and Anaheim Ducks tangle at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+. Let's get started.

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Best NHL Picks Tonight

Winnipeg Jets at Pittsburgh Penguins

The Jets (16-3-0) kick off a six-game road trip in the Steel City against the Penguins (7-10-4) on Friday night at PPG Paints Arena. Again, the puck drops at 7 p.m. ET in this NHL Network game.

Winnipeg atoned for a 5-0 whitewashing Saturday in Florida by doubling up the Panthers 6-3 on Tuesday night in a strange home-and-home set between two teams not geographically close. It halted a two-game losing streak, which was obviously the longest of the season for the Jets.

These teams have already met once this season, as Winnipeg topped Pittsburgh 6-3 on Oct. 20 in The Peg, as backup tendy Eric Comrie bested Alex Nedeljkovic and the Over (6.5) easily connected.

It was a strange game when these teams played, too. We had a scoreless first period before Kevin Hayes opened the scoring with a power-play goal to put Pittsburgh up 1-0. Lars Eller, who isn't even with the team anymore as he has since been traded to the Washington Capitals, scored to make it 2-0. He also had an unassisted goal in the third period.

For Winnipeg, Mason Appleton, Kyle Connor, Adam Lowry, Nino Niederreiter (ENG), Vladislav Namestnikov and Mark Scheifele scored goals for the winning side.

Connor Hellebuyck (13-2-0, 2.20, .923 SV%, 3 SO) is projected to start, with Tristan Jarry (1-2-1, 4.72 GAA, .863 SV%) likely for the home side. This should be a mismatch in favor of the visitors, and we could have another Over, too.

Jets ML (-160 at FanDuel Sportsbook)
Over 6.5 (+100 at BetMGM Sportsbook)

Buffalo Sabres at Anaheim Ducks

The Sabres (9-9-1) skate on The Pond against the Ducks (8-8-2) in SoCal, and some casual fans might find it surprising that these teams are both at .500 this late into the season. It's been a number of years since we've seen either of these teams playing decent hockey, especially at the same time.

The Ducks swept this season series in 2023-24, edging the Sabres 8-5. The Over is 3-0-1 in the previous four meetings, with an average of 8.0 goals during that span since Jan. 21, 2023.

Buffalo picked up a 1-0 win last time out behind Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, as he kicked aside all 23 shots he faced in Los Angeles as the Sabres (+145) cashed as moderate road 'dogs with the Under (5.5) never in question. Jason Zucker was the offensive hero with a power-play goal 38 seconds in the third period for the game's only lamp lighting.

Meanwhile, Anaheim heads into this game with three consecutive victories, while outscoring the opposition 13-8 in the span. That includes a huge 4-2 win in Dallas as a big underdog (+356). In fact, Anaheim is 3-0 as a 'dog in the win streak, cashing +639! On the puck line as an underdog, Anaheim is a healthy 4-2 in the past six tries, too.

The Ducks have cashed low in five of the past six games while going 11-3-1 in the previous 15 outings. The Sabres have hit the Over at a 10-6-3 clip, but they've gone low in the past two.

We'll simply play the Ducks straight up as a moderate underdog on home ice, and let's go Under.