NHL Expert Picks: Best Bets for Thursday, October 31

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Published on October 31, 2024

NHL Best Bets Tonight: Expert Hockey Parlay Picks for
Thursday, Oct. 31

The National Hockey League has a total of seven games scheduled for Halloween Night on Thursday. We're going to focus on the final two games of the slate, including the Edmonton Oilers and Nashville Predators at 8 p.m. ET, which can be viewed or streamed on ESPN+ and Hulu, while the Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks clash at 10:30 p.m. ET. Let's get started.

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Best NHL Picks Tonight

Edmonton Oilers at Nashville Predators

The Oilers (4-5-1) travel to Music City to battle the Predators (3-5-1) in a battle between two teams that have gotten off to slower-than-expected starts.

Edmonton looked like it was starting to piece things together, going 4-1-1 in a six-game span from Oct. 15-27, but it was worked over 6-1 in Columbus on Monday in the second end of a back-to-back. More impactful than the loss itself is the fact that Connor McDavid suffered an ankle injury that will sideline him for 2-3 weeks.

The Predators have already suffered a loss on home ice against the Oilers this season. Edmonton topped Nashville 4-2 on Oct. 17 as the Under (6.5) hung on, while the Oilers cashed as a slight road favorite (-120).

Filip Forsberg opened the scoring midway through the first period of that game, but Brett Kulak and Jeff Skinner flipped the score to make it 2-1 in favor of the Oilers. While Jonathan Marchessault tied it up on the power play, it was McDavid with the game-winning goal late in the second, and Kulak adding a second goal into the empty net. That was enough offense for Calvin Pickard, as he stopped 25 of the 27 shots, while Juuse Saros allowed three goals on 35 shots.

The Oilers have won eight of the past 10 meetings in this series, and the Under is 2-0-1 in the past three meetings, including Oct. 17. Let's go with Edmonton and the Under in a Same-Game Parlay (SGP).

Oilers ML (+110 at BetMGM Sportsbook)
Under 6 (+100 at BetMGM Sportsbook)
SGP - Oilers ML +108 Under 6.5 -128 - (+251 at FanDuel Sportsbook)

Chicago Blackhawks at San Jose Sharks

The Blackhawks (3-6-1) haven't had a ton to get excited about, but they're coming off an impressive 5-2 road victory against the Colorado Avalanche. They'll look to carry that momentum into the Bay Area.

The Sharks (2-7-2) have surprised with back-to-back victories against the Utah Hockey Club and the Los Angeles Kings, both as underdogs of +230 or greater. The Over is on a 2-0-1 in the past three games for the Sharks, too.

Jake Walman, Fabian Zetterlund, Tyler Toffoli and William Eklund were the goal scorers for the Sharks, who continue to play without Macklin Celebrini (lower body), who hasn't played since getting injured in the opener.

Vitek Vanecek turned aside 26 of the 28 shots he faced against the Kings last time out, while Mackenzie Blackwood made 19 saves on 23 shots in Salt Lake the game before.

Zetterlund has three goals in the past two games, while Toffoli has lit the lamp in each of the past two victories.

While the Blackhawks haven't had a lot of success in recent seasons, Chicago has won five straight meetings in this series, while going 7-2 in the past nine. The Over is 5-1-1 in the past seven meetings, too.

These are two hungry teams with a rare chance at a victory. We'll avoid the line, but go Over, as we could get some fire-wagon hockey.