Join Daily Faceoff’s Nick Martin as he handicaps the best NHL player props available on Thursday night.
Brayden Point Over 1.5 Points (+150) and Over 2.5 Shots on Goal (+100)
After being held off the scoresheet in back-to-back games for the first time this season, Point was scratched in Tuesday’s contest in Boston after missing a team meeting. It seems logical to expect Point to show plenty of jump in Thursday’s game, as his side hosts one of the league’s worst defensive sides in the Anaheim Ducks.
Over the last 20 games, the Ducks have allowed 3.57 xGA/60 as well as 30.35 shots against per 60. They continue to look like one of the league’s worst defensive sides with their passive play in the defensive zone, and continue to struggle to break up the cycle leading to long sequences of defensive play.
While Tampa Bay’s top unit of Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Jake Guentzel has not been quite as productive of late, this matchup provides an excellent opportunity to back one of the most offensively gifted trios in the league. This line has scored 4.02 goals for per 60 this season, and should benefit from some extra space in the offensive zone in this matchup.
Point has put up 32 points over the last 21 games, and while he is a tremendous player in his own right, he’s benefitting from playing alongside arguably the games best playmaker in Kucherov, and on one of the league’s best power play units.
Point should have some extra juice for this matchup, and I’m happy with the prices we are getting to target that idea in a highly favourable matchup.
Filip Forsberg Anytime Goalscorer: +150 Sports Interaction
Forsberg has been dominant versus the Chicago Blackhawks over the last two seasons, which isn’t all that surprising given how bad the Blackhawks have been. In his lone matchup with the Blackhawks this year, Forsberg recorded a goal and seven shots on goal.
There’s an argument to be made that the Blackhawks are providing Forsberg with an even softer matchup now than they were when these teams last met on October 26th, when Luke Richardson was still head coach.
The Blackhawks have played a less conservative style under new head coach Anders Sorensen, which has lead to improved offensive results, but come at a cost defensively. Throughout Sorensen’s tenure the Blackhawks have allowed 3.54 xGA/60 and 31.78 shots against per 60.
Forsberg has scored in three straight games entering this matchup, all against defensively gifted sides like the Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets, and Washington Capitals. In those three games, he’s had 21 shot attempts and 11 shots on goal.
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