NHL Picks

The Los Angeles Kings played well down the stretch, earning a wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The good news is that L.A. doesn’t have to face Edmonton for a fifth straight playoffs. The Kings have been ousted in the first round by the Oilers in each of the past four seasons. The bad news is that the Kings draw the Avalanche, the team which notched 121 points and 55 wins enroute to the Presidents’ Trophy in the regular season. Colorado outscored L.A. 13-5 in three meetings in the regular season, with the total going 1-1-1 in those meetings.

The only previous meeting at Ball Arena in Denver came on Dec. 29, 2025, a 5-2 win by the Avalanche. While all of that looks like doom and gloom for the Kings, they played extremely well down the stretch, and they have plenty of postseason experience lately, albeit poor results in four straight series setbacks to the Oilers. Expect L.A. to make life very uncomfortable for Colorado in Game 1. In fact, it might be the only chance for the Kings to steal a game before the Avalanche get settled in for what they hope is a long run in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Kings vs Avalanche prediction: LA Kings +1.5 (-115) at time of publishing. Playable to -130.

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The Montreal Canadiens will take on the Tampa Bay Lightning for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference playoffs on Sunday. The Canadiens finished the season 4^th in the Eastern Conference. The Canadiens also had the best form away from home with 56 points through 41 away games, averaging 3.40 goals per game while allowing 3.06 goals per game. The Canadiens managed to score despite ranking 24^th in total shots, partly due to 56 goals on the power play. This incredible power play unit could come up big in this series as the Lightning rank 3^rd for most power play opportunities against them.

For the Lightning, they finished 3^rd in the Eastern Conference, averaging 3.49 goals per game while allowing just 2.79 goals per game. The defense for the Lightning has been huge this year, allowing only 229 goals all season. Overall, this should be a great series between teams that split the regular season series. In this one, I am trusting the Canadiens offense to get the best of the Lightning defense with the power play having an impact and taking the Canadiens on the money line.

Canadiens vs. Lightning Prediction: Montreal Canadiens ML (+160) available at the time of publishing. Playable to that number.

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The Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres kick off a highly-enticing, Round 1 series in the 206 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on Sunday. These Atlantic Division opponents have met 4 times this season, with Boston claiming 3. Will that success continue? Here is our Bruins vs. Sabres prediction to get you set for Game 1.

As most people know by now, this is the first playoff appearance by Buffalo in 15 years. The city, organization and players are all feeling a way they haven’t felt in years, and I expect that to translate to the ice. This is not an opportunity the team would like to waste, and for them to succeed, they need a hot start against a Boston team that has been a perennial playoff contender. As far as the matchup goes, Buffalo has shown they have a stacked lineup that is explosive and highly offensive. In fact, they owned the 5th-best goals per game average (3.45), along with the 4th-best penalty kill (81.9%). Boston’s depth has been a significant question this season, and while they have clearly answered the bell in the regular season, I will need to see them do the same on the road in the playoffs. For our Bruins vs. Sabres prediction, we expect Buffalo to win in regulation to kick off the series.

Bruins vs. Sabres prediction: Buffalo Sabres ML (-170) available at time of publishing. Playable to (-185).

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Game one of the first-round playoff matchup between the Utah Mammoth and Vegas Golden Knights will be played Sunday night in Las Vegas. These two teams split the regular season series by each winning two of the four games they played. The Golden Knights had a mediocre regular season to their standards due to inconsistent play, injuries and week goaltending. However, this is a veteran lineup, with some new additions, that knows what it takes to win playoff hockey. This will be the main difference between the Golden Knights and the Mammoth who as an organization dating back to their Arizona Coyotes days have not found themselves in the playoffs in a while. Based on regular season numbers, this is a very even matchup both offensively and defensively, which is why the playoff experience will play a factor, especially in game one.

The Golden Knights are very good on home ice, and the playoff atmosphere in the T-Mobile Arena is electric. The Mammoth were an average road team during the regular season, so look for the Golden Knights to get off to a good start in this series by taking game one on home ice. Give me the Golden Knights in this one.

Mammoth vs. Golden Knights prediction: Golden Knights ML (-150) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.