NHL Best Bets Today: September 30 Picks & Predictions

Opening Night in the NHL did not disappoint. The five-game slate had a little bit of everything and appropriately set the tone for what should be a fantastic hockey season. Although Wednesday night has only three games on the docket, they bring a ton of intrigue. Penguins vs Flyers, one of the best rivalries in hockey, is followed by Matthew Schaeffer vs Gavin McKenna, which is then capped off by the Avs hosting the Kings. There is reason enough to check in on the games. But if you also want to have some action on the night, here are my NHL best bets for each matchup, while you can lock in our NHL picks for every game throughout the entire 2026-27 season.

NHL Best Bet: Porter Martone Over 0.5 Points in Penguins vs Flyers (-130)

The end of last season and the playoffs was a coming out party for Flyers prospect Porter Martone. Martone announced his presence in a big way with 4 goals and 10 points, along with a +4 rating in 9 games played. In the playoffs, he continued to contribute to the tune of 5 points and a +3 in 16:48 of ice-time per game in 10 postseason games. Now with experience under his belt and a full offseason and training camp with his teammates, sky could be the limit for this kid. 

To no surprise, Martone is on Philadelphia’s top line with Trevor Zegras and Owen Tippett, and on the top power play with Zegras, Matvei Michkov, Tyson Foerster, and Jamie Drysdale. Martone is a large power forward at 6-3, 214 lbs, will play meaningful minutes with good players, and already has 2 goals and an assist against the Penguins in his young career. The chances will be there tonight to produce, and Martone is as fresh and healthy as he will be all year. Look for him to make an impact on this game.

Get our expert's Penguins vs Flyers prediction for tonight's matchup on TNT

NHL Best Bet: Islanders vs Maple Leafs Over 5.5 (-130)

The hallmark of Maple Leafs teams for the better part of a decade has been a productive offense but leaky defense and goaltending. This team has the make up of at least one of those factors once again. Toronto has an opportunity to be a very productive team once again. They already had Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Morgan Reilly. Then they added Gavin McKenna, Kirill Marchenko, and Darren Raddysh. Up and down the lineup, there are legitimate threats to produce from defense and forwards.

The Islanders are a bit of an unknown themselves early on this year. They hired Head Coach Peter DeBoer late in the season last year, as well as General Manager Mathieu Darche after the season. Now with roster turnover, as well as a first full offseason and training camp under new leadership, there may be gaps in this team that could be exposed as they get used to this new version of their team. Given the star power of the Leafs and a new look Islanders team, a total of just 5.5 could be blown out.

Find out our Islanders vs Maple Leafs pick for who wins today's game

NHL Best Bet: Avalanche -1.5 over Kings (+136)

This year may just be the angriest version of the Avalanche that we have seen since they won the Stanley Cup in 2022. Despite having a couple of the best players on the planet, Colorado just has not been able to get over a first or second round hump in the playoffs. In addition to being a couple of the best players in the world, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar are also as big of competitors as they come. After getting swept in fairly non-competitive fashion by Vegas in the second round last year, this team will be on a mission once again this year.

That is not good news for a Kings team that got swept by the Avs in the first round of last year’s playoffs. Including those 4 games, Colorado has now won 9 out of the last 10 played against Los Angeles. Both teams have experienced turnover since spring. But the gap between them does not appear to have closed. Could we find out the opposite is true after a month of the season? Of course we can. But until or unless we do, Colorado still looks like the better team, they are a phenomenal home team, and they will come out with urgency.

Read the full analysis of our Kings vs Avalanche prediction