3 NHL Best Bets for Tuesday 10/8/24

Whether it's moneylines or total goals, there are plenty of ways to bet on NHL action all season. It's a long 82-game campaign, meaning that the best selections of each night can be very different based on backup goalies coming into play, injuries that add up, and if teams are due for positive or negative swings.

For additional NHL insights, check out FanDuel Research's daily NHL projections, powered by numberFire.

Let's dive into the best bets for tonight.

Note: Lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published. All NHL betting odds and totals are from the NHL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook. All advanced statistics are used from MoneyPuck.com and NaturalStatTrick.com.

NHL Best Bets Today

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St. Louis Blues vs. Seattle Kraken

Under 5.5 +102

While the 2024-25 NHL season has already officially begun, the Seattle Kraken and St. Louis Blues have the honor of kicking things off stateside. The NHL’s newest expansion team hosts the Blues in a Tuesday matinee in what should be a lower-scoring affair than anticipated.

Neither the Blues nor the Kraken had robust offensive metrics last season. Seattle finished with the ninth-lowest expected goals-for, trumping the Blues, who finished with the sixth-lowest expected total. As expected, that correlates with diminished output, with both squads finishing in the bottom six in goals-for at five-on-five.

Practically, that translated to pronounced under trends for the Blues and Kraken. Seattle went 43-25-4 to the under with St. Louis coming in at 43-32-7. Without any meaningful offseason adjustments, the outlook is equally bleak heading into the upcoming campaign.

Goals will be at a premium in this inter-divisional affair. Neither team possesses elite offensive ability, preferring to stick to defense-first systems and opportunistic offenses. The end result should be a low-scoring contest at Climate Pledge Arena.

Boston Bruins vs. Florida Panthers

Bruins Moneyline +126

The Florida Panthers take center stage on Tuesday night, hoisting their Stanley Cup banner to the rafters in the season opener versus the Boston Bruins. These teams met in each of the last two postseasons, with the Panthers famously coming back from a 3-1 deficit in 2023. Florida got the last laugh in last year’s postseason, but there’s value in backing the underdogs in this spot.

The Panthers are prime regression candidates at the outset of the season. The champs finished above their expected goals-for rating, precipitating a marginally inflated PDO (shooting and save percentages combined). Their team profile is analogous to Sergei Bobrovsky’s, with the primary netminder projected to struggle in 2024-25. Bobrovsky posted his best save percentage since 2017-18 with an untenable 18.1 goals saved above average. That benchmark surpasses the combined total of his previous six seasons combined, putting him on thin ice moving forward.

As always, the B’s will be ready to compete when the puck drops. Boston made some minor adjustments to its lineup this offseason, adding stalwart Nikita Zadorov to the blueline and Elias Lindholm to its top line. Combined with the usual suspects back for another season, the Bruins will be in top form and ready to avenge last year’s playoff loss.

At the current offering, there’s an implied advantage in backing the Bruins to crash the Panthers’ party.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Utah Hockey Club

Utah Hockey Club Moneyline -162

For the first time in NHL history, an NHL regular season contest will be played in Utah. The Utah Hockey Club takes to the ice for its inaugural game, hosting the Chicago Blackhawks in a Central Division grudge match.

Analytically, neither team stood out last season. Both squads ranked in the bottom half of the league in expected goals-for rating, translating to some of the worst records in the NHL. Still, Utah was decidedly better than the Blackhawks.

Chicago finished with the second-worst expected goals-for rating in the NHL, finishing with a disastrous 42.4% mark. Not surprisingly, that equaled a laughable 23 wins and the second-worst points percentage in the league. Comparatively, Utah was much better. Their 48.5% expected goals-for rating ranked 24th, resulting in 36 wins. That leaves the former Arizona Coyotes with a significant advantage in Tuesday’s season opener.

This line should be tilted much further in Utah’s favor. For now, that leaves an advantage in backing the Utah Hockey Club to win its first game in team history.

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