NHL Betting Picks and Player Props to Target: Saturday 1/20/24

Saturday usually means a busy night on the ice, and we've got 24 teams in action at some point today. With no shortage of options to choose from, there are some pretty tasty wagers sitting at FanDuel Sportsbook's proverbial kiosks.

Whether it's moneylines, total goals, or player props, there are plenty of ways to bet on the NHL action all season long. It's a long 82-game season, 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.

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 come from FanDuel Sportsbook.

NHL Best Bets

Nashville Predators at Arizona Coyotes

Coyotes ML (+108)
Clayton Keller Anytime Goal (+175)

The Arizona Coyotes' home arena doesn't seat many fans, but they have a chance to make what few do attend today head home happy.

Arizona will host the Nashville Predators in this one, and name value might be skewing this betting line. While you'd have to favor Nashville's skaters, the goaltending edge lies squarely with the Yotes today.

Nashville's 52.0% expected-goals-for rate (xGF%) is ninth-best in the NHL, which is significantly ahead of the middle-of-the-road Coyotes (48.0 xGF%). However, Juuse Saros has let his forwards and defensemen down in a story opposite of prior years.

In the past 30 days, Saros has -1.51 goals saved above expectation (GSAx). Compare that to Arizona's Connor Ingram, who has tallied 3.52 GSAx in the same period. Ingram -- and home ice -- make up the difference to back Phoenix in this spot. numberFire's model agrees, pegging Arizona 55.6% likely to pull the upset.

Due to Saros' struggles, I think we can turn to the Yotes' prolific scorer to end his two-game scoring drought today. Clayton Keller has fired 10 pucks on net during the dry spell but come up empty. In addition to the shot volume, he's also topped 20:30 TOI in the consecutive competitive tilts.

There have only been five stretches all season where Keller's scoreless streak reached three games -- and it's never reached four. He's too crucial to this offense to stay off the statsheet long.

Toronto Maple Leafs at Vancouver Canucks

Maple Leafs ML (+105)

While their home arena is a bit occupied tonight, the Toronto Maple Leafs hit the road, and I'm not sure how they're not favored to win tonight's contest against the Vancouver Canucks.

Despite Vancouver's lofty 30-11-4 record, they've not deserved a better mark than Toronto this season. Toronto's 51.8 xGF% actually edges out Vancouver's (51.4%), and that's largely due to a massive, massive discrepancy in their goaltending. However, the Leafs' netminder has fared significantly better recently.

In the past month of play, Toronto's Martin Jones has crushed it. He's sixth in the entire NHL in terms of GSAx (6.93). On the flip side, Thatcher Demko has cooled to just 0.86 GSAx -- which isn't awful -- in the same period. It's just worth noting Demko isn't quite the advantage he was earlier in the year.

With better skaters and a hotter goalie, I'll take plus coin behind a Maple Leafs squad that might not be getting a ton of public love at the moment. They've dropped four of their last five games against a few quality clubs; otherwise, they might be favored in this spot.

Anaheim Ducks at San Jose Sharks

Troy Terry 3+ Shots on Goal (-118)
Tomas Hertl 3+ Shots on Goal (-108)

Two of the league's cellar-dwellers will clash in the Bay Area tonight. While firmly passing on a specific outcome in this mess, we can expect quite a bit more shot volume than normal from both sides.

Giving up shots is the San Jose Sharks' middle name. Well, they don't have one, but...anyway. San Jose's 71.1 Corsi allowed per 60 minutes is the worst mark in the NHL, and the Anaheim Ducks allow the fifth-most Corsi per 60 (63.4). Anaheim's goaltending has been significantly better to net better results, but these two teams aren't skating well defensively whatsoever.

Enter a couple of forwards that like to put the puck on net.

Anaheim's Troy Terry definitely tried to make good on his newly-minted role on the first line. He fired seven pucks toward the net in his last outing, but impossibly, six of them missed the target. He was credited with just one shot on goal. Terry's 19:42 TOI this month is among the Ducks' best for forwards, and he's posted 2.41 shots per game overall. This friendly matchup should ignite a few more credited attempts.

On the other side, Tomas Hertl might be the only Sharks forward you've heard of, but that's not the only reason to take him tonight. The veteran has posted 2.41 shots per game himself with the Sharks' best TOI average for a forward this month (20:31). numberFire's model actually loves Hertl in this spot; with a projection of 2.50 shots on goal, it would assign +100 odds to his chance for three. There's value there, too.

Edmonton Oilers at Calgary Flames

Oilers TT Over 3.5 Goals (-120)
Connor McDavid Anytime Goal (+115)

This line is moving quickly as uncertainty around Jacob Markstrom's lower-body injury comes closer to certainty he'll miss tonight's game. I'd act quickly.

At 11.36 GSAx this month (fourth-best in hockey), Markstrom is a stalwart that changes the Calgary Flames' defensive outlook dramatically. When he's been out of action in the past 30 days, Dan Vladar (-1.51 GSAx) has dropped the ball. It'd be a bad time to turn to Vladar with the scoring Edmonton Oilers coming to town.

Edmonton has won 12 straight, tying or eclipsing four goals in 7 of those contests. The Oilers' elite offense (league-best 3.82 expected goals per 60) needs no introduction to hockey zealots. If Vladar is anchoring a defense allowing the 13th-most expected goals per 60 (3.12) themselves, fireworks should ensue.

If that's the case, expect Connor McDavid to end his dry spell amidst the show. He hasn't scored in three games despite 11 shots on goal but, impossibly, still averages 0.41 goals per game on the season.

numberFire would set McDavid's odds to score at +113 tonight based on a projection of 0.47 goals. I'll take the tiny bit of value when "The Chosen One" is badly due.

New York Rangers at Los Angeles Kings

Kings ML (-126)
Kings -1.5 (+190)

The New York Rangers enter tonight's game in L.A. with a better record than the Los Angeles Kings. They're 28-14-2 compared to the Kings' mark of 21-13-8, which has poor overtime luck written all over it. I have zero doubt the Kings are the better team on home ice tonight, though.

Los Angeles' 54.8 xGF% is fourth-best in the NHL and towers over the Rangers' mark of 51.5%. It's bizarre that the Rags have amassed 58 points with the 13th-best expected rate in the league. In goal, the gap only widens.

Over the past 30 days, neither Jonathan Quick (-1.27 GSAx) nor Igor Shesterkin (-1.49 GSAx) have added value in the crease for New York. Juxtapose that with a renaissance season for L.A.'s Cam Talbot, who has maintained a decent level of play with 0.13 GSAx in the same period. Notably, Talbot's last five starts have come on the road, so I'm expecting a bit of an increase within the confines of Crypto.com Arena.

The Kings have lost 10 of their last 11 games, but 7 of those contests were one-score games. I've never seen an elite team get this unlucky for such a consistent stretch, and the luck directions on these clubs should be moving in opposite directions moving forward.

Looking for more NHL betting opportunities? Check out all of the NHL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.