NHL Stadium Series Betting Picks: Rangers vs. Islanders (2/18/24)

Player props can be useful in a variety of ways -- from taking advantage of them straight up to measuring a player's potential to produce in daily fantasy hockey on FanDuel. Here, we're going to focus on the former.

Utilizing numberFire's projections as a guide, here are some NHL player props bets that look appealing via the NHL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Please note that betting lines and numberFire's projections may change throughout the day after this article is published.

NHL Best Bets

New York Rangers at New York Islanders Under 5.5 Goals (-110)

The Sunday game of The NHL Stadium Series sees the New York Rangers taking on the New York Islanders in a matinee to close out the weekend.

A classic NHL rivalry takes the field ice at MetLife Stadium in what should be a hard-fought game. The Rangers come into this game leading the Metro Division by eight points, while the Islanders are sitting three points out of the last wild-card spot.

When it comes to the Islanders this season, they've been all over the place in terms of results. Between firing their head coach and currently sitting in the bottom 10 of the league for the most goals allowed, things aren't as consistent as they once were in Elmont.

However, after said coaching change, things may be looking up for the Islanders, who have only allowed 0.93 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations over the last three weeks, which is the best in the league.

Defense has traditionally been NYI's calling card, which appears to be back on track after a disastrous start to the year. However, their offense still lacks the juice to be a high-scoring threat.

With 155 total goals this season, the Islanders sit as the 11th-lowest-scoring team in the league, or 2.31 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the seventh-lowest in the NHL.

As for the Rangers, their defense has also improved as of late. Going from allowing 2.52 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations for the entire season, to 2.10 Goals allowed over the last three weeks.

The Rangers' offense has been scoring a blistering 2.97 Goals per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations over the last three weeks, which is the third-best in the NHL. Add in the fifth-best (25.6%) power-play and they can score early and often.

Due to that scoring potential from the Rangers, the Islanders should look to slow the game down and force things into a more defensive-minded game. The Islanders' offense doesn't have the scoring potential to keep up with NYR, and they will do what they can to prevent this from turning into a barn-burner.

NHL Prop Bets

Alexis Lafrenière To Record 3+ Shots on Goal (+108)

While goals may be at a premium in this game, the shot attempts might be easy to come by.

Over the last three weeks, the Islanders have allowed 62.06 Total Shot Attempts per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the 13th-most in the league. Giving up a ton of shot attempts is bad for a defense, however, the Islanders limit goal-scoring chances.

During that same three-week span, the Islanders have only allowed 9.76 High Danger Scoring Chances per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations, which is the sixth-lowest in the league.

In short, the Islanders give up a ton of chances, but very few of them are close to the net. As noted above, they have improved their goals allowed per 60 minutes significantly in the last three weeks, but the overall volume of shot attempts is still there for opposing offenses.

This leads me to Alexis Lafreniere, who skates on the second forward line and the second power-play for the Rangers. He has been firing the puck a ton as of late, hitting at least three shots on goal in four of the five games since the All-Star break, along with the last two contests prior the break.

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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.