Tonight’s NHL prop picks feature David Pastrnak and Martin Necas.
The pregame narrative: The Boston Bruins’ poor play got head coach Jim Montgomery fired and I expect Pastrnak to step up with the pressure on. Elsewhere, Martin Necas should continue his red-hot start.
Find my NHL prop picks for Nov. 21 below.
NHL prop picks
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Best Bet: Pastrnak over 4.5 shots (+125)
Pastrnak recorded zero shots in a 5-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets when the Bruins last played on Monday.
That was the breaking point for Cam Neely and Co., who decided to fire their Jack Adams Award-winning head coach despite his stellar .715 regular season points percentage.
I think that was a dumb move but don’t doubt it will motivate Boston to play better.
Pastrnak is one of the league’s best goalscorers but has been snakebitten this month, scoring just twice in nine games. He’s gone under this total in seven of those contests but had exactly four shots on goal four times.
The Utah Hockey Club aren’t a great defensive team by any metric and allow the 13th most shots per game (29.2).
Key stat: Pastrnak leads all Bruins with 155 chances and 82 shots this season, per Natural Stat Trick.
Quick picks
Necas over 2.5 shots (-163): Necas is having a breakout season.
The Carolina Hurricanes centre has ripped home 11 goals and 30 points through 18 games, putting himself on a 136-point pace.
Will he sustain that level of production? It’s unlikely, considering his previous career-high was 71 points back in 2022-23. But the Czechian is firing at will, and I expect that to continue.
Necas has cleared this mark in five straight games and seven of nine in November.
Carolina’s opponent, the New Jersey Devils, doesn’t give up many shots but this is a very attainable number for a player on the top of his game.
NHL picks made at 10:45 a.m. on 11/21/2024.
Avery joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2022 before stepping into a full-time role soon after. He loves betting on and analyzing golf — mainly because it’s easier than actually playing — but is a fan of all sports, from the NFL to the UFC.