Two red-hot forwards on Canadian teams, Cole Caufield and Mark Scheifele, make up Monday’s NHL goal picks.
The pregame narrative: Both players are on fire to start their respective seasons, and they have favourable matchups against bottom-tier competition. Caufield has netted five goals for the Montreal Canadiens, and Scheifele has done one better for the Winnipeg Jets.
Check out my NHL anytime goal picks for Oct. 20.
NHL anytime goal picks
Best Bet: Caufield to score a goal (+133)
Caufield has been a consistent scorer from the moment he stepped into the league, but he’s taken things to another level lately.
The skilled winger logged career highs in goals (37) and points (70) last season, and seems poised to smash both of those marks in his sixth campaign.
He’s got five goals and eight points through six games and is leading the Canadiens in several important underlying statistical categories (via Natural Stat Trick):
- Shot attempts (33)
- Scoring chances (23)
- High-danger chances (9)
- xG (3.01)
The Canadiens have won four of their last five games, and they host the Buffalo Sabres, a team that has been a walkover for the last decade, tonight.
Buffalo is fresh off back-to-back wins — including one against the reigning champion Florida Panthers — but that doesn’t worry me one bit.
Caufield has had his way with the Sabres lately, scoring four goals in his last four games against his Atlantic Division foe.
Key stat: Buffalo has given up the third-most xG per 60 (3.43) since the start of last season.
NHL predictions
Scheifele to score a goal (+163): Dustin Wolf was a stone wall for the Calgary Flames in his rookie season, posting a .910 SV% and 2.64 GAA while finishing second in Calder Trophy voting.
But the sophomore slump has hit the netminder hard.
- Wolf has a 4.30 GAA and .854 SV% through five starts.
- He has allowed 3+ goals in every start and 12 goals in three home games.
Calgary might opt to give Wolf a breather in favour of Devin Cooley, but that’s hardly an upgrade. The 28-year-old has started seven total NHL games and had an .870 SV% with the San Jose Sharks last year.
With all that said, backing Scheifele to score sounds pretty nice to me.
The veteran centre has been on a tear to start the year, with six goals in five games. He also leads Winnipeg in xG (3.2), high-danger chances (120) and scoring chances (20).
NHL anytime goal picks made at 11:35 a.m. ET on 10/20/2025.
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.