Top NHL Betting Picks of the Week – February 19th 

The Boston Bruins have won five in a row and have points in 10 straight games to move into second place in the Atlantic Division but are still 16 points behind Tampa Bay, who has also won five in a row. The New York Islanders still lead the Metropolitan Division by five points over Washington, but watch out for Carolina and Philadelphia, who are making playoff runs in the division, as each have won eight of ten. In the Western Conference, St. Louis is on fire, winners of 10 in a row to move past Dallas into third place in the Central Division, just nine points behind Winnipeg. San Jose has moved into a tie with Calgary atop the Pacific (and the conference), although the Flames have a game in hand. What can we expect to see this week on the ice? Here are your three NHL betting picks of the week.

Top NHL Betting Picks of the Week – February 19th 

PHT Power Rankings: The unexpected rise of the Islanders https://t.co/yuQWrz84G7

— NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) 18 de febrero de 2019

Tuesday, February 19

Tampa Bay at Philadelphia (7:00pm ET)

The Lightning have reeled off five straight and have posted two straight shutouts, blanking Dallas at home on 6-0 and then shutting out Montreal at home on Saturday, 3-0. They head to Columbus on Monday night before heading to the City of Brotherly Love on Tuesday night. In that win over Montreal, all of the goals came in the third period, while Andrei Vasilevskiy posted his 18th shutout as a member of the Lightning, moving ahead of Ben Bishop for the tops in team history. The Lightning got goals at the 2:16 and 3:41 marks of the third to build that lead and then got an insurance goal with just under four minutes remaining. That combination of intrepid offense and committed defense is why the Lightning are running away with the East. Philadelphia has won three in a row, including the completion of a home-and-home against Detroit on Sunday, winning on the road in 3-1 fashion. The Flyers have now won 12 out of 14, thanks to 37 saves from Carter Hart and a pair of goals from Oskar Lindblom, including the empty-netter with 86 seconds left in the third period. The real story has been Hart, who is 13-6-1 as a starter at the age of 20, and he has won 10 of 11 since January 14. He will face a huge test with the Lightning coming to town — do the young Flyers have what it takes to stop the best in the East? NHL Betting Prediction: Tampa Bay 4, Philadelphia 3

Toronto at St. Louis (8:00pm ET, NBC Sports)

Toronto has split their last four, sandwiching losses to the New York Rangers and the Arizona Coyotes around wins over Colorado and Vegas, all on the road. That loss to the Coyotes came on Saturday night, in 2-0 fashion. This completed an unlikely season sweep for the lowly Coyotes, as Toronto lost just their second in the last eight. Auston Matthews had scored two goals in Toronto’s 6-3 win in Vegas but the whole team looked listless in the desert. Things now get harder for the Leafs as they head to St. Louis to take on the white-hot Blues. Winners of 10 straight, the Blues have also posted three straight shutouts, blanking Arizona, Colorado and Minnesota by a combined score of 11-0, all on the road. The last win in Minnesota came on Sunday behind 31 saves from rookie Jordan Binnington, and the team now has a goal-less streak of 187:16 going. Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and a pair of assists, and the Blues also got goals from Ryan O’Reilly, Vince Dunn and Brayden Schenn. Can the Blues make in 11 in a row to break the franchise record for wins in a row? Given the inconsistency that Toronto is showing, it’s a good bet. NHL Betting Prediction: St. Louis 4, Toronto 2

Wednesday, February 20

Winnipeg at Colorado (8:30pm ET, ESPN+)

The Central Division leaders have dropped two straight, losing at Colorado, 4-1, and then to Ottawa, 4-3, with both setbacks coming at home. The loss to Ottawa came in overtime on Saturday night. Tyler Myers scored a pair of goals, and Brandon Tanev had a goal and an assist. Laurent Brossoit stopped 37 shots, but it wasn’t enough, and the Jets are now just 2-3-2 in their last seven games. Now Winnipeg heads to Colorado looking to avenge that loss from a few days ago. That win for the Avalanche was their only one in their last ten games, and they followed up that win with a 3-0 shutout loss at home to St. Louis on Saturday. Colorado has lost six in a row at home and is 0 for 23 on the power play over the last eight games. Can they find their form at home against the division leaders once again? We will see. NHL Betting Prediction: Winnipeg 3, Colorado 1