The penultimate day of the 2023-24 NHL regular season features a four-game slate on Wednesday.
Our AI-powered dfsPro model projects a number of individual performances worth keeping an eye on during tonight’s games. Let’s dive into some of our favorite NHL player props for April 17!
See also: Heavy’s NHL player props from April 14: 3-for-6 (50% accuracy).
Shot Props: Take the Over
Sidney Crosby: Over 3.5 Shots on Goal (+114, DraftKings)
The Pittsburgh Penguins were officially eliminated from playoff contention with the Washington Capitals‘ win over the Philadelphia Flyers on April 16. In other words, they have nothing to lose tonight when they face the New York Islanders in their final game of the season. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is riding a five-game point streak into tonight’s contest and coming off a seven-shot performance against the Nashville Predators on April 15. He averages just under 3.5 shots per game this season, and our model projects a 20% uptick to 4.08 tonight against the Islanders.
Robert Thomas: Over 2.5 Shots on Goal (+145, DraftKings)
The St. Louis Blues, who are also out of the playoff conversation, will face a Dallas Stars team vying for the top spot in the Western Conference in their final game of the season. Blues center Robert Thomas is averaging just over two shots on goal per game and has yet to outperform his average in three prior meetings with Dallas this season, but our model projects a 32% uptick in his shot potential tonight, putting him well over the betting line at 2.74.
Goalscorer Props
Leon Draisaitl: Anytime Goalscorer (+110, DraftKings)
According to our model, Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl has the best odds to score tonight when the Oilers take on the Arizona Coyotes in their season finale. The Coyotes held Draisaitl off the scoresheet in the teams’ most recent meeting on April 12, but he put up a three-point performance (1 goal, 2 assists) in their first meeting of the season on Feb. 19.
Nikita Kucherov: Anytime Goalscorer (+125, DraftKings)
Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov leads the Art Ross Trophy race with 142 points on the season, and his 43 goals rank 10th among NHL skaters. Our model likes him to find the back of the net tonight against against the Toronto Maple Leafs, giving him slightly better odds (44%) than even the league’s leading goalscorer in Auston Matthews (43%).
Miscellaneous Props: Goals & Assists
Connor McDavid: Under 1.5 Points (+105, DraftKings)
Sitting 10 points back of Kucherov and effectively out of the race for the Art Ross Trophy, Connor McDavid is projected to see a decline in his point potential tonight against the Coyotes. He is averaging 1.76 points per game this season, but our model projects a 35% decrease to 1.15 in tonight’s contest.
Erik Karlsson: Over 0.5 Assists (+100, DraftKings)
Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson is riding a three-game point streak into tonight’s contest against the Islanders, and our model likes him to extend that streak to four. He is averaging just over 0.5 assists per game this season, and our model projects an 8% increase over that average tonight. Karlsson dished out one helper in the Penguins’ last meeting with the Islanders on Feb. 20.
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