Saturday’s NHL Picks: March 4, 2017
Adam Mark
2017-03-04
Jeff Carter and the Kings should have an easy time against the Canucks on Saturday.
That’s more like it! I was able to get a respectable record last week going 4-2 on Saturday. It’s going to take a few more of those to get my Dobber record back on track, however. My current week has been phenomenal, going 11-0 since I last left you, leaving my personal record at 136-81 (63%). Here’s hoping that I can keep the streak going for a while longer to help you guys with your picks for the day. I’m taking all home teams this time around, most of which are favourites. On to the games!
Record: 27 – 21 (56%)
I don’t see this being much of a challenge for the Bruins. sure the scoresheet may end up saying otherwise, but in regards to a victory Boston should have this one in the bag. Throw in how they’ve been playing at home, and New Jersey is going to have their work cut out for them. Drew Stafford will be making his Bruins debut, but I wouldn’t expect too much from him. Instead, turn to Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron if you’re looking for some production.
Pick: Boston – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level: 4/5
Going with the underdogs on this one in the Senators. There’s just something about the way they’ve been playing, plus the addition of Alex Burrows and Viktor Stalberg rounds out the team nicely. I’m looking at Ottawa as a nice dark horse for the cup this year. Yes I know that Sergei Bobrovsky is coming off a shutout victory over the Wild and has been performing well lately (.969 SV% over his last 3 games), but still my gut is leaning towards Ottawa. I’ll definitely be watching this game of the bunch in the afternoon.
Pick: Ottawa – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level: 3/5
Given how Colorado has looked (pretty much all season), and with the Jets still in the playoff hunt, I’m expecting to see Winnipeg firing on all cylinders come puck drop. Mathieu Perreault has found some life, posting six points in his last three games and Blake Wheeler has a been an beast against the Avalanche over the last few seasons. Take the Jets on home ice and rest easy with this one.
Pick: Winnipeg – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level – 4.5/5
Philadelphia @ Washington (7:30 pm ET)
If you’re a Braden Holtby owner, you were probably as pleased with his shutout performance against New Jersey on Thursday as I was. Philadelphia will be hoping to break the seal and get a few through, but Washington won’t make it easy. The Caps have won their last 14 home games, and with the added depth of Kevin Shattenkirk, I could very well see them making it 15. Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom are due for a multi-pointer, so I’d recommend getting them in your lineups over the next few games.
Pick: Washington – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level: 4/5
Given how long they were in the basement, I’m not sure if I’ll ever get used to Edmonton’s winning ways, but I guess I’m going to need to pretty quickly. I’m looking forward to seeing what David Desharnais can bring to the table, but don’t expect much fantasy relevance. I was pretty shocked to learn that Tomas Tatar is leading Detroit with 15 goals! Not in him specifically, but that 15 was the most amongst them. Go with the Oil in this one and look for Connor McDavid to have his usual impact.
Pick: Edmonton – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level: 3.5/5
Vancouver @ Los Angeles (10 pm ET)
Does anyone else wish they could have seen Anze Kopitar and Jarome Iginla playing together in their primes? Man, what a sight that would have been. Throw in Todd Bertuzzi while we’re at it for good measure… Anyways, Los Angeles is fighting for that last wildcard spot and that should be pretty apparent on the ice against Vancouver on Saturday. I could see this game getting physical early on with the Kings trying to slow down the young guns of the Canucks. I’m liking Jeff Carter to finally get on the board in this one.
Pick: Los Angeles – Home Team Victory – H
Confidence Level: 5/5