OK, ladies and gents, I am back in the lab and working on cooking up some winning picks for a super Saturday stacked with tantalizing matchups. Apologies for the two-week hiatus, but thankfully this is the perfect day to bounce-back with a loaded NHL board featuring four matinee games and eight evening tilts.

Given the shortened season and unpredictability of playing through a pandemic, checking starting netminders and lineups before laying a wager has arguably never been more critical. Coaches across the league are playing a daily juggling act when it comes to piecing a lineup together. I know I say it a lot but do your research and stay up-to-date with any last-minute scratches that could potentially alter betting lines and totals. Goalie Post will help you keep track of which goalies are starting each day.

Whether it be the Battle of Alberta or Pennsylvania or even New York (ok, maybe not that last one), enjoy today's packed schedule and good luck.

2021 record:

Gold: 1-3
Silver: 3-1
Bronze: 2-2
Side bets: 5-7

Overall: 11-13

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Gold Pick
Florida Panthers @ Nashville Predators Pick: Panthers

Before we get too deep here, the Panthers deserve some serious credit for a stellar start to the 2021 campaign. Despite a season that kicked-off with a COVID hiccup that saw the club's first few games of their schedule get pushed, Florida has been one of the best teams in the league and currently sit only two points adrift of the juggernaut Tampa Bay Lightning atop the Central Division standings.

Onto today's tilt against a disappointing Predators team struggling to find its identity. Not only does Nashville have a tough time (the team's 54 goals are good for fifth-worst in total scoring) putting the puck in the back of the net on most nights, but the franchise's once stingy backend is a shell of its former self – only six teams have given up more goals this season than the Preds' 78. Enter a Florida team that is one of the league's best on the road and this is shaping up to be a great spot for the Panthers to continue to get points away from home.

The Cats own a sparkling 7-1-1 record on the road this year and are 5-1 in their last six games playing in Nashville's barn. It should be noted that these two teams played to a 5-4 finish in Florida's favour two nights ago, but two of Nashville's goals came in the third period when the Panthers clearly took their foot off the gas, so take that result with a grain of salt.

Florida bangs out today to get my Gold Picks back on track, book it.

Silver Pick
Minnesota Wild @ Arizona Coyotes – Pick: Wild

Yeah, I get it, this is not exactly a matchup that most hockey heads will be circling on today's NHL slate for obvious reasons, but that doesn't mean there isn't still an opportunity to put a few notes in the ol' pocketbook. Straight up, Minny is an underrated group playing some seriously solid two-way hockey right now. Aside from a close one-goal loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday night, the Wild have only one loss in their last nine games, which included a six-game win streak.

Minnesota laid a complete beatdown on the Coyotes just last night to the tune of 5-1, but realistically that score could have easily been even more crooked in Arizona's favor. Aside from also owning an excellent overall recent record against the Desert Dogs, Minny has also slapped around Rick Tocchet's crew away from home, as the Wild have won four of five when visiting Gila River Arena.

The last thing you should be aware of here before laying a wager is the goaltending match-up. On one hand you have a well-rested Cam Talbot slotting in after rookie backup Kaapo Kahkonen held the Yotes to just one goal on 25 shots on Friday, and on the other hand you have a few different question marks between Zona's pipes. No. 1 netminder Darcy Kuemper has been battling nagging injuries all year and backup Antti Raanta has struggled and played last night – advantage obviously to the Wild.

If both Raanta and Kuemper aren't starting in this one and the Coyotes have to turn to a third-string option in Adin Hill, then I obviously like this even more and could see the Wild putting up another big number. Throw a bet down on Minnesota and thank me later.

Bronze Pick
Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins (Over/Under 6) – Pick: Over

I'll be honest, there's something about betting Overs in early games that doesn't fully sit well with me for a few different reasons, but I can't help myself on this. This game just feels like an Over bet before doing any research into it at all. Thankfully, upon doing some digging, my initial gut feeling was backed up by the recent matchups between these two interstate rivals that tend to score in bunches on each other.

The Flyers and Penguins already played twice this week with both games featuring a total of seven goals each, both contests also going Over the number. Furthermore, another supporting fact for my Over pick here is the total has gone Over the number in four of the Flyers last five when visiting PPG Paints Arena.

Philly has a few players dealing with a quarantine situation for this one, including young stud Joel Farabee who is tied for the team lead in goals with James van Riemsdyk at 10, so that is obviously a factor that could potentially lead to more Flyers getting scratched. Keep an eye on that situation before puck drop. Either way, this one goes over the number of 6 and cashes my Bronze Pick of the week.

Side Bets

Winnipeg Jets @ Montreal Canadiens – Pick: Jets

Anaheim Ducks @ Colorado Avalanche – Pick: Avalanche

Calgary Flames @ Edmonton Oilers – Pick: Flames

Flip Livingstone is a former NHL writer for theScore with past experience at such outlets as Narcity Media, Postmedia, and Hockey Night in Canada. You can follow him on Twitter @FlipLivingstone and @Flips_Picks.