The agonizingly long wait for Saturday hockey betting action is officially over. With that, the fifth consecutive installment of weekend NHL betting breakdowns here at Dobber Hockey is upon us.

Welcome back, my degenerate gambling friends. Each and every Saturday from now till the end of the NHL season you can tap into our Saturday picks analysis as we serve up our Gold, Silver, and Bronze wagers, as well as three side bets to sprinkle on.

Last season we finished the betting campaign on an absolute heater (see below for full pick record). Let's keep this loot train running this year and kick-off the brand-new NHL year with a bang and heavier pocketbook.

We already have a number of tantalizing storylines to behold, including Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard making his mark early, the Edmonton Oilers slippery goaltending situation, and even Brock Boeser's four-piece against those very same Oilers.

Hockey is back, baby. Let's get this paper.

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Last Season's Saturday Record – Complete Daily Record Tracked/Posted @Flips_Picks on X.

Gold: 10-4
Silver: 8-6
Bronze: 9-5
Side bets: 27-13-2

Overall Combined Saturday Record: 54-28-2

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Gold Selection

Vancouver Canucks @ Edmonton Oilers – Oilers ML (-205)

Don't look now, but we might already have another goaltender controversy brewing very early in Edmonton.

In classic Oilers fashion, and just when we finally thought they had a clearcut No. 1 / No. 2 scenario, Edmonton opened the fresh NHL campaign by laying an absolute egg against this very same Canucks crew. Of course, giving their opponent six opportunities on the man advantage while only converting once on four power-play chances of their own is not going to set this club up for any kind of success, but that was an embarrassing performance and one that both Jack Campbell and supposed starter Stuart Skinner needed to be a lot better in, allowing four goals apiece.

Straight up and down this Edmonton team better wake up in a hurry. Expectations are sky high in the so-called "City of Champions". Of course, it's still very early and this group has all the makings of one that can make some serious postseason noise, but they will need to eradicate this kind of performance from their repertoire and bounce-back in a very big way tonight against Vancouver – also on home ice where they were 23-12-6 only a season ago.

Before the debacle on Wednesday, Connor McDavid and Co. were riding a 7-2 record over their previous nine meetings with the Canucks, so we know this team can get it done against Vancouver – they just need a save or two from whomever Jay Woodcroft throws out this time around in the blue paint.

Not a ton of value here on the moneyline, so add this lock into a nice little parlay and thank me later. Oilers bounce back and get it done tonight at home – my Gold Pick of the night.

Silver Selection

Colorado Avalanche @ San Jose Sharks – Avalanche PL -1.5 (-120)

We're keeping this one very simple to kick-off the season: the Avalanche are a legit Stanley Cup threat and the San Jose Sharks are knee (fin) deep in a full-blown rebuild. As one of the worst teams in the league this season, the Sharks will be a club that we regularly fade for obvious reasons. Now, there really isn't any value here with the Avs on the moneyline, however, add in the fact that Colorado has wins in nine of its last 10 against San Jose and that six of those have come by two-or-more goals and we have a really solid spot to make a little bit of bank here on the puckline.

The Avalanche also have Ws in five of their last six games when visiting the Shark Tank and are one of the best all-around road teams in the league, two key factors working in our favor. I really don't think I need to break this one down any further, and given how tumultuous the first couple weeks of NHL betting can be, we have to pick our spots for seemingly favorable matchups and hammer them hard.

This is one of them for a Colorado squad that also looked offensively potent in their season-opening performance against a good L.A. Kings group. As for the Sharks? They were dominated by the reigning Cup champions in the Vegas Golden Knights to begin what is sure to be a very long season in coastal California.

Avalanche take this one by two-or-more goals for my Silver selection of the evening.

Bronze Selection

Auston Matthews Anytime Goal (+110)

Even though Auston Matthews was able to pot 40 goals and 80-plus points last season, his overall output left something to be desired after blowing the doors off the league a season prior winning a mantle full of hardware and leading the NHL in scoring with a 60 piece. Meaning, expectations for No. 34 heading into this campaign were at an all-time high, with the Maple Leafs franchise looking to lean heavily on Matthews in the hopes he takes this organization to the next level.

Well, if Wednesday's output against Montreal is any indication on how Matthews' season will unfold, Leafs fans are in for a real treat. Of course, Toronto's overall game and performance against the Montreal Canadiens to open the season was far from complete, and they were lucky to win the game in many aspects. However, Matthews was the best player on the ice and singlehandedly earned the Buds the two points by putting up three goals on eight shots in nearly 25 minutes of icetime.

The young American has proven over the course of his career to start seasons on proper offensive heaters, so let's ride with the best goal scorer in the NHL to continue to do what he's done from his very first game in the league: score at will.

A relatively small sample size of 10 regular-season games for Matthews against the Minnesota Wild isn't exactly a ton to go on, but he's registered seven goals in those matchups. I really like this spot for him to bury at least another one at home on the first Saturday of the year.

Side Bets

Anaheim Ducks @ Vegas Golden Knights – Golden Knights ML (-360)

Vancouver Canucks @ Edmonton Oilers – Over 6.5 (-148)

Carolina Hurricanes @ L.A. Kings – Hurricanes ML (-130)

Flip Livingstone is an NHL betting and fantasy hockey writer and podcast host with past experience at outlets such as theScore NHL, Narcity Media, Postmedia, and Hockey Night in Canada. You can follow him on Twitter @Flips_Picks.