Take a deep breath and exhale, puck people. The big week of NHL trade-deadline madness has come and gone for another hockey betting campaign, and we can get back to what we do best – stack loot.

However, it should be noted this portion of the NHL schedule can be extremely difficult to handicap from a hockey betting perspective as coaches tinker with new pieces and fresh lineup looks. While that happens, dial your bets back a little and allow for newly-added players to get comfortable with their new teammates and systems before assessing how well some of these new-look clubs will fare down the stretch.

Another jam-packed 13-game board on the NHL betting slate today with our three favourite angles and side bets laid out below. After some digging and research, today's board is a tricky one, so be wary of how many wagers you're sprinkling. Good luck and let's get this paper.

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Updated 2023-24 Saturday Record (Complete Daily Record Tracked/Posted @Flips_Picks):

Gold: 9-5-0
Silver: 9-5-0
Bronze: 8-6-0
Side Bets (Located at Bottom of Article) : 22-20-0
Overall Record: 48-36-0

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Gold Selection
Vincent Trocheck Anytime Point

If you're a dedicated fantasy hockey head or even a fan of the New York Rangers, you're likely already quite aware of just how good Vincent Trocheck is. Fantasy production-wise, on the ice in terms of making this Rangers team click up front, and even off the ice as one of the leaders of New York's locker room, Trocheck is an all-around stud. One who's having the best season (22 goals, 37 assists) of his career while doing a little bit of everything for one of the top teams in the NHL.

Even when he's not putting pucks in the back of the net, Trocheck still produces and impacts the game at both ends of the ice. Take in his stat line from his most-recent game against the pesky Florida Panthers: one assist, five shots on net, four hits, two blocked shots and 10 faceoff wins in over 20 minutes of ice time. Like we said, STUD. Trocheck is also cooking right now offensively, registering points in eight of his last nine while putting up seven goals and five assists.

Trocheck is feeling it, the Blues are a bad road team with only one win in their last seven, and the Rangers are rounding into form as the best team in the Eastern Conference. All of these angles are playing into a big night for one of the most underrated forwards in the game in Trocheck – He also has eight goals and three assists for 11 points in 13 regular-season games against the Blues.

Trocheck. Anytime Point. Lock it in for my Gold Pick of the night.

Silver Selection
Auston Matthews Anytime Goal (-135)

Aside from the obvious fact that the Toronto Maple Leafs were one of the franchises in the "losers" column after trade-deadline day, the Leafs still find themselves in a battle for postseason positioning with teams around them upgrading their rosters.

No disrespect to Ilya Lyubushkin or Joel Edmundson, but those two blue-liners are not going to be enough for Toronto to go through the likes of the Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, or even the aforementioned Rangers. The Leafs' backend still needs a right-shot defenseman, or two, and Joseph Woll is a rookie goaltender with less than a season of experience under his belt. A lot could go wrong for the Maple Leafs team down the stretch.

Although, one of the things definitely going right is Auston Matthews, the best goal-scorer in the NHL right now and not even close. Toronto runs through 34. When he goes, they go. It really is that simple. Matthews is on pace for 106 points and his second 60-goal season of his eight-year career. There is no one better in terms of putting pucks in the back of the net than Matthews and he dominates the Montreal Canadiens. Matthews has scored more goals against the Canadiens than any other club during his time in the NHL, popping an impressive 26 to along with 18 apples in only 32 regular-season games.

Despite getting pumped by the Boston Bruins in back-to-back games, the Leafs have actually been playing solid hockey while putting up wins in seven of their last 10. This is the perfect bounce-back spot against the rebuilding Habs, who have dropped three straight to Toronto while allowing 18 goals combined. Matthews anytime goal, my Silver selection of the evening.

Bronze Selection
Philadelphia Flyers @ Tampa Bay Lightning – Pick: Lightning ML (-146)

The Philadelphia Flyers deserve a lot of credit for the turnaround this season has been. From young pieces really establishing themselves in the likes of Owen Tippett, Samuel Ersson, Morgan Frost and others, to great coaching and front-office work, to just being a downright tough team to play against, the future is bright once again in Philly. However, that time isn't here just yet and we expect the Flyers to fade down the stretch – starting with a loss in one of the toughest buildings to play in on Saturday night.

Neither of these two teams were overly active at the deadline in terms of major moves, but additions of Matt Dumba and Anthony Duclair to a Tampa lineup already boasting the likes of such elite talent as Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos, and Victor Hedman, could take an already deep Lightning group over the top.

Both of these Eastern Conference clubs have been very inconsistent of late but in terms of head-to-head, Tampa has wins in 13 of its last 16 games against Philly overall. The Lightning are perennially one of the best home teams in the NHL, they have good energy flowing with additions of two intriguing players with a lot of upside, and they own the Flyers. Hammer time on Tampa. Let's get it.

Side Bets

Detroit Red Wings @ Vegas Golden Knights – Pick: Golden Knights ML (-180)

Toronto Maple Leafs @ Montreal Canadiens – Pick: Leafs ML (-220)

Winnipeg Jets @ Vancouver Canucks – Pick: Under 6.5 (-164)

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