Check out my NHL player props for Game 2 between the New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes.
My hope was that the market would overreact to Carolina's Game 1 trouncing of the Devils, giving us the chance to catch New Jersey at around +110.
By no means do I mind a bet on the Devils at -102 — as I do expect a bounce-back performance — but the number is not great.
These two player props do hold some value, though, in a spot where I think betting Devils goal scorers is actually reasonable.
Nico Hischier Anytime Goalscorer (+275 bet365/+250 FanDuel)
| Devils vs. Hurricanes | |
| Puck Drop | 7 p.m. ET |
| Best Line | bet365, FanDuel |
It's a little boring to suggest going back to this losing take from Game 1 of the series. However, I believe this is a great bet at this number, so I'll risk the embarrassment of posting the same losing pick twice.
Hischier sits second to only Erik Haula on the Devils with 3.7 individual expected goals so far in these playoffs. He has shot 0% on his 23 shots on goal in the playoffs, but that's very unlikely to continue, considering he has proven to own some legitimate scoring touch.
In 81 regular season games, Hischier scored 31 times and shot 12.1%. We could be talking about the Devils' leading scorer entering this game, and if we were, the price wouldn't be +275.
Carolina is an extremely strong defensive side and that strength really shined through in Game 1, especially early on.
The Devils' top line of Hischier, Jesper Bratt and Tomas Tatar actually hung in there, though. They played to a 60.1% xGoals rating, and later on in the contest, they started to fare better, spending some time playing down low in the Canes' zone.
Hischier is my favorite Devils goalscoring target by some margin. This should be a somewhat low-scoring game, and I think he'll break the ice for New Jersey.
He also is counted on in empty net situations for the Devils, and I think there's a good chance we see something like a 4-2 final behind a Devils empty net.
That gets me interested in him at +1500 to score the last goal, or we could also cash him simply scoring the winner.
Yegor Sharangovich Anytime Goalscorer +900
| Devils vs. Hurricanes | |
| Puck Drop | 7 p.m. ET |
| Best Line | FanDuel |
I'll include this pick with the caveat that if Timo Meier plays, we likely will not want bet this.
Meier is listed as a gametime decision, so I'd wait until warmups to see how things are looking before locking this in. Meier's return would likely take away Yegor Sharangovich's spot in the Devils' top nine.
Due to inconsistent play, Sharangovich has been in and out of the lineup for New Jersey and has also received minimally ice time when in the lineup.
Sharangovich had a solid spot on a talented third line with Dawson Mercer and Jesper Boqvist in Game 1, though, and if he remains in that role, this number is just way too long.
Sharangovich's play down the stretch was particularly disappointing because of the fact that his talents suggest he should be productive at the NHL level.
At times, he's shown that. In 2021-22, he scored 24 times in 76 games, but he took a step backwards with just 13 goals in 75 games this year.
His 17.3 xGoals in the regular season actually still ranked eighth on the Devils this season.
In a tiny sample size of 32 minutes this postseason, Sharangovich has generated 1.94 goals per 60, which is first on the Devils altogether.
Considering Sharangovich is still generating chances this postseason when given ice time and has a prior history of finishing at the NHL level, +900 is a pretty stellar number.
Keep an eye on the Devils' lines during warm-ups.
