Red Light Specials: 1/6 Edition

Happy Hump Day everyone! An ice cold 6-pack on the schedule tonight with some better odds than last night. As I said in yesterday’s RLS, a lot of +120-+140 puckline spreads. Those don’t make the risk worth the reward, even though they are fairly likely. NJ, PIT, WSH, CHI, and VAN all covered the puck line easily. NJ had the best value, hence why it was in yesterday’s column.

Congratulations to the US WJC team on their gold medal win in perhaps the best hockey game I have ever seen live. I was born six years after the Miracle on Ice, though I have seen the game in its entirety a few times. Last night’s game was the highlight of international hockey during my lifetime and it was an extremely exciting game. If you call yourself a hockey fan, it is a must-see game. Though I have bragging rights over my numerous Canadian friends, I would have been content regardless of the outcome. Silver is a huge achievement for a team that finished 5th last year and came under a lot of heat. But, I’m overjoyed with gold.

Anyway, back to the business at hand. Here are tonight’s RLS picks.

DAL @ NYR u5 (+125)

As many baseball fans can tell you, any time your team is in an offensive slump, it seems like you’re facing the opposition’s ace. It adds insult to injury. Either that or some scrub becomes a Cy Young winner that night and shuts your boys down through eight innings.

The Dallas Stars have one goal in their last two games. They faced Roberto Luongo and Martin Brodeur in those games. Tonight, they face another Olympic starter in Henrik Lundqvist. Marty Turco will be back in net for Dallas.

The Rangers are having some scoring woes of their own with just 1.6 goals per game over their last five.

Expect a bit of a snoozer here tonight with a 2-1 or 3-1 final.

SJ -1.5 (+125) v. STL

Generally, I do not advocate betting puckline spreads that are below +155. As mentioned above, the risk does not match the reward. There’s very little risk in taking the Sharks in a rout tonight.

The Blues are in a freefall. While they have scored three goals a game over their last five, they have allowed 4.6 goals per game. After reeling off eight in a row, the Sharks put together a real clunker at home against the upstart Kings last game. The Sharks have a lot of character in that room and a ton of bounceback ability. Expect that bounceback tonight.

The Sharks are 4-1 ATS against the Blues in the Tank. They’re 7-3 ATS overall in a three season span against the Blues. That last loss in the Tank, interestingly, was last time these teams met. The Blues are dinged up pretty good. This looks like easy money tonight.

Just two picks tonight. A lot of question marks surrounding the other games on the schedule. I like the value of Colorado -1.5 at +190, but Dwayne Roloson has defied me a few times this season already. Also, I’m leaning toward the Leafs at +155 tonight. Gustavsson looks locked in and Philadelphia is Jekyll and Hyde this season.

Good luck tonight, players!