NHL Weekend Results, Bruins Move Closer to Division Crown
Favorites Won Five of Seven Games, Public Makes Up Some Ground

After this weekend’s results, the 2022-23 NHL standings got just a little tighter with just over 10 games to go for most teams. In the Atlantic Division, the Boston Bruins were the first team to clinch a playoff spot with a league-leading 111 points. They lead the Toronto Maple Leafs by 18 points with 13 games left for both teams.
In the Metro, Carolina is hanging on to a 1-point lead over the New Jersey Devils but does have a game in hand. The Central Division is the closest race in hockey with the Dallas Stars clinging to a 1-point lead over the Minnesota Wild with both teams at the 70-game mark. Despite all their injuries, the Vegas Golden Knights lead the Los Angeles Kings by 2 points in the Pacific with 12 games to go.
A glance at the NHL game schedule shows they’ll meet on April 6th, in a game that will go a long way in determining the division crown. Let’s continue our NHL weekend results review by looking deeper at a couple of key games.
Over Bettors Cashed In With Knights, Jackets Over
We don’t have an exact ticket count, but almost every bet taken on the Vegas Golden Knights, and Columbus Blue Jackets, Sunday, came in with Vegas and the over. Paul Cotter’s goal early in the third-period made it 6-1 VGK, sending players to the cashiers’ cage early.
There was an interesting dynamic when it came to betting on the side. The majority of wagers (92%) were on the Golden Knights, but 58% of the money was on Columbus despite reports that the Jackets, who have been eliminated from playoff contention, were using this West Coast swing as a mini vacation. Vegas closed as a -335 favorite.
Bettors Nail Sunday Get-Out Game
It wasn’t the greatest match-up of all the NHL weekend results, but it was all bettors had left on the board to get right with their book. The Vancouver Canucks made their way into Southern California to take on the Anaheim Ducks to end the Sunday slate.
With the Canucks a -130 road favorite, it was the fourth time all season they were a road favorite of -130 or more. Sunday was the first time they cashed in that role after a 2-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks. 74% of the public’s cash was on Vancouver who controlled the game until a late Ryan Strome goal for the Ducks, who had just 17 shots on goal, made it a one-goal game with 6:50 to play in the third. The Winnipeg Jets (-140), New York Rangers (-245), and Vancouver Canucks (-130) were the biggest financial liabilities for the books, losing two of those three decisions.
Handicapping the Game: Season-to-Date Numbers
Let’s see where the bettors stand after the final NHL weekend results. Bettors were 5-2 last night (+258 units) on the money line, but just 3-4 (-136 units) betting on the totals. 6-1 was the mark for puckline bettors (+614 units) to finish off a solid day.
The public was able to chip away at the books’ profits this season which now stands at $5991 based on a $100 wager (-5.4% ROI for the public). The NHL and Major League Baseball are the most difficult sports to wager on because of how easily the moneyline can bury a novice player who isn’t worried about bankroll management.
Overall, teams getting over 50% of the money are 650-451 (59.58%), but the majority of the losses have come with the public refusing to say no to -200 or more favorites. Of that $5,991, $3037 have come from wagers on games where the favorite was a -200 or more.
The Joes are 242-122 (66.48%) betting on these teams but just one -200 loss forces the public to win 60% just to turn a profit. Betting teams -250 or more has produced a 136-62 record (68.69%) but that still isn’t good enough to turn a profit (-$1890, -9.5% ROI). If you’re wondering where the sweet spot for bettors is, it’s in that -120 to -120 range where bettors are 51-33 (60.71%) +830 units on a $100 wager or +9.9% ROI when wagering on the favorite.
That concludes our look at the NHL weekend results, we wish you nothing but the best this week as we inch closer to the postseason.
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