NHL Parlay Picks Today: Tuesday, December 30
Parlay 1 (+118) BetMGM
Penguins +1.5 at -220
Canadiens +1.5 at -200
The Carolina-Pittsburgh matchup will fool a lot of bettors. The Hurricanes look like an easy play if you ignore the situation. But the situation will be decisive tonight. For example, on December 7 the Hurricanes were facing an inferior San Jose team that had lost two games in a row by a combined total of nine goals. Carolina lost to San Jose by three goals. The situation on December 7 was the same as it is tonight: the Hurricanes were on the second leg of a back-to-back. When Carolina this season won in this spot, its victory never came by more than a goal, making the Penguins +1.5 a secure play. Two additional factors make a Pittsburgh victory tonight particularly probable: One, Carolina’s game yesterday went into overtime, which means that Carolina had to play longer. Two, Pittsburgh has rediscovered its rhythm on offense. The Penguins now sit four games above .500 after scoring a combined total of 13 goals in their last three games.
Florida is in a let-down spot after its last game in which it scored five goals. Before this last game, the Panthers had scored five or more goals in eight games and failed to reach three goals in six of the games that directly followed. Montreal, meanwhile, is in a good spot tonight because it has a chance to bounce back from its last game, which it lost. The Canadiens are 4-0 in their last four bounce-back opportunities. In these bounce-back spots, they always shored up their defense. But you can also count on their effort tonight to generate a strong scoring output: they won all four of these bounce-back games by at least two goals.
Parlay 2 (+208) BetMGM
Islanders ML at -150
Islanders-Blackhawks under 6 at -118
One should continue to look to fade the Blackhawks while they miss their star center Connor Bedard, who accumulated 19 goals and 25 assists before getting injured. Most recently, without him, they have lost seven of their last eight games. Non-coincidentally, their one win came against a team that allows the fifth-most rebound goals. Because their offense is utterly helpless by itself, the Blackhawks need to rely on rebounds in order to score goals. When Chicago fails to score via rebounds, then it will fail to score enough goals to win. I like the Islanders tonight because they allow the fewest rebound goals.
Their outlook is great tonight because it will be easy for them to score enough goals to win against a Chicago defense that allows the third-most goals. That being said, I like the “under” because the Islanders haven’t been scoring well in their most recent games. Their poor scoring form will ensure that, even though they’re playing Chicago, they won’t score enough goals to threaten the “under.” With Chicago’s offense being as bad and, particularly in tonight’s matchup, so hopeless as it is, there is so much space for the Islanders to win without the “over” hitting. I expect a 3-1 or 3-0 Islanders win.
| Parlay Legs | Odds | Total Payout | Confidence Level | Sportsbook |
| Penguins +1.5 & Canadiens +1.5 | +118 | $118 | Highest | BetMGM |
| Islanders ML & Islanders-Blackhawks under 6 | +208 | $208 | Highest | BetMGM |
Parlay 1 (+118) BetMGM
Penguins +1.5 at -220
Canadiens +1.5 at -200
The Carolina-Pittsburgh matchup will fool a lot of bettors. The Hurricanes look like an easy play if you ignore the situation. But the situation will be decisive tonight. For example, on December 7 the Hurricanes were facing an inferior San Jose team that had lost two games in a row by a combined total of nine goals. Carolina lost to San Jose by three goals. The situation on December 7 was the same as it is tonight: the Hurricanes were on the second leg of a back-to-back. When Carolina this season won in this spot, its victory never came by more than a goal, making the Penguins +1.5 a secure play. Two additional factors make a Pittsburgh victory tonight particularly probable: One, Carolina’s game yesterday went into overtime, which means that Carolina had to play longer. Two, Pittsburgh has rediscovered its rhythm on offense. The Penguins now sit four games above .500 after scoring a combined total of 13 goals in their last three games.
Florida is in a let-down spot after its last game in which it scored five goals. Before this last game, the Panthers had scored five or more goals in eight games and failed to reach three goals in six of the games that directly followed. Montreal, meanwhile, is in a good spot tonight because it has a chance to bounce back from its last game, which it lost. The Canadiens are 4-0 in their last four bounce-back opportunities. In these bounce-back spots, they always shored up their defense. But you can also count on their effort tonight to generate a strong scoring output: they won all four of these bounce-back games by at least two goals.
Parlay 2 (+208) BetMGM
Islanders ML at -150
Islanders-Blackhawks under 6 at -118
One should continue to look to fade the Blackhawks while they miss their star center Connor Bedard, who accumulated 19 goals and 25 assists before getting injured. Most recently, without him, they have lost seven of their last eight games. Non-coincidentally, their one win came against a team that allows the fifth-most rebound goals. Because their offense is utterly helpless by itself, the Blackhawks need to rely on rebounds in order to score goals. When Chicago fails to score via rebounds, then it will fail to score enough goals to win. I like the Islanders tonight because they allow the fewest rebound goals.
Their outlook is great tonight because it will be easy for them to score enough goals to win against a Chicago defense that allows the third-most goals. That being said, I like the “under” because the Islanders haven’t been scoring well in their most recent games. Their poor scoring form will ensure that, even though they’re playing Chicago, they won’t score enough goals to threaten the “under.” With Chicago’s offense being as bad and, particularly in tonight’s matchup, so hopeless as it is, there is so much space for the Islanders to win without the “over” hitting. I expect a 3-1 or 3-0 Islanders win.
