The 2023-24 NHL regular season comes to an end this week. Will we see three-time Hart Trophy winner Connor McDavid return to the ice before the playoffs? He missed a third straight game Saturday, a 3-1 loss to Vancouver, with a lower-body injury. That loss essentially eliminated Edmonton from Pacific Division contention. The Oilers will finish second and may just rest McDavid until the playoffs. Here are two intriguing early-week matchups.

Top NHL Betting Picks of the Week (April 15th, 2024)

Where Bruins land in final NHL Power Rankings of regular season https://t.co/tpvRA9rj5l

— masslivenews (@masslivenews) April 13, 2024

Nashville Predators vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

• When: Monday, April 15th, 2024, 7:00 PM ET
• Where: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, PA
• TV: NHLPP, ESPN+
• Radio: 102.5 THE GAME (Predators) // 105.9 The X FM (Penguins)
• Live Stream: ESPN+
• NHL Betting Odds: TBA

Nashville has clinched a playoff spot and is currently the West’s top wild-card team. This is the season finale for the Predators, who might not have a lot of reason to care because they can’t move up or down. They enter off a 6-4 home win over Columbus on Saturday, the Preds’ second straight win.

Defenseman Roman Josi was the No. 1 star with two goals and two assists. It was the eighth four-point game of his NHL career, which ranks second among active defensemen behind Erik Karlsson (10). Josi’s 23 goals on the season have tied Shea Weber for the most ever by a Nashville defenseman. Josi extended his points streak to four games (3G, 5A) and has 36 points (12G, 24 A) in his last 27 games. Filip Forsberg had his 47th goal of the season to extend his franchise record. Forsberg leads the team with 93 points, three shy of the team record set by Josi in 2021-22.

After going 3-for-3 on the power play on Friday against Chicago, Nashville’s special teams units iced another great night on Saturday against Columbus, scoring on 2-of-3 chances.

“I thought we moved the puck pretty well and especially on that second goal,” Josi said. “We had a couple quick passes and then Fil got open. And I think it’s just quick puck movement. Even yesterday, we moved around pretty well and got some goals, and we’re gonna need them come playoffs.”

Pittsburgh is battling Washington, Detroit and Philadelphia for the final wild-card spot in the East. This is the home finale for the Penguins before closing at the Islanders on Wednesday. Essentially, the Penguins probably have to win both games and get help for the playoffs. They come off a 6-4 home loss to Boston on Saturday. Future Hall of Fame defenseman Karlsson had an assist in his 1,000th career NHL game. Sidney Crosby had an assist to reach 90 points on the year, becoming the ninth player in NHL history with 90 or more points in a single season at age 36 or older. Crosby just reached 1,000 career assists last Thursday versus the Red Wings, and has 21 points over his past 11 games.

The Predators try for the season sweep as they won 3-2 in OT over the visiting Penguins on Nov. 28. Forsberg scored 14 seconds into OT. Forsberg skated the length of the ice and beat Tristan Jarry on the glove side for the game-winner. As Forsberg crossed the blue line, Nashville’s Ryan O’Reilly collided with Crosby, creating space for Forsberg to skate into the slot. Michael McCarron scored twice and Juuse Saros made 29 saves for Nashville. Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust scored, and Tristan Jarry made 23 saves for the Penguins.

NHL Betting Pick: Penguins

Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Florida Panthers

• When: Tuesday, April 16th, 2024, 10:00 PM ET
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise, FL
• TV: ESPN+, HULU
• Radio: TSN 1050 AM (Maple Leafs) // 560 The Joe WQAM (Panthers)
• Live Stream: ESPN+
• NHL Betting Odds: Maple Leafs (+125) // Panthers (-141)

Could be a first-round playoff preview if Florida finishes second in the Atlantic Division and Toronto finishes third, which is where both sit currently. The Panthers still have a shot at catching Boston for the division title. Toronto is locked into third.

This is the regular-season finale for Florida, and it enters on a three-game winning streak following a 3-2 OT win over Buffalo on Saturday in south Florida. Sam Reinhart got his 55th goal of the season with 1:02 left in overtime, and the Panthers clinched home ice for at least Round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Reinhart took a pass from Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov and delivered the winner. Anton Lundell and Kevin Stenlund also scored for Florida, and Matthew Tkachuk had an assist — his 60th of the season, the third straight year he’s had that many. Reinhart’s 55 goals trail only Pavel Bure (59 in 2000-01 & 58 in 1999-00) for the single-season franchise record. Reinhart’s 10 game-winning goals are the second highest single-season total in club history, behind Bure (14 in 1999-00).

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 27 shots for Florida, getting the win in his 700th career game. He’s the 32nd goalie in league history to hit that milestone, and one of three still active. The Panthers have surrendered just five goals over their last five games.

Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson left in the first period with an upper-body injury and is day-to-day. He has 32 points on the year. After the game, head coach Paul Maurice said the injury is thankfully considered “minor,” but could keep the blueliner out until the playoffs.

“We fully expect him to be ready,” Maurice said confidently. “He probably could’ve got through the game, but there didn’t seem to be much value in that. He just tightened up.”

This is not the finale for Toronto as it closes at Tampa Bay on Wednesday. The Leafs lost their second straight game Saturday, 5-4 in OT at home to Detroit. Dylan Larkin scored on a power play 41 seconds into overtime for the Wings. Auston Matthews did score his 69th goal of the season in a losing effort. It was Matthews’ eighth straight game with at least a goal, surpassing his previous best of seven games set in 2021-22. Matthews is the sixth different player in Maple Leafs history to record an eight-game goal streak. Matthews has now scored a goal against 26 different teams in 2023-24. The only other seasons he has scored against as many franchises in a single campaign is 2021-22 and 2019-20 (both 27).

Toronto is 2-1 vs. Florida this season. They last played April 1 in Canada and the Leafs won 6-4. Matthews had two goals and an assist. Matthew Knies also had a goal and an assist. The Leafs were without several starters due to injury. Bobrovsky allowed five goals on 16 shots through two periods before getting the hook. Anthony Stolarz made six saves in relief.

NHL Betting Pick: Panthers

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