2026 NHL Weekly Preview: October 27- November 2
Your weekly NHL betting picks have arrived. Hockey odds are getting tighter – look at Carolina close to -200 against the second-best team in the league – so you need to dig deeper to find value when making your NHL picks.
Boston at Carolina
This Tuesday night tilt between Boston and Carolina features two division leaders. One of them, Carolina, happens to be the reigning Stanley Cup champions. The Bruins, on the other hand,
are probably the biggest surprise of the young 2026-27 NHL season so far. The game could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals if both teams keep it up.
If you’re looking for an edge betting-wise, it has to be based on something more than momentum, since both sides are hot. Don’t look at their W-L records either. Both are 9-2-1, with the ‘Canes having one OTL on top of that, making them the first NHL team to hit 20 points this season.
Carolina will be hosting its first home game in two weeks, so some home cooking might be what has them as -195 favorites. It could also be due to the return of Seth Jarvis to the lineup. Either way, that’s a high price to pay against a team as hot as Boston. Consider fading.
The Over is pretty tempting here. Boston has exploded out of the gates scoring-wise. They’ve hit 6+ goals scored in almost half their games, and all but one of their nine wins has seen them bag at least four.
They’ll run into a wall though. The ‘Canes haven’t missed the departure of Freddie Andersen at all with Pyotr Kochetkov stepping in and stepping up. He’s 7-0-0 this year.
This one will be a who-blinks-first game in terms of regression. Either Kotchetkov loses his first (it has to happen sometime this season, so why not against an elite scoring team) or Boston drops their first game in regulation, coming down to earth after going 7-0-1 in their last eight.
Montreal vs. St. Louis
Speaking of streaking teams, the Canadiens aren’t as hot as the B’s in the Atlantic but they are holding their own lately. They’re on a 4-game point streak and have won two straight road games, including this past weekend’s Heritage Classic over Winnipeg.
You have to figure the loss of Nick Suzuki, their captain and a 100-point scorer last season, will bite them at some point soon. They’ve won two straight without him though. The Habs are also still without another top-6 forward in Ivan Demidov. It’s their goalie, 21-year-old Jacob Fowler, who’s been shutting the door so the team can get by without those key scorers. Fowler is red-hot with a 1.79 GAA and a .924 win percentage this year so far.
St. Louis is a tougher read. At 5-5-1-0, the win-one, lose-one approach needs to turn around soon or they’ll be in a position to deal players by Christmas. They had a great 6-2 win over Vegas last week, and then barely showed up in a 4-0 loss to the Hurricanes a few nights later.
Still, they’ re getting the slight edge over Montreal at -117. Montreal’s -103 looks like a decent near-even money play though, the way they’re executing and the way Fowler is stoning everyone.
For anytime goalscorers, the Blues’ Robert Thomas (+275) is due. He bagged 25 goals last season but has only one so far this year.
On the Montreal side, the goals are coming from the bottom six lately. Suzuki’s absence has reduced Cole Caufield’s goal-scoring pace, but players like Zach Bolduc (+340) and Jake Evans (+625) – with two in his last game – are getting more ice time and chances as a result of the captain’s injury.
New Jersey at Dallas
The biggest move in the NHL in years happened last week, and on Tuesday night the NHL fans might get to see how it plays out.
Connor Hellebuyck was traded from Winnipeg to Jersey, and the former NHL MVP might suit up for this one.
That changes the odds, but should it?
Keep an eye on the beat reporters for the Devils before making your bet, but don’t be shy to fade the Devils. Hellebuyck hasn’t played this season yet after his contract dispute with the Jets kept him sidelined. He did practice with his new teammates on Monday and you don’t keep an MVP on the bench for long.
His rust might be exposed against a Stars side that is 7-3-0-1 and can score in bunches. Mikko Rantanen leads the team in scoring and their top goalscorer from last season, Jason Robertson, is heating up. He bagged two last weekend against Matthew Schaefer and the Islanders and is a solid play for anytime goalscorer at +162.
The Stars can also shut things down on defense. They lead the NHL in goals against this year and they’re 2nd on the PK. Between those stats and Hellebuyck’s potential return, we could see the Under as good value here.
Edmonton at New York Islanders
The Oilers are still tearing things up, even after a 7-2 beatdown at the hands of Toronto last weekend.
On this Halloween night game featuring McDavid vs. Schaefer, there might not be much of a treat for the Isles’ goaltending. They are 5th in the league in goals allowed, sure, but McDavid is on pace to smash Wayne Gretzky’s single season NHL scoring record that has stood for 41 years. His highlight-reel goals seem to be getting refreshed every night.
The Islanders – or any team in the NHL really – don’t have an answer for McDavid. They’re also depleted with injuries to key players on offense and defense. Bo Horvat is stepping up in goals and minutes, so he’s your play for an anytime goalscorer. Overall though, expect more McDavid magic as he looks to show Schaefer who the alpha is still.