NHL Betting Guide for Thursday, January 6: Rolling with a Pair of Home Dogs

Both favorites cashed on last night’s mini two-game slate, making it nine of 10 over the past couple of days. We’re expecting some fallback in that regard, highlighting a pair of underdogs that present value on tonight’s 11-game slate.

These are the wagers we’re looking at from FanDuel Sportsbook.

It’s been a long season for the once-proud Chicago Blackhawks. The Hawks sit 26th in the league with 11 wins through their first 33 games, going just 5-10-2 as the visitors. That hasn’t stopped the betting market from propelling them to lofty favorites against the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday night. Still, we see an edge in backing the home team as moderately priced underdogs.

As bad as the Yotes have been, they are not as terrible as their record implies. Arizona has been particularly effective over their recent stretch, outplaying three of their past four opponents at five-on-five and in four of their past six across all strengths. The Coyotes haven’t translated those efforts to more victories, though, as they have just one win over that span. We’re expecting more wins to follow those improved efforts.

Scoring has been an issue for the Hawks this season. They have scored the third-fewest goals this year and haven’t potted more than two at five-on-five since December 11. That was the only time over their past 17 games in which they have eclipsed two goals at five-on-five. We’re not expecting substantive progress from the Hawks either, as they have attempted six or fewer quality chances in five of their past six and have attempted more than eight just once since December 4. It’s unlikely the Hawks scoring woes improve without a meaningful change in their underlying metrics.

The Hawks may be above the Coyotes in the standings, but their chances at victory aren’t as significant as the betting market implies. We’re taking a stance on another home underdog and backing the Coyotes to win.

The Picks: Coyotes +140

All NHL predictions and picks are courtesy of SportsGrid.