NHL Top Player Prop Picks For March 19

In this article, Canada Sports Betting’s Nick Martin breaks down two NHL player prop picks that provide value at online sportsbooks on March 19.

Thanks to strong showings from Erik Karlsson, Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt on Wednesday, we enter Thursday’s slate at +16.32 with a chance to hit a new high-water mark. Thursday’s article features a long shot point stack that I’m high on, as well as a much chalkier bet targeting a skater in the midst of a historically dominant stretch of production.

Check out my best NHL player prop bets for March 19 below and tail my picks at any of the top NHL betting sites in Canada.

Lucas Raymond/Emmitt Finnie 1+ Point Each: +250

Finnie has authored a lovable story this season, as after being selected 201st overall in 2023, he surprised and made the team with an excellent preseason and training camp. His usage waned in the middle part of the year, but with Dylan Larkin, Andrew Copp, and Michael Rasmussen all sidelined due to injury, he’s been asked to step up in an elevated role of late, and is expected to remain on the second line and second power play in Thursday’s critical matchup versus the Montreal Canadiens.

Throughout the last three games Finnie has averaged 17:28 of time-on-ice. Relative to his price to record a point in this game of +165, he’s been in steady form offensively of late with five points over the last eight games.

While Finnie has been solid of late, he’s purely a complementary piece on a line featuring Lucas Raymond, and adding Raymond to also record a point to push the bet to +250 seems logical given the high correlation. Raymond leads all Red Wings skaters with 65 points this season, and it would be fair to say that on average, he is the team’s best skater from purely an offensive perspective.

Raymond remained on the Red Wings’ second power play alongside Finnie at Wednesday’s practice. Though it doesn’t seem overly wise to take Raymond off of the top unit, it does make me believe that head coach Todd McLellan will lean towards using both units evenly, therefore boosting our chances of hitting this bet with a power play goal.

The Canadiens have allowed 3.40 goals per game in 10 matchups following the Olympic break. They rank 13th in xGA/60 in that span, and have received fairly average play in goal. This matchup will feature a playoff-type feel and likely will not be a shootout, but it’s a livable spot to target this stack given the price tag of +250.

Nikita Kucherov Over 1.5 Points: -120

After bettering his case for the Hart Trophy with a masterful five-point performance in Seattle on Tuesday, Kucherov has another smash spot to rack up points Thursday as the Tampa Bay Lightning take on the Vancouver Canucks.

Kucherov has put up 93 over his last 45 games, which is the most points any skater has recorded over a 45-game span over the last 30 years.

The Canucks have allowed 3.85 goals against per game over the last 20 matchups. They have also allowed 3.99 xGA/60 in that span, and 30.56 shots against per 60. Their roster currently looks a little more respectable with Marco Rossi and Zeev Buium healthy, but horrid goaltending has been a huge part of why they are clearly the worst team in the league, and that seems unlikely to change anytime soon.

Tampa Bay’s top line of Kucherov, Brandon Hagel, and Anthony Cirelli has been entirely dominant offensively this season, and having both Hagel and Cirelli back in the lineup should continue to aid in Kucherov’s production, though he’s been more-or-less unstoppable in the second half regardless of who’s on his line.

The Hagel-Cirelli-Kucherov trio has generated 4.32 xGF/60 across 265.3 minutes of play this season and scored 4.98 goals per 60 where it counts. Among units to spend over 205 minutes together this season, those are both league best marks.

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