For the latest NHL Odds, including NHL Futures and NHL player props, visit RotoWire's NHL Betting page. For up-to-date NHL player news and NHL Injury Report info, head to RotoWire's NHL Lineups page. You can find more picks at Bookies.com/picks.
Don't forget to know who's between the pipes and check out the NHL Starting Goalie Grid.
Get The RotoWire Picks App: Search "RotoWire Picks" on your iPhone, iPad or Android device.
Note: Time on Ice projections and picks can change frequently throughout the day due to injuries and changes to line combinations, especially power-play lines. I encourage readers to check the comments section below for any last-minute updates prior to puck drop.
Not Sure How to Capitalize on TOI: Check out our PrizePicks Time On Ice 101
Analyzing NHL Time on Ice PrizePicks Plays
Card Overview: Unlike last night, this card looks pretty strong. I should note that this stat in particular has many ebbs and flows throughout the season. There might be a week straight with very few good options, then five good cards in a row. The same holds true for individual players. They might be a great play for a few games, then unusable for a month. The key is to be patient; there will be opportunities with just about every player at some point in the season, you just have to wait for the right time.
BUILDING BLOCKS
Macklin Celebrini 22.25 vs. New York Rangers - 10:00 p.m. ET (LESS)
Celebrini's number got as high as 23.5 last week, and with good cause. He clocked in at over that number for six consecutive games prior to this past Friday's game, but then something major changed -- Will Smith returned to the lineup. A 1st-line guy came back into the lineup and ate up a lot of minutes. Since then, Celebrini has topped out at 21.25 minutes. Two of the three games saw the Sharks in the lead or tied for much of the contest, but in the most recent game, the Sharks were trailing most of the way, and he still failed to come close. Now they're back at home and favorites. Keep riding this train until the line adjusts.
Morgan Rielly 20.75 vs. Vegas Golden Knights - 7:00 p.m. ET (MORE)
Rielly's ice time is one of the hardest to understand in the league, but he seems to be in a higher usage phase right now, so I'm going with it. In his most recent game, he went way over his number because Oliver Ekman-Larsson was injured in the 1st period and did not return, but Rielly put in over 23 minutes the game prior when no one was out. OEL should be back tonight, but he might not be 100%, which could lead to more ice time.
MacKenzie Weegar 22.75 vs. Washington Capitals - 9:00 p.m. ET (LESS)
Weegar was tracking less than this number for the two games prior to Rasmus Andersson being shipped to Vegas earlier in the week, and you would think the swap for Zach Whitecloud would result in more minutes for Weegar, but the opposite has been true. This is one of those trends that's hard to explain, but you have to trust the numbers. Perhaps Calgary has thrown the towel in on this season and wants to give more time to the unproven guys.
INJURY DEPENDENT
Noah Hanifin 22.25 at Toronto Maple Leafs - 7:00 p.m. ET (LESS)
This play is dependent on Rasmus Andersson making his debut for the Golden Knights tonight. Same player as last night, same situation, but on the opposite side this time. Last night, Hanifin's number was 21.25, making "More" look like a good option if Andersson was out. Now, with this adjustment to 22.25, I like "Less" if Andersson is in the lineup. If he's not, I'm going to pass, as Vegas was in a trial script last night, and Hanifin didn't clear this number by much.
SCRIPT DEPENDENT
I won't spend as much time on these plays because they're mostly dependent on the game script going in their favor. However, these picks can be used to fill out your plays if needed. I'll only put players in this category if the script is supposed to be in their favor.
Cale Makar 25 vs. Philadelphia Flyers - 9:00 p.m. ET (LESS)
Always a scary play as Makar can hit 30 minutes without a problem, but if the Avalanche are ahead, which they should be tonight, then Makar will often play less than 25 minutes. In previous years, I would never play less on Makar as he often hit 27 minutes even while ahead most of the game, but his TOI is noticeably lower this season, perhaps in preparation for the playoffs as the Avalanche are crushing it this season and need not worry about their playoff seed at this point.
Travis Sanheim 23.5 at Colorado Avalanche - 9:00 p.m. ET (LESS)
Usually, if you have guys on opposite sides, you're taking more on one and less on the other, but this is a bit of a unique situation in that Colorado has been involved in so many blowouts this season, and blowouts often mean all the big names play less. In Sanheim's case, he's been trending lower lately anyway, barely getting on top of this number in his past three, so if this game gets out of hand at all, he has little chance to get more ice time than his number. One reason Sanheim has been playing less lately is his removal from the power-play units.
