Best NHL Bets Today | NHL Picks, February 23

This Friday is set to conclude a wild weekday session of the NHL games. There have been games that have been considered potential Stanley Cup Finals previews. There is one game that possesses great value in the sports betting field that casual sports fans and bettors should take a look at for great opportunities to win.

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Minnesota Wild vs. Edmonton Oilers

• Time: 9:00 PM E.T. - Friday

• Moneyline: Wild (+160) | Oilers (-192)

• Puck Line: Wild +1.5 (-148) | Oilers -1.5 (+124) 

• Total: Over 6.5 (-130) | Under 6.5 (+110)

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook. Bet $5, Get the No-Sweat First Bet up to $1,000, act fast!

My Pick: Edmonton Oilers (EDM)

The most thrilling game of the night is set for a Western Conference battle for playoff seeding and to potentially rise in the standings. The suddenly dangerous Minnesota Wild (26-24-6) are set to go on the road to take on the Edmonton Oilers (33-18-2), who are rising in the Pacific Division.

Tonight will be the third and final game of the series, as it will be the tiebreaker. The Wild won the first game early in the season with a 7-4 home victory. The Oilers took a 3-2 lead going into the third period, but the Wild outscored the Oilers 5-1 in the final period. Forward Ryan Hartman accounted for three goals and two assists, while forward Kirill Kaprizov accounted for three assists.

The Oilers got revenge two months later, on December 8, with a 5-3 score. Oilers defender Evan Bouchard accounted for two goals and an assist, while center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins accounted for four assists.

Edmonton are a completely different team from earlier in the season, the first time they met the Wild on the ice. The Oilers possess one of the most explosive offenses in the league, as they average 3.58 goals per game (fifth in the league). Defensively, they are much better than earlier in the season, as they now only allow an average of 2.94 goals per game (12th in the league).

Minnesota has seen a boost in productivity on offense within the past few weeks. The offense got a serious boost in the 10-7 home win over the Vancouver Canucks earlier in the week, with seven of them coming in the third period. They have shown the ability to take a game over and account for a tenacious run despite averaging only 3.11 goals per game (16th in the league). Their biggest weakness is on the defensive side of the ice, as they allow an average of 3.34 goals per game (24th in the league). It is the main reason why the Wild need a high-scoring third period to win games.

The Oilers are coming into this game with one of the most explosive offenses, thanks to a roster of elite stars and reliable scorers. As long as the Oilers do not blow a significant lead in the third period like they did earlier in the season or the Canucks did on Monday, they should easily win this game.