NHL Thursday player props: Road warriors
Wednesday was a solid 2-1 night for our player props. Nikita Kucherov and Alex Tuch came through for us, while Drew Doughty was a couple of shots shy in a smash spot against the Coyotes.
We'll look to put together another profitable night as we comb through the best values for Thursday's slate.
Dougie Hamilton over 2.5 shots (-134)
Hamilton has played but one game in 2022 due to injury. It would seem his extended absence caused everyone to forget just how effective he is as a shot generator because this line is far too low.
If you exclude the game Hamilton left after playing just two minutes, he registered at least three shots on goal in seven straight games prior to his absence. Hamilton put up four shots or more five times in that span. He wasn't just scraping by; he was hitting overs with room to spare.
While the Penguins are an above-average shot suppression team, that hasn't stopped Hamilton from enjoying success against them. He has eight shots in two games versus Pittsburgh this season, hitting the over (2.5 shots) in each meeting.
Expect him to pick up where he left off in this game.
Mathew Barzal over 2.5 shots (+100)
You don't generally want to target Islanders with shot props. However, Barzal has been a pretty consistent shot generator - especially on the road.
Barzal has averaged a full three shots per game on the road this season. He has a hit rate of 62% away from home soil and has registered three shots or more in six of the last eight games (75%).
He seems likely to continue his hot streak against the Sharks. Why? They're playing truly putrid defense right now.
Over the last 10 games, they rank dead last in shot attempts against per 60 minutes of five-on-five play. No other team has come close to allowing the volume San Jose has. For perspective, the gap between the 32nd-placed Sharks and 31st-placed Coyotes (7.33 attempts per 60) is larger than the one between the Coyotes and Lightning (6.0).
Suffice to say, the Sharks are a team we want to target on a nightly basis right now - and Barzal stands out as the best way to do that.
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.