Mark Keast offers up three betting picks for Thursday night's NBA, NHL and MLB action, headlined by the Raptors vs the Heat in Toronto.
If you’re a Toronto sports fan, watching Maple Leafs’ goalie Anthony Stolarz hit the ice face down, just minutes into last night’s game at Scotiabank Arena against the Washington Capitals, was symbolic of a Leafs’ season gone wrong, wasn’t it? Stolarz is a big man – 6-foot-6, 248 pounds. And the Maple Leafs are the biggest, richest team in the NHL – valued at $4.4 billion, according to Forbes.
On the ice, though, the Leafs are one of the worst teams in the league. The last few weeks has been a death march to what will be a merciful end to the regular season, next week. So, watching Stolarz collapse like that said everything. We’re hoping it isn’t serious, and he comes back healthy next season, but the faster we can close the door of this Leafs’ season the better it will be for our mental health.
Fortunately, the Edmonton Oilers dominated last night, beating up the San Jose Sharks, 5-2, on the back of another Connor McDavid hattrick. There’s only two points separating the first place Oilers and a charging Vegas Golden Knights team in the Pacific Division, so that win was huge.
The Ottawa Senators looked great taking out the Tampa Bay Lightning Tuesday night 6-2. The Senators sit in seventh place in the Eastern Conference this morning, just two points up on the Columbus Blue Jackets for the last wildcard spot. The Senators host the Florida Panthers tonight at the Canadian Tire Centre Betway has the Sens as -300 favourites (the lowly Panthers are +240).
And the Toronto Blue Jays beat the L.A. Dodgers yesterday, 4-3, after six losses in a row. Plus, they’re playing the Masters at Augusta National – so it isn’t all dark clouds.
For sports betting fans, there’s plenty to focus on for today. Here are our picks:
NBA
Miami Heat at Toronto Raptors, 7 p.m. EST Scotiabank Arena
Scottie Barnes, 20+ Points, +135 at Betway
The Raptors are knee deep in the Eastern Conference race now, with the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament beginning April 14, and the playoffs set to start April 18. Tonight they host the Miami Heat for the second straight game at home, after defeating the Heat handily, 121-95, on Tuesday night (the Raptors lead the season series 3-0).
The Heat are second in the NBA in scoring, averaging 120.4 points per game, so that Tuesday game was an anomaly, and they’ll be more run and gun tonight. That’s especially true with their two guards, Tyler Herro and Norm Powell, back in the lineup. Powell used to play for the Raptors, so he’s likely going to want to make a point against his former team tonight. Powell is averaging 17.0 PPG versus Toronto, and he’s at 21.9 PPG this season, so you might want to take a flyer on Powell +20 points, +150, at Betway.
Right now, the Raptors sit sixth in the Eastern Conference – that final playoff spot – one game up on the Philadelphia76ers. They’re going to want to avoid the Play-In Tournament at all costs, so just like Tuesday, tonight’s game represents an early start to playoff basketball, in their minds.
Betway has the Raptors at -160 betting favourites for tonight, the Heat at +130. Toronto has no injuries to report. Probable starters for tonight are Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley.
Barnes continues to emerge as an NBA star in what has been a solid, injury-free campaign, and as the Raptors grow into a credible playoff team (a sixth-place finish will only boost that), Barnes matures more into the team’s guiding force. He was stellar in Tuesday’s win – 25 points, off 10-for-16 shooting.
NHL
Florida Panthers at Ottawa Senators, 7 p.m. EST, Canadian Tire Centre
Senators cover a -1.5 goal deficit, -125 at Betway
I just like where the Senators are now. That win over the Lightning, one of the better teams in the East, had to have been massive confidence boost. Goalie Linus Ullmark made 28 saves, for a save percentage of .933. Tonight’s game against the Panthers, losers of three straight, is just low hanging fruit, a chance to put some space between them and the Blue Jackets. Columbus is in tough tonight – in Buffalo against the mighty (and first place!) Sabres.
MLB
Arizona Diamondbacks at New York Mets, 7:10 p.m. EST, Citi Field, Queens, New York
Total Home Runs Bo Bichette Over 0.5, +500 at Betway
Bichette is going to bust out. You know it. I know it. We saw it for years with the Blue Jays. When he gets hot, he gets really hot. No way he stays much longer at .222 with two extra base hits. And Arizona starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez gives up home runs – 25 in 29 starts last season.
