Lightning vs. Avalanche: The best player prop bets for Feb. 10

A potential Stanley Cup Final preview will play out at Ball Arena on Thursday night as the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning visit the favored Colorado Avalanche.

The Lightning have won seven of their last nine games, and will play their first tilt after the All-Star break in this spot. The Avalanche will also make their post All-Star debut, trying to wipe the bad taste out of their mouths from a stunning 3-2 loss to the Arizona Coyotes on Feb. 1. Colorado had won 10 in a row prior to that defeat.

Let’s dive into a robust player props market for this contest and make our top three selections.

Tampa Bay Lightning (30-10-6) at Colorado Avalanche (32-8-4), 9:00 p.m. ET

Nikita Kucherov Over/Under 2.5 shots on goal

The Lightning played 12 games in January, with Nikita Kucherov suiting up for only eight of them. Despite that fact, he led his team in points for the month with 13.

How did he do that? It started with his ability to pester opposing goalies with plenty of shots. He should get his fair share in on Thursday night.

Kucherov tallied no less than three shots per game last month, generating 35 pucks aimed for the twine. Of those 35 shots, 19 came on the road (four games). The former Hart Trophy winner has a habit of shooting better (or simply more often) on the road, where he accrued 116 shots over 35 games in 2019-2020 – his last full regular season – compared to only 94 shots over 33 tilts at home.

NFL pick: Over (-182)

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Ondrej Palat goal scorer

Ondrej Palat tends to be a streaky scorer for Tampa Bay. He went into the All-Star break going three straight games without scoring, but prior to that, he found the back of the net at least once on four straight occasions. Not long before that stretch, Palat followed up a five-game sample with five goals with a scoreless streak of four straight games.

However, at the price Palat is available at tonight, bettors should believe that he will start a new scoring streak in this spot.

Palat has done some of his best work this season on the road, where he has 11 of his 15 goals over only 19 games. Kucherov (+165) is a solid choice in the Lightning goal-scoring market too, but the best value appears to lie with Palat.

NFL pick: Palat anytime goal (+245)

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Nazem Kadri goal scorer

Nazem Kadri has shouldered plenty of responsibility since Nathan MacKinnon went down with an injury, as he’s scored a goal in four of his last five games. He could easily make it six against Tampa Bay on Thursday.

Despite his recent hot streak, Kadri is only co-third choice among his teammates to score a goal in this one. Kadri has been shooting the puck at a feverish rate, generating 64 shots on goal in the month of January.

His hot stick combined with solid value in this market makes him a very tempting play.

NFL pick: Kadri anytime goal (+215)