Betting tips: Flyers-Lightning picks and Calder Trophy market are popular products on today's betting scene.

Victoria Matiash, Fantasy HockeyOn November 7, 2024 at 2 PM ETCloseESPN.com Fantasy Contributor since 2010Part-time anchor with NEWSTALK1010The race for the Calder Trophy — awarded annually to the NHL rookie with the greatest potential — has quickly become an intriguing one just one month into 2024-25 season. Matvei Michkov and Logan Stankoven may appear as two top candidates, but there may also be others making noise at this year’s draft, such as Macklin Celebrini who lost 12 games due to injury. Is 68 games enough of runway for him to catch back up scoring-wise? Does Lane Hutson possess enough skill, experience and talent to emerge as one of three Calder-winning defenders within six years? And could Maxim Tsyplakov become the rookie-of-the-year longshot Islanders fans are hoping he is? At +3000, top-six forward Andrew Poturalski’s potential certainly warrants consideration. However, one number stands out particularly: Justus Annunen often earns starting roles under coach Jared Bednar; in six appearances thus far with a.908 save percentage and 2.35 goals against average. As opposed to Alexandar Georgiev’s dismal results on limited starts this season, this wasn’t too shabby of a stat sheet at all – particularly considering Colorado has not exactly excelled on defense this year. Plus it’s never too late to play Fantasy Hockey on ESPN: New leagues start every week so sign up today>>!
Artturi Lehkonen made his return after an absence of nearly one month due to injury, scoring both on a power play goal and providing an assist in his first game back. Valeri Nichushkin — an invaluable addition to this team — should return from suspension by Nov. 15. Cale Makar appears unaffected from his recent injury (Bednar said “He’s okay”), providing some respite. Things appear to be looking up for an Avalanche squad which had underperformed to date. Annunen has played regularly this year and Georgiev’s turnaround could play an instrumental role in whether Annunen enters into Calder contention; after an impressive start Michkov reportedly was healthy scratched from Thursday games after not earning more than one assist in five. Stankoven had already seen his playing time decrease significantly; yet, he remains vulnerable to Peter DeBoer’s line-juggling tactics. Will Smith and Cutter Gauthier are off to poor starts with the Sharks and Ducks respectively, while Dustin Wolf shares time between himself and Dan Vladar for a Flames team which may ultimately fail this year. They are 4-1-0 at home as well, suffering a narrow 4-2 defeat at the hands of Minnesota Wild with an empty-netter coming within seconds of overtime in one game. Tampa Bay’s chances of rebounding after three straight road losses — against contenders in the Central Division — is strong with Aleksei Kolosov between the pipes as he fills in for Samuel Ersson who sustained an injury this week and allowed five goals against Carolina Hurricanes were promising this past Tuesday when Aleksei played as standin goalie against them at home against Michkov-less Flyers. Prior to being called up by Tampa Bay, Brayden Point had produced only subpar numbers while with AHL Phantoms in AHL Philadelphia. Even without Brayden Point playing well for Tampa Bay in their absence, Lightning are in good position for at least a two goal win; I suggest setting your stake at Lightning +1.5 odds for success. Over 6.5 at +115 is another attractive bet, while Victor Hedman Total Power Play Points Over 0.5 (+145) might hold some interest as player prop. The defenseman currently boasts six assists on extra skater play this year – three coming within his past three contests alone! Although their penalty kill has been unquestioned effective, the Flyers have earned more PIM/GP (11:27) than all but Boston Bruins this season. While Tampa’s Lightning are eighth in the league with 4.21 Penalties Drawn/60, Hedman stands out with his Total Shots On Goal Over 2.5 (-102). Though that seems modest at first glance, his average 2.92 shots/game mean that Hedman has fired two or fewer at net in six of 13 contests so far and may well feel even angrier after losing three-straight matches.