Stephen Nover is having a huge hockey season on a 20-9-1 run on his premium/free plays. Pocket another winner as Stephen has his NHL Game of the Week.
Member Notes
Today’s Free Picks
| Sport | Game Selection | Game Time |
|---|---|---|
| NHL | (35) Dallas Stars at (36) Colorado Avalanche | 9:37pm EDT - Mar 18/2026 |
The PLAY: Over +6 (-120)
It is rare for both the Stars and Avalanche to each come off a bad loss. But that is the case as the two square off today with each following an embarrassing defeat.
Dallas lost to Utah, 6-3, at home this past Monday. Colorado was humiliated at home by the Penguins, 7-2, also this past Monday.
I expect both teams to be fired up here. The Stars have produced three or more goals in 15 of their last 16 games. They are sixth in scoring and have the league's second-best power play. The Over is 6-2 in Dallas' last eight games.
Colorado leads the NHL in scoring at 3.7 goals a game and also is first on shots on goal. The Avalanche have surrendered a combined 10 goals in their last two games, losses to the Penguins and Jets. Neither Colorado goalie, Scott Wedgewood nor Mackenzie Blackwood, has been sharp lately.
Consultant Bio
Stephen Nover is unique among professional handicappers. A multiple award-winning sportswriter for numerous newspapers, including the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Nover has one the best combinations of gambling and media sources in the world.
The author of two sports gambling books, "Las Vegas Sports Beat" and "Sports Gaming Beat", along with a book on fantasy football titled, "Winning Fantasy Football", Nover is a former professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas having taught a football handicapping class there. He also was the co-host of the Sunday night sports betting radio show "The Stardust Line" during the 1990's.
Parlaying nearly 50 years worth of professional gambling experience with tremendous knowledge of the players through elite deep-roster Rotisserie leagues and building on copious gaming and media sources - having worked for newspapers in the Midwest, South and West and also for legendary Hall of Fame oddsmaker Roxy Roxborough - Nover is a true Las Vegas wise guy. He helped learn his craft from such masters as Roxborough, Dave Malinsky, Lem Banker and Russ Culver.
Part of what makes Nover so special is the pride he takes in writing his deep-dive analysis, which always is unique, well-researched and sometimes entails out-of-the-box thinking.