Sports Handicapper Dan Kaiser's Picks & Predictions

Minnesota is 6-3-1 in its last 10 games against New Jersey. The Devils lead the season series 1-0. Minnesota has lost three of their last four games, including a loss to the Devils last time out. They are tied with St. Louis for seventh in the Western Conference standings, two points behind Los Angeles and Edmonton. Minnesota is putting up 2.69 goals per game. On the defensive end, they are giving up 2.82 goals per game, which is 12th in the league. The Devils are sixth in the Eastern Conference standings, six points behind Tampa Bay. They are putting up 2.97 goals per game an on the defensive end, they are giving up 2.63 goals per game. The Devils have won two of their last three games, while the Wild have lost three of their last four games. New Jersey has scored 10 goals in their last three games. The Wild has given 12 goals in their last three games. Minnesota has scored five goals in their last three road games. The Devils have given up nine goals in their last three home games. New jersey is playing better right now.

Play on New Jersey. This is a 3% play..

The Stars have won five in a row and are coming off a 5-1 over the Kraken last time out. Dallas ranks fourth with 3.41 goals per game and ranks third in giving up an average of 2.55 goals per game. The Stars are 21-14-2 on the road and the last three games in their five-game win streak have been on the road. The Kraken have lost four of five games giving up 18 goals in the losses. Joey Daccord has given up four goals in three of his last four starts. Seattle is putting up 3.00 goals per game but are giving up 3.23 goals per game. The Kraken are 17-6-5 and they have lost both games facing the Stars this season being outscored 7-1. Seattle has been eliminated from the playoffs and they have lost four of their last five games. 

Play on DallaS. This is a 3% play

The Washington Nationals picked up their first win of the season with a win over Philadelphia on Sunday. The Nats will send Michael Soroka to the mound. He went 0-10 for the Chicago White Sox last year with a 4.74 ERA, going between starter and the bullpen. Toronto split their first four games with Baltimore to start the season. Bowden Francis will be on the mound for the Jays. He had a 2.92 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP in 13 starts. Washington has a lot of young talent but the key word is young. Last season, Soroka posted a 6.39 ERA in nine starts, giving up 10 homers and a WHIP of 1.51. The blue jays have a more experienced lineup and Sorokahas a lot to prove this season.

Play on Toronto. This is a 2% play.

The Mets are on the road to Miami to take on the Marlins. The Mets are off to a 1-2 start after their opening series while the Marlins are 3-1.  In the three games against the Astros, the Mets struggled at the plate. They generated 12 hits in their first three games and one homerun. David Peterson makes the start for the Mets. Last season, he went 10-3 with a 2.90 ERA. He is 4-2 with an ERA of 2.80 9 appearances against the Marlins in his career. The Marlins generated 34 hits in their four game series and they did have 32 strikeouts. The Marlins will go with Cal Quantrill on the mound. Last season, he was 8-11 with a 4.98 ERA. He has a 4.50 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 2 appearances against the Mets in his career. Peterson had a 2.60 ERA last season when pitching on the road. The Marlins averaged 3.98 runs against the Mets last season. They have a young offense that is prone to striking out.  New York scored three or fewer runs in each game against Houston for a total of five runs in three games. The Marlins' held the Pirates to only 14 runs in four games. The under is  8-2 in the Mets' past ten regular-season games. Until the Mets show me they can hit consistently and the Marlins cut down on the strikeouts I will take the under in this one.

Play on the UNDER, This is a 1% play.

Both teams like to play at a fast pace but neither side has played in over a month. I expect some shooting rust early and some sloppy play as they get back into game conditions. You would not consider either team to be a great shooting team. The Bulldogs have been held to fewer than 80 points in seven of their last eight games. Utah has scored fewer than 75 in seven of its last eight games. I think it will take some time to get things going for both teams.

Play on the UNDER. This is a 3% play. 

We have at match of the brand-new College Basketball Crown between Butler and Utah. Butler ended the season at 14-19 and lost five of their last six conference games. and was eliminated from contention. Jahmyl Telfort put up 16.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 47.1% from the field,and Pierre Brooks averaged 15.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists. Both players will graduate this summer so this will be their last hoorah. As a team they scored and gave up 73.8 points per game. Utah finished the season at 16-16, 8-12 in conference play and they fired their coach in February. Gabe Madsen averaged 15.6 points per game. The Bulldogs have covered in five of their last six games when installed as a favorite. They are 5-2 against the spread with 4+ days off and 3-2 playing on neutral territory. Utah is 5-11 ATS as the underdog and 15-17 overall this season, and 2-4 ATS in its last six. Butler is the better shooting team, ranking 38th in three-point shooting and 94th in free throw shooting, while Utah ranks 230th in three-point shooting and just 357th in free throw shooting. In neutral site or road games, Butler is 5-11 straight up, while Utah’s 1-12. 

Play on Butler. This is a 3% play.