NHL Thursday player props: McCann to stay hot in Nashville
We have 12 games to look forward to on Thursday's meaty slate. Let's look at three props that stand out from the pack as we seek to build on our 6-0 start to the week.
Ryan Hartman over 2.5 shots (-132)Similar to Martin Necas, Hartman is a much more efficient shot generator away from home. He has gone over his total in 17 of his 27 road affairs (63%), compared to just eight of 22 at home (36%).
There's every reason to expect Hartman's road success to continue against the Flyers. For one, he's playing a much larger role with Kirill Kaprizov out of the lineup. Hartman is skating on the top power-play unit and routinely sees 19-plus minutes of ice time.
That extra opportunity has led to more shots. Hartman's gone over in four of six games sans Kaprizov while recording more shots than all Wild forwards except Matt Boldy.
Lastly, the positional matchup is very enticing. The Flyers rank 29th in shots against per game versus centers over the last 10.
Jared McCann over 3.5 shots (+135)McCann has seen his total bump from 2.5 to 3.5, and for good reason. The Kraken's top sniper has recorded four shots or more in seven of the past 10 games, falling one shot shy in two of the three occasions he failed to go over the number.
The uptick in shots we have seen from McCann is no coincidence. He's averaged nearly 19 minutes per night during this stretch, which is well above the 16 he's averaged over the course of the season.
Those extra shifts have been put to good use: McCann has averaged 7.4 attempts over the past 10 games, well above his season output of 4.8 per night.
McCann is playing more minutes, shooting the puck more frequently, and garnering extremely strong results; he's scored seven times in this span.
With the Kraken in the thick of a heated playoff race, I see no reason why they'll ease off the gas and get away from what's working so well for McCann.
Miro Heiskanen over 2.5 shots (-145)Heiskanen is a monster on home soil. He's registered three shots on goal or more in 70% of his games in Dallas this season, a remarkably impressive rate.
The numbers beneath the hood are much better in Dallas, as you'd expect. He's averaged 5.2 shot attempts on the road this season and 6.8 at home. That's a sizeable gap.
What I love about Heiskanen is he continues to improve upon an already strong process in Dallas. His numbers have increased of late, with Heiskanen registering a team-best 76 attempts over his last 10 in Dallas.
Yes, he's even ahead of Jason Robertson - one of the best volume-shooting wingers in the NHL who's gone over his shot total (3.5, by the way) in 66% of his home affairs.
Heiskanen should be able to stay hot in a sneaky-good matchup Thursday night. The Penguins rank bottom-five in shots against per game versus defensemen and are in the latter half of a road back-to-back, having played at altitude in Colorado.
Expect Heiskanen's home cooking to continue.
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.
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