The stakes are high as the Calgary Flames host the Edmonton Oilers in this season’s second edition of the Battle of Alberta. The Flames will be looking to build on their strong 6-4-1 start and show they’re going to be a thorn in the side of NHL teams all season long. Meanwhile, the Oilers need every point they can get as they try and crawl out of another early season hole — this time without captain Connor McDavid. 

My Oilers vs. Flames predictions see one of Calgary’s top young players making some noise offensively. Let’s take a closer look at my November 3 NHL picks below.

My Flames Pick

Connor Zary Over 1.5 shots (-145 at BET99)

My Flames Analysis

Connor Zary is getting more minutes for the Calgary Flames as a sophomore and making the most of them. He has seven points through 11 games and there’s been a noticeable uptick in his shot volume.

He's averaging 2.3 shots per game on 4.5 attempts this season, compared to 1.4 shots on 3.0 attempts as a rookie. We’ve seen a big spike in his hit rate as a result. He's registered at least two shots in eight of 11 games (73%) after clearing that mark at a 52% clip during his rookie campaign.

Zary's also shown a boost in shot volume when playing at home, averaging 4.7 attempts per game in Calgary compared to 4.2 on the road.

He has a nice matchup Sunday night against an Edmonton Oilers team struggling to find its footing. The defending Western Conference champs have lost six of 11 games and will be without superstar Connor McDavid for the next few weeks.

That means the Flames should spend less time defending and more time on the attack than if they’d been tasked with slowing down the best player of this generation.

My Oilers vs. Flames Props

Connor Zary Over 1.5 shots Connor Zary Over 0.5 points Rasmus Andersson Over 2.5 blocked shots

Zary has hit the scoresheet in six of 11 games this season, including four of six played on home soil. He’s getting a nice opportunity right now on the top offensive line alongside Nazem Kadri, the team’s best and most consistent point producer.

With last change in the back pocket of head coach Ryan Huska, the Flames will be able to get Zary’s line out in more advantageous matchups to make noise offensively.

He's played 17+ minutes in nine of 11 games this season. Dating back to his rookie campaign, he’s produced 12 total points over the last 15 games in which he saw such a workload.

Andersson has been a shot-blocking machine, eating at least three pucks in eight of 11 games thus far (3.5 per). He'll be tasked with slowing down superstar Draisaitl and Edmonton’s top line at 5-on-5 as well as in penalty-killing situations. That means plenty of opportunity to put the body on the line.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

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Odds courtesy of BET99.

Connor Zary has multiple shots in three of four career games against the Oilers. Find more NHL betting trends for Flames vs. Oilers.

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Todd Cordell is a data-driven betting analyst. He uses numbers to help identify value across a wide variety of sports, with NHL being his specialty. Shot props, in particular, have proven to be a very fruitful market. Todd has served as a betting analyst in the public sphere for many years, most recently with theScore covering the NHL and MLB.

When not writing about sports betting, Todd stays busy analyzing the New Jersey Devils with a fine-tooth comb for InfernalAccess, his Devils-centric blog. Todd attended Sheridan College and graduated in 2014 with a diploma in print journalism.

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