The Seattle Kraken waived goaltender Chris Driedger on Thursday.

Driedger has not played since sustaining an ACL tear during the gold medal game of the 2022 World Championships as a member of Team Canada.

The 28-year-old has two seasons remaining on his contract with a $3.5-million cap hit and a 10-team no-trade clause. The Kraken will gain $1.125 million in cap space should Driedger clear waivers and be sent to the AHL.

Driedger posted an .899 save percentage in 27 appearances with the Kraken in 2021-22. He was impressive at the World Championships before his injury, though, notching a .915 save percentage in six starts.

Seattle selected Driedger from the Florida Panthers in the 2021 expansion draft. The native of Winnipeg was among the league's best backups in his stint with the Panthers, registering a .931 SV% in 35 games across two seasons.

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Wednesday night was a tough one for our NHL shot props, with Josh Morrissey and Jason Robertson both coming up a puck shy - despite advantageous matchups and ideal game scripts.

We'll look to rebound with a full three-play card for Thursday's slate.

Alex Ovechkin over 4.5 shots (-125)

Ovechkin makes his return to the lineup Thursday in a mouthwatering matchup against the NHL's last-place team.

The Ducks remain inept defensively, giving up shots and chances at extreme rates against any and every opponent. Things are not improving one bit. In fact, they're probably getting worse.

Anaheim has allowed an average of 42 shots per 60 minutes over its last 10 games. Only one other team is giving up more than 36. The Ducks are easily the worst shot-suppression team in the league, and there's nobody who should benefit more than Ovechkin.

The Capitals superstar has been generating shots at an absurd rate lately, even for a player of his caliber. Ovechkin has attempted 100 shots in his last 10 games at Capital One Arena, going over the total on seven occasions.

Expect him to pick up where he left off against the Ducks.

Connor McDavid over 4.5 shots (+100)

McDavid is one of the hottest shot generators in the league right now. Perhaps the hottest; he's posted a league-leading 53 shots on target over his last 10 games.

The Penguins, meanwhile, have quietly allowed more shots per game over the last 10 contests than every team except the Ducks and Coyotes. Pittsburgh is not a strong defensive squad and gives up a ton of shots to opposing centers. In fact, only the Ducks have allowed more per game this season.

With the Penguins struggling against centers at the best of times, it's hard to believe they'll be able to slow the best player in the league at a time when he's firing at will.

Look for McDavid to have another big performance in what figures to be a high-event game.

Matt Boldy over 3.5 shots (+110)

We've targeted the Blue Jackets with great success all season, and we're not going to stop now.

Boldy is a road warrior. At home, Kirill Kaprizov gets the softer matchups and is the Wild's best shot generator. But he faces top competition when on the road, which opens things up for a player like Boldy.

Boldy has taken advantage throughout the season, averaging 3.6 shots per road game while going over the total at a 54% clip. That's a stark contrast to what he's accomplished at Xcel Energy Center, where he's averaged 2.8 shots per contest and hit the over just 38% of the time.

The 21-year-old finds himself in a great spot against Columbus: He's facing a bottom-five shot-suppression team in an environment where he won't get all the attention.

With Minnesota in the middle of the wild-card race and struggling to score, Boldy figures to get every opportunity to exploit this juicy matchup.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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Alex Ovechkin is returning to the Washington Capitals' lineup Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks after missing four games on personal leave, head coach Peter Laviolette confirmed, according to NHL.com's Tom Gulitti.

The Capitals captain had been away from the team since Feb. 14 following the death of his father, Mikhail.

Ovechkin has 32 goals and 54 points through 54 contests this season. The 37-year-old is 82 tallies away from matching Wayne Gretzky's all-time NHL record of 894 career goals.

Washington is sixth in the Metropolitan Division with a 28-25-6 record. The Capitals are two points behind the Florida Panthers for the second wild-card position in the Eastern Conference.

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We have a jam-packed 10-game slate to look forward to Thursday night. Let's waste no time in getting to our best bets.

Rangers (-165) @ Red Wings (+145)

The Red Wings are hot, having won seven of their last 10 games to get back in the race for a wild-card spot.

Although the Wings have done some good things defensively and been opportunistic in finishing, this run does not appear to be sustainable.

Detroit has really struggled to create offense at five-on-five. The team is 31st in high-danger chances per 60 during this spell, narrowly ahead of the Blue Jackets. Nobody has fared worse than the Red Wings in terms of generating expected goals.

They deserve credit for making the most of their chances, but a lack of volume generally won't lead to success against a goaltender like Igor Shesterkin.

He predictably hasn't been as dominant this season as last. Even so, he still owns a save percentage well above league average and is top 10 in goals saved above expected.

Converting three or four times on a shot count that is likely to hover around the mid-20s is a tall order for the Red Wings. That's likely what they'll need to do to hang around - let alone win - against a sizzling Rangers squad.

The Rangers have picked up points in nine of 10 and are firing on all cylinders offensively. Aided by the recent addition of Vladimir Tarasenko, they have a loaded three-line attack that opponents are having a miserable time slowing down.

I expect the Wings to have a tough time. Look for them to drop this game inside 60 minutes.

Bet: Rangers in regulation (-105)

Wild (-190) @ Blue Jackets (+160)

The Wild finally appear to be turning a corner and gaining some traction in the Western Conference.

They have won three games in a row on the back of stout defense and strong goaltending. While their offense still has definite room for improvement, a date with the Blue Jackets should help bring out the best in them.

Columbus has controlled only 42% of the high-danger chances at five-on-five the past 10 games. The Blue Jackets spend a lot of time absorbing pressure, which is not what you want to be doing - especially against a team featuring weapons like Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy.

I think this matchup gives the Wild a welcome opportunity for regression. Nobody will confuse them for a high-flying offensive team, but they've shot 4% at five-on-five over the last 10 games and about 5.5% overall. Whether the lineup lacks finishing or not, numbers that low are not sustainable for any club, let alone one holding down a playoff position.

Elvis Merzlikins getting the nod in goal for Columbus would be preferable - Joonas Korpisalo is having a pretty strong season - but the Wild hold enough advantages that they should be able to grind out a much-needed win regardless.

Back Minnesota to claim two points inside regulation.

Bet: Wild in regulation (-110)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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Despite winning at a record-setting rate through 56 games, Brad Marchand insists the Boston Bruins aren't hung up on any potential regular-season glory.

"People have talked a lot about some of these records, that we could potentially hit or we have hit," Marchand said, according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. "Nobody cares about those in this room. We could care less about any of these regular-season records. Because they really don't mean anything."

The Bruins (43-8-5) are currently on pace for 133 points and 63 wins, which would set two NHL records. The 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens hold the benchmark in wins (132), while the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings and 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning share the title for victories (62).

"Before we were going through this season, if you asked any of the guys on this team who owned any of those records, nobody would know because nobody cares. Because it's not about the regular season," Marchand said. "As soon as somebody brings it up, it's in one ear and out the other."

The 1977 Canadiens won the Stanley Cup, but the Red Wings and Lightning were ousted in the playoffs. Tampa was famously eliminated in a first-round, four-game sweep at the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

This year's Bruins - who set an NHL record with 15 consecutive home victories to start the season - look like they'll cruise to the Presidents' Trophy, but that's not the hardware Marchand is after.

"If you win the Presidents' Trophy but you don't win the Cup, nobody cares," Marchand said. "That's what we know on this team."

Only eight teams have won the Presidents' Trophy and Stanley Cup in the same season, most recently the Chicago Blackhawks in the lockout-shortened 2013 campaign.

The Bruins are looking to win their first Stanley Cup since 2011 - Marchand's second year in the league. Boston returned to the final in 2013 and 2019 but fell short each time.

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