Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge Picks

The Tims NHL Hockey Challenge is running for the 2026-27 NHL regular season. It opened on September 29, 2026 and runs until the scheduled start of the last game of the regular season, inside the Tim Hortons app, free for Tims Rewards members in Canada. You pick three players to score each game day, and this tool ranks every eligible player by projected goals, matchup quality and recent form.

Is the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge Running This Year?

Yes. The 2026-27 Tims NHL Hockey Challenge opened on September 29, 2026 and runs until the scheduled start of the last game of the 2026-27 NHL regular season. It is a free daily pick'em game inside the Tim Hortons app, open to residents of Canada aged 13 and over, or 14 and over in Quebec, with a Tims Rewards account. The season is divided into six monthly challenge periods, each with its own leaderboard.

Tim Hortons sets the dates and the rules for each season on its own schedule, not this site, so the official resources stay the authority on a later edition, which platforms it supports, and who is eligible to play:

• Tim Hortons NHL Hockey Challenge overview: Tim Hortons
• Official Tims NHL Hockey Challenge rules: Tim Hortons

Check those pages directly for the full rules and the current season's dates before you rely on this tool.

When an edition is live, this page publishes new rankings each game day once starting goalies and confirmed lines are set, covering every player eligible for that day's three picks. When no edition is live, or outside the NHL season, the tool still works as a general goal-scorer ranking tool, though it is built specifically around the Hockey Challenge's three-pick, one-goal format.

How the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge Works

Here is how the Challenge works for the 2026-27 season. The official rules are the final word if anything here is out of date.

Making Your Three Picks

Each game day, Tims Rewards members pick three NHL players they believe will score a goal that day. Picks are made inside the Tim Hortons app, and the player pool is limited to skaters in that day's games, which is also the pool this tool ranks.

Building a Streak

Pick at least one player who scores on seven consecutive game days and you earn a free donut for a week, redeemable as one donut per day. Missing a game day breaks the run, which is part of why confirming a player is actually in the lineup matters more than chasing a big name.

Tims Rewards Points and Prizes

Beyond the donut streak, every correct pick earns Tims Rewards points: one correct pick is worth 10 points, two are worth 25 and all three are worth 100. The 2026-27 season is split into six monthly periods, each with its own leaderboard and gift card prizes, and the highest regular-season points total competes for a grand prize. Point values, prize pools and eligibility can change from season to season, so the official rules are the source to check rather than this page.

How to Pick with the Model

If you are new to using matchup data for picks, the Line Matchups tool is a good place to see how 5v5 Hockey breaks down daily NHL matchups before you dig into the rankings below.

The same projections and matchup models power other tools across the site, including the NHL Player Props tool for prop betting lines and the DFS Lines tool for daily fantasy projections and pricing.

What the Ranking Is Built From

The ranking blends a projected goal total for each player, a matchup quality read on the opposing defense and goaltending, recent scoring form, and deployment signals like line and power-play assignment. No single input decides a pick; a player can rank well on projection alone and still be a weaker pick than one who scores lower but plays a much easier matchup.

A Strong Pick vs. a Thin One

A strong pick profile is a top-line forward with power-play time, a high projected goal total, and a soft matchup against a weaker defense or backup goaltender. A thin pick is the opposite: a bottom-six forward riding a hot streak with little ice time and no power-play role, against a strong defensive opponent. Name recognition alone tells you neither of these things.

Working a Short Slate

On a night with only one or two games, the player pool shrinks and the model leans harder on matchup quality and deployment to separate players with similar projections. A short slate is also where confirming a player actually dressed matters most, since there are fewer alternatives if a top option is scratched.

Using the Quick-Look Top Plays

The quick-look panel surfaces the highest goal-probability player for each pick slot, as a fast reference before you dig into the full table. It is a starting point, not a substitute for checking matchup and deployment for your own three picks.

Clicking a Player's Name

Clicking any player's name opens a detailed view with game-by-game goal history, shot volume, ice time and recent line combinations, along with how that player's scoring correlates with his usual linemates. This mirrors the same deep-dive analysis used in the NHL Player Props tool, letting you confirm whether a hot streak is backed by real usage or is mostly short-term variance.

Below is what each column in the table means, so you know exactly what you are looking at on 5v5 Hockey.

Player

• Shows the NHL skater's name available for selection that day in the Hockey Challenge.
• Each row is one player you could choose as one of your three daily goal-scorer picks.

Team

• Displays the player's NHL team using official logos and abbreviations.
• Useful for spotting high-scoring team environments, which also show up in the site's AI Betting cheat sheet.

Opponent

• Shows which team the player is facing that game day.
• Defensive strength and goaltending quality are already factored into the Matchup Score column below.

Team Implied Goals

• The projected number of goals a team is expected to score, derived from betting markets and 5v5 Hockey models.
• This same implied-goals signal also feeds the AI Betting cheat sheet, which ranks player props using the same underlying models.

Line

• Displays the player's projected even-strength forward line (FL1, FL2, etc.).
• Top-line players typically see more ice time and higher-quality scoring chances.

PP Line

• Indicates power-play usage, such as PP1 or PP2.
• PP1 players get the most high-danger scoring chances; for deeper context on line usage and deployment, see the Line Risers & Fallers tool.

TOI Proj

• Projected time on ice, in minutes.
• Ice time is a primary driver of shot volume and goal probability.

G Proj

• The player's expected goals for that game.
• Sorting by this column highlights the highest-upside goal scorers on the slate.

Goal Prob

• Converts the goal projection into an estimated probability that the player scores at least one goal.
• Particularly useful when you are protecting an active donut streak and want the safer favorite rather than the highest-upside long shot.

L5, L10, L25

• Short-, medium- and long-term scoring trend windows, covering a player's last five, ten and twenty-five games.
• These windows balance recent hot streaks against a more sustainable scoring level, and the same trend windows appear across the AI Betting cheat sheet and other 5v5 Hockey tools.

Matchup Score

• A composite rating that combines opponent strength, goaltending, team scoring environment and deployment into one number.
• Useful as a tiebreaker when two players have a similar goal projection; for a closer look at the underlying line-versus-line data behind this score, see the Line Matchups tool.

Common Mistakes in the Hockey Challenge

A few habits separate a thoughtful set of three picks from a guess, and they are worth checking before you lock anything in.

• Picking by name recognition instead of deployment: a star forward stuck on a checking line or without power-play time is a weaker pick than a less famous player in a top-six, top-power-play role.
• Skipping the lineup check: a projection is only as good as the lineup it assumes, and a player who is a late scratch or a healthy scratch scores zero no matter how strong the projection looked that morning.
• Taking three players from the same game: it concentrates all three picks on one matchup and one goalie, so a single strong defensive performance can sink the whole slate instead of just one pick.
• Forgetting the pick is a goal, not a point: an assist does not count, so a strong playmaker with a modest shot total can be a worse pick than a lower-usage shooter who gets more looks at the net.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Tim Hortons doing the Hockey Challenge this year?

Yes. The Tims NHL Hockey Challenge is running for the 2026-27 NHL regular season. It opened on September 29, 2026 and runs until the start of the last game of the regular season, inside the Tim Hortons app for Tims Rewards members in Canada. Tim Hortons sets the dates for each season on its own schedule, so the official Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge page stays the authority on whether a later edition is live.

Is the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge free to play?

Yes. The Hockey Challenge is free to enter for Tims Rewards members, which itself is a free loyalty program. You make your picks inside the Tim Hortons app at no cost, and prizes like the free donut streak, Tims Rewards points and the monthly leaderboards come from playing for free rather than from any paid entry.

How many players do you pick in the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge?

You pick three NHL players each game day, each of whom you believe will score at least one goal in that day's games. All three picks are made before the games you are picking for begin, and a correct pick counts if the player you chose scores a goal in that game.

How do you win the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge?

Winning works on several levels at once. Correct picks earn Tims Rewards points, with one correct pick worth 10 points, two worth 25 and all three worth 100. Picking at least one goal scorer on seven consecutive game days earns a free donut for a week, redeemable as one donut per day. The 2026-27 season also runs six monthly leaderboards with gift card prizes, and the player with the most points across the regular season competes for a grand prize. The official rules set the exact thresholds for a given season.

When do Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge picks lock?

Picks need to be submitted before the first game of that day's slate starts; once a game begins, picks tied to that game can no longer be changed. For the exact lock time and any slate-specific rules, check the official Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge rules rather than relying on an assumed cutoff.

Is the 5v5 Hockey Challenge helper free?

Yes, the 5v5 Hockey Challenge picks helper is completely free to use, with no account or payment required. It publishes new rankings on game days during the NHL season once starting goalies and confirmed lines are available, covering every player eligible for that day's picks.

Do you need to be in Canada to play?

Yes, the Tim Hortons Hockey Challenge is built around the Tim Hortons app and Tims Rewards program, which operate in Canada, so playing the official game requires a Canadian Tims Rewards account. The 5v5 Hockey picks helper itself is a free website available to anyone, regardless of location.

Does the Hockey Challenge count assists or only goals?

Only goals count. A correct pick requires the player you selected to score a goal in that day's game; assists and other points do not satisfy the pick. This is why deployment and shot volume matter more for this game than total point production. The official rules define exactly what counts as a qualifying goal.