Two clubs that split their head-to-head series 1-1 a year ago, the San Jose Sharks and the New York Rangers collide at Madison Square Garden in an East-West matchup. The first puck will drop at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, October 11, and you are able to watch it live on NBC Sports California.
San Jose Sharks at New York Rangers Odds
San Jose is 2-2 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors thus far. That winning percentage, the third-best in the Pacific Division so far in this young season, is a noticeable drop-off from the 45-37 record that the team posted during last year’s regular season campaign. The Sharks are 2-1 SU on the road in 2018-19.
The Sharks have scored on 13.3 percent of their power play chances thus far. That’s a noticeable drop-off from last year, when they were ranked 13th in the league by scoring on 21.1 percent of their extra-man advantages. Their penalty kill has fallen off drastically, as they’ve gone from successfully defending 84.2 percent of all opponent power plays (ranked second overall last year) to 72.2 percent this year.
For the team as a whole, the Sharks have been penalized 4.5 times per game this season, a number that’s jumped some from the 3.4 penalties per game given up last year. After serving an average of 8.3 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has had to kill penalties for 9.0 minutes per outing this year.
Averaging 18.3 saves per game with a .859 save percentage, Martin Jones (1-2) has been the top option in goal for San Jose this season. If head coach Peter Deboer decides to rest him, however, the team could turn to Aaron Dell (1-0), who has a .939 save percentage and 2.00 goals against average this year.
Kevin Labanc and Evander Kane will both lead the offensive attack for the visiting Sharks. Labanc (five points) is up to one goal and four assists this season while Kane has four goals and zero assist to his credit through the early stages of the regular season.
New York is 0-3 straight up (SU) and has lost 3.0 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through three regular season outings, two of its games have gone under the total, while one has gone over and none have pushed.
The Rangers have killed off a remarkable 66.7 percent of all penalties, a few points lower than the 81.4 percent they posted a year ago (when they were ranked eighth in the NHL). They have found the net on 12.5 percent of their power plays this year after converting on 21.2 percent (ranked 12th in league) last season.
New York players have been penalized 5.3 times per game this season, a number that’s climbed noticeably from the 3.5 penalties per game given up last year. After serving an average of 8.0 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team’s been forced to kill penalties for a taxing 11.7 minutes per matchup this season.
The winless Henrik Lundqvist has stopped 28.0 shots per game as the top choice in goal for the Rangers. Lundqvist has zero wins and two losses and has recorded a .933 save percentage and a solid 2.06 goals against average this year.
Jesper Fast (one goal, two assists) will pace the offensive attack for the home team.
San Jose Sharks at New York Rangers Free Picks
Pick: SU Winner – Sharks, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Notes
The Rangers are 0-2 SU when they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Sharks are 2-0 SU in games where they serve more minutes than their opponent.
New York has given up 4.7 goals per game (while scoring just 2.7 per contest) over its three-game losing skid.
New York’s skaters managed 8.7 takeaways per game and allowed 12.7 giveaways per game.
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