There are six NHL games tonight. Let’s take a look at the top picks, plays and predictions.
| Lightning vs Penguins ML +140 / -160 O/U 5.5 |
Coyotes vs Hurricanes ML +185 / -230 O/U 5.5 |
| Blues vs Jets ML +100 / -120 O/U 5.5 |
Islanders vs Blackhawks ML +175 / -210 O/U 5.5 |
| Red Wings vs Flames ML +135 / -160 O/U 5 |
Maple Leafs vs Ducks ML +140 / -160 O/U 5.5 |
Here are tonight’s starting goaltenders, courtesy of LeftWingLock.
The Game to Watch: Islanders vs Blackhawks.
There are not too many playoff-caliber matchups tonight. Between inter-conference play and teams well out of postseason contention, only a couple of games tonight are worthy of too much attention from a fan’s perspective.
But then there’s Isles-Blackhawks.
Brooklyn staged an impressive comeback last night against the Dallas Stars. Down 3-2 heading into the third period, Nick Leddy evened up the score just 25 seconds into the final frame. His shot from the blueline was saved with the blocker initially, then ricocheted off the endboards, hit the back of Antti Niemi’s skate and trickled over the goalline.
Dennis Seidenberg rocketed home a slapshot through traffic later in the third, then Nikolay Kulemin tapped in a sweet Leddy pass just minutes after.
Though the Stars would tally late in the game, the Islanders held on to win 5-4.
That brings the Isles to 4-1-0 on this nine-game road trip.
Tonight will be a difficult test for them. Chicago is 10-1 since the beginning of February. The Hawks’ offense is the most potent in the NHL of late, putting up a four-spot on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday Night Rivalry. Brooklyn has not won in Chicago in their last five attempts.
It’s going to be a tough battle. Not un-winnable, but certainly tough.
Playing on no rest definitely hinders their chances. The Isles have lost five of their last seven games on the tail-end of a back-to-back.
And now a tired blueline will have to deal with the single hottest player in the NHL in Patrick Kane. Kane had a hat trick against the Penguins to give him 19 points in 11 games. The last six games Kane has scored in have been multi-point nights for #88.
Artemi Panarin is getting in on the act as well, notching five assists in his last five games.
The under has hit in seven of the last eight meetings between these two teams. However, in their first meeting earlier this season, six first-period goals were scored.
My guess is we will see more of the same tonight. If nothing else, the Hawks alone can cover the over/under at the rate they’re going.
Prediction: Take the Blackhawks to win. Play the over.
Other Game Notes Around the NHL
Lightning vs Penguins: Last year’s Eastern Conference Final seems like an eternity ago. This is especially true for the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are on the outside looking in at the postseason.
The Bolts are doing their best to stay in the hunt, though. They have won consecutive games, their most recent being on Wednesday against the Carolina Hurricanes. If they are to make any serious play for a Wild Card, they will have to do it without Ben Bishop and without Valtteri Filppula, both shipped out at the trade deadline. Filppula was sent to the Philadelphia Flyers, who I guess will take any former Bolt from Radko Gudas to Vinny Lecavalier.
Carolina tied Wednesday’s game against Tampa Bay with a shortie with less than three minutes remaining in regulation. Overtime did not last very long, as Nikita Kucherov motored into the Carolina zone on a 2-on-1, fed Victor Hedman with a smooth saucer pass, and Hedman buried the winner.
Tampa Bay mustered only 16 shots on goal, but scored four goals.
Pittsburgh is coming off a 4-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. Though it was not Pittsburgh’s finest game, they are 13-3 following losses of three goals or more. They usually bounce back.
After the Pens had to deal with the incendiary Chicago offense, they will now have to turn their attention to Nikita Kucherov, in the midst of one of the best stretches of his young career. Kucherov has 12 points in his last four games- six goals and six assists. In the game prior to the start of his point-streak, he set a personal best in shots-on-goal with nine against the Colorado Avalanche.
Tampa’s powerplay is 7-for-15 in their last six games as well.
Still, the Penguins have won both meetings this season and have looked quite good in the process. Their most recent encounter was a 6-2 Pens victory in Pittsburgh.
Andrei Vasilevskiy is currently the probable starter for LeftWingLock, meaning Peter Budaj will likely make his Bolts debut tomorrow against Buffalo. Did you know Budaj is second in the league with seven shutouts? I need reminders of that sometimes.
Prediction: Take the Penguins to win. Play the over.
Blues vs Jets: Someone call Tom Petty, ‘cuz the Blues are freefallin’.
The Blues have now lost four in a row. Their first game without Kevin Shattenkirk as a member of their organization was a 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers. Paul Stastny scored the lone goal for St. Louis.
St. Louis is winless in their last four games against Central Division.
Winnipeg is just kind of doing Winnipeg things. They are playing tight games, but simply not winning enough of them to be true playoff contenders. Four of their last five games have been decided by one goal, with the one outlier being a win with an empty-netter attached.
The Jets have lost six of their last seven home games. However, they have won their last four games against the Blues, including all three this year.
Prediction: Take the Jets to win tonight. Play the under.
Maple Leafs vs Ducks: Beware the bye-week curse! The Anaheim Ducks have had five days to recover from what was a turbulent week to end their February. For what it’s worth they have won nine of their last 10 following losses of three or more goals, but the bye-week curse does not discriminate.
Plus, the Maple Leafs have won four of their last five in Anaheim and eight of their last 10 against the Ducks overall.
Toronto desperately needs a win from this Californian tour they are on. They lost their first game to the Sharks in regulation, then forced overtime but lost to the Kings last night.
They are in a points tie with the Islanders, but the Isles have a game in hand. Florida is just a point behind them. With the Isles in action tonight against a tough opponent, this is a must-win for the Leafs.
Prediction: Tricky call, but I say the bye-week curse trumps the back-to-back fatigue tonight. Take the Leafs to win. Play the under.
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