The Wells Fargo Center is the site for a divisional tilt as the Philadelphia Flyers face off against the visiting New York Islanders. This one will get started at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, January 4 and it can be seen live on NBC Sports Philadelphia.
New York Islanders at Philadelphia Flyers Odds
Philadelphia (-120) is currently favored over New York (+100) and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals. The line for betting the total stands at -105 money on the over and -115 on the under.
New York is 20-20 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 40 regular season contests, 26 of its games have gone over the total, while 11 have gone under and just three have pushed. As the road team in 2017-18, the Isles are 8-13 SU.
New York has converted on 20.6 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 30th overall, and the team’s successfully killed off only 74.6 percent of all penalties.
The Isles, as a collective unit, have been penalized just 3.5 times per game overall this season, 4.0 per game over its past five games total, and 3.6 per game over its last five on the road. The team’s had to kill penalties just 6.7 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Sporting a .904 save percentage and 28.0 saves per game, Jaroslav Halak (11-14-2) has been the top option in goal for New York this year. If New York chooses to rest him, however, head coach Doug Weight could go with Thomas Greiss (9-10-2 record, .884 save percentage, 3.82 goals against average).
Josh Bailey and John Tavares will both be offensive focal points for the visiting Islanders. Bailey has 50 points on 12 goals and 38 assists, and has recorded two or more points 16 times. Tavares has 21 goals and 28 assists to his name (and has logged a point in 25 games).
Philadelphia is 16-23 straight up (SU) and has lost 9.4 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 39 regular season matches, 20 of its games have gone over the total, while 17 have gone under and just two have pushed. It’s 8-12 SU as the home team this season.
The Flyers have converted on just 19.0 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 30th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 75.8 percent of all penalties.
Flyers skaters have been whistled for penalties only 3.7 times per game in total this season, and 2.6 per game over their last five at home. The team’s had to stave off opponent power plays just 6.4 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Brian Elliott has stopped 26.9 shots per game as the top selection in goal for the Flyers. Elliott has 14 wins, 18 losses, and seven overtime losses and has maintained a mediocre 2.69 goals against average and a .911 save percentage this year.
The home team will be led on offense by Claude Giroux (13 goals, 33 assists) and Jakub Voracek (eight goals, 38 assists).
New York Islanders at Philadelphia Flyers Free Picks
Predictions: SU Winner – Islanders, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Trends
Over New York’s last ten games, seven of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 1-6 in those games).
New York has averaged 3.4 goals per game overall this year, but has been averaging 1.3 goals per contest over its last three games (0-3 SU over that span).
The Islanders are 9-11 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 12-15 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 total minutes.
Philadelphia is 0-3 in games decided by a shootout this season while New York is 2-1 in shootouts.
The over has hit in three of Philadelphia’s last five games.
Philadelphia is ranked 15th this season with 9.7 giveaways per game. That figure has trended down, however, as it’s averaged 8.8 giveaways over its last 10 games and 8.6 giveaways over its last five.
New York has averaged 8.4 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 11.4 giveaways per game (ranked 26th in the NHL).
