There are four games on the schedule tonight, all with pretty important consequences. Let’s take a look around the NHL at today’s top picks, plays and predictions.
Play of the Day: The over in Rangers vs Devils.
This is just the second time since the turn of the calendar year that there has been an over/under of 4.5, and for the second time, the Devils are included. The previous instance was a Devils-Blues game where the over was a hit big-time.
This will be the third meeting between the Rangers and Devils this season, with the Devils looking for a 3-0 record. Their most recent game was a 3-2 victory at the Rock, where special teams reigned supreme.
Big names will be missing on both sides of the ice today. Mike Cammalleri remains out of the lineup on Injured Reserve for the Devils. Rick Nash’s bone bruise has him sitting out once again, while Ryan McDonagh has been shelved indefinitely having been diagnosed with a concussion this morning. The Rangers will now have to sit through 20-25 minutes of the Dan Girardi-Marc Staal comedy show on the top pairing. Kevin Klein will be with Keith Yandle on the second pair, with Dan Boyle and Dylan McIlrath on the third pair.
Prediction: The over is the slam dunk of the night. The Devils being listed at +150 is too much to pass up. Take the Devils to win and play the over. This game will be 3-2 at least.
The Game to Watch: Panthers vs Red Wings.
The goaltending matchup is the reason to watch out for the Panthers-Red Wings tonight. Roberto Luongo will be looking to improve his record to 5-0-1 in his last six games, while Petr Mrazek will get the nod in goal for Detroit.
Mrazek will be searching for his first 20-win season of his young career. The 23-year-old is one of the most fun goalies to watch in the league. Not just for his youthful exuberance, either. Mrazek’s reflexes are astounding, and his legwork gets stronger with each passing performance. He is 8-2-1 in his last 11 starts.
The Wings won for the first time since returning from the All-Star break on Saturday, blowing out the Islanders 5-1. Rookie Dylan Larkin grabbed his 18th goal of the season, while Mike Green is on a two-game goal scoring streak with two on the man advantage.
Florida should be riding their confidence from a 6-3 victory over the Red Wings just last Thursday. The Panthers scored the first three goals of the game and never looked back.
Detroit will be looking to reassert themselves, both for the sake of playing against their division rival and to reclaim the home-ice advantage. The Wings are 1-5 in their last six games at home, and winless in their last five games against teams with a winning record. It does not help that on an individual basis, Florida is 5-1 in their last six games against Detroit and 5-0 in their last five at the Joe.
The over is 8-1-1 in the last 10 games combined for the Panthers and Red Wings.
Prediction: Take the Panthers to win. Play the over.
Other Game Notes Around the NHL
Lightning vs Senators: This is another game that has “over” written all over it. The Senators have gotten into some high-scoring affairs these past few games. Since returning from the All-Star break, they have lost 6-5, lost 7-2, and won 6-1. They have just the right mix of talented scorers and porous goaltending that makes them a solid pick for the over.
And right on cue, they’re taking on one of the hottest teams in hockey.
The Lightning capitalized on a Malkin-less Penguins team, taking them down 6-3 Friday night. The Bolts are 10-1 in their last 11 games. In that stretch, they are averaging 3.45 goals scored per game. Over the same span of time, the Sens are 4-7-0 with 4.09 goals allowed per game. Basically, a fizzling defense is going to have to hold down a sizzling offense.
It’s a formula for disaster.
Per LeftWingLock, Andrei Vasilevskiy will get the start for Tampa Bay (8-4-0). Craig Anderson will be in the cage for Ottawa. Neither goaltender has been particularly spectacular for their respective clubs. Vasilevskiy has a goals against average of 2.61 this season in 12 starts. Anderson is even worse, boasting a 2.91 goals against average in 42 starts.
Prediction: Take Tampa Bay to win. Play the over.
Ducks vs Penguins: Patience is the word of the year for the Anaheim Ducks. After a horrendous start to the season with none of their elite players scoring- or more accurately, no one at all scoring- many people were calling for Bruce Boudreau’s head on a platter. He has righted the ship and the Ducks are back in a Divisional playoff spot.
Anaheim has won eight of their last nine games, six consecutively. They will be taking on the Penguins who have won five of their last six.
A bigger storyline though is the first meeting between these two teams since their trade that swapped Carl Hagelin and David Perron.
There is no reason for animosity, it’s just an interesting plot line. Neither player was in their former city for long enough to establish a real emotional connection, and their performance was pretty underwhelming on the whole prior to the deal. Since the trade though, both players have hit their stride and their respective teams are winning.
David Perron has three goals and five assists in seven games with Anaheim. Carl Hagelin has five assists on the Penguins’ second line, and has generated a lot of chances even with Evgeni Malkin out of the lineup.
The Pens do have the home-ice advantage. Anaheim is 1-6 in their last seven visits to Pittsburgh. History can be changed, though. Marc-Andre Fleury has not looked sharp his last few games, allowing an abnormally high number of goals on shots he should be able to see.
John Gibson will start against him.
Prediction: Take the Ducks to win.
Written by Casey Bryant
The Sheriff Rides Off Into the Sunset
2016 Lamar Hunt U.S Open Cup Clubs and Format
| Devils vs Rangers ML +150 / -166 O/U 4.5 |
Ducks vs Penguins ML OFF / OFF O/U OFF |
| Lightning vs Senators ML – 138 / +125 O/U 5.5 |
Panthers vs Red Wings ML -105 / -105 O/U 5 |