Facing each other for the final time this season, the Detroit Red Wings and the San Jose Sharks clash at the SAP Center for an East-West tilt. Fox Sports Detroit will air the game, which gets going at 10:30 p.m. ET on Monday, March 12.
Detroit Red Wings at San Jose Sharks Odds
San Jose (+175) is currently the underdog to San Jose (-205), and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -125 under, +105 over.
The Sharks are 36-32 straight up (SU) and have lost 2.8 units for moneyline bettors this year. That winning percentage, ranked third in the Pacific Division so far this season, isn’t too far off from to what the team posted during the 2016-17 season (46-36). Out of the team’s 68 regular season contests, 40 of them have gone under the total, while 26 have gone over and just two have pushed. The team’s 20-14 SU at home this year.
San Jose’s converted on 21.0 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is rated first overall, and it’s successfully killed off 84.8 percent of all penalties.
As a collective unit, San Jose has been penalized just 3.3 times per game overall this season, and 1.4 per game over its last five games home outings. The team has been forced to kill penalties for just 3.4 minutes per game over its last 10 matchups, in total.
Sporting a .918 save percentage and 25.9 saves per game, Martin Jones (23-25-7) has been the primary option in goal for the Sharks this year. If head coach Peter Deboer decides to give him the night off, however, the team might turn to Aaron Dell (14-12-12 record, .914 save percentage, 2.65 goals against average).
Brent Burns and Joe Pavelski will both lead the offensive attack for the Sharks. Burns (53 points) has produced 10 goals and 43 assists and has recorded two or more points on 13 different occasions this year. Pavelski has 18 goals and 35 assists to his name and has recorded at least one point in 36 contests.
Over on the other bench, Detroit is 26-42 straight up (SU) and has lost 13.4 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year. A total of 41 of its outings have gone under the total, while 26 have gone over and just one has pushed. As the road team, Detroit is 13-20 SU.
Detroit has converted on just 18.3 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a mark that places it in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 22nd overall and it’s successfully defended 78.4 percent of all opponent power plays.
Detroit’s players have been penalized 3.7 times per game this season, 4.0 per game over their past five games total, and 3.8 per game over their last five road outings. The team has had to defend opponent power plays just 7.2 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Jimmy Howard (26.5 saves per game) has been the primary option in the net for Detroit. Howard has 18 wins, 33 losses, and eight OT losses to his credit, while registering a .911 save percentage and 2.82 goals against average this year.
For the visiting Red Wings, the offense will run through Dylan Larkin (nine goals, 40 assists) and Henrik Zetterberg (nine goals, 35 assists).
Detroit Red Wings vs. San Jose Sharks Free Picks
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Sharks, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Trends
Detroit is 4-1 in games decided by a shootout this season while San Jose is 4-3 in shootouts.
The total has gone over in three of San Jose’s last five games.
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