In their final head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Edmonton Oilers and the Carolina Hurricanes collide at PNC Arena for an East-West matchup. The matchup gets going at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, March 20, and you are able to witness it live on Sportsnet West.
Edmonton Oilers at Carolina Hurricanes Odds
Edmonton (+135) is entering this one as the underdog to Carolina (-155), and the Over/Under (O/U) has been set at 6 goals (-120 to bet the over, +100 for the under). After they originally opened at -115 over, -105 under, those lines have shifted.
The Hurricanes are 31-41 straight up (SU) and have lost 15.5 units for moneyline bettors this year. That early-season winning percentage hasn’t moved much from what the team produced during the 2016-17 season (36-46). Of its 72 games this season, 32 have gone under the total, while 32 have gone over and just two have pushed. The team is 16-20 SU at home this season.
Carolina’s converted on 19.3 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 26th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.5 percent of all penalties.
As a team, Carolina has been penalized just 2.8 times per game overall this season, 3.0 per game over its past five games total, and 2.8 per game over its last five home outings. The team has had to kill penalties for just 5.4 minutes per game over its last 10 matchups, in total.
With a .904 save percentage and 24.8 saves per game, Cam Ward (19-19-4) has been the best goalkeeper for the Hurricanes this season. If head coach Bill Peters decides to give him the evening off, however, the Canes could turn to Scott Darling (12-26-26 record, .889 save percentage, 3.08 goals against average).
The Canes will continue relying on leadership from Teuvo Teravainen and Sebastian Aho. Teravainen (58 points) is up to 21 goals and 37 assists and has recorded two or more points in 13 different games this year. Aho has 25 goals and 32 assists to his name and has notched a point in 38 contests.
On the other side of the ice, Edmonton is 31-41 straight up (SU) and has lost 16.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far. A total of 35 of its outings have gone under the total, while 33 have gone over and just four have pushed. As the visiting team, Edmonton is 15-21 SU.
Edmonton has converted on just 14.4 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s ranked 32nd in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 30th overall and it’s successfully defended 75.3 percent of all opponent power plays.
Edmonton’s skaters have been whistled for penalties 3.8 times per game this season, and 4.4 per game over their last five road outings. The team’s been forced to kill penalties 8.9 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Cam Talbot (27.7 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Edmonton. Talbot has 27 wins, 30 losses, and two OT losses to his credit, and has registered a .908 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average this year.
Connor McDavid (34 goals, 55 assists) has been one of the top offensive playmakers for the visiting Oilers.
Edmonton Oilers vs. Carolina Hurricanes Betting Predictions
Prediction: SU Winner – Hurricanes, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Trends
The total has gone over in four of Carolina’s last five outings.
This game features two clubs that attempt a heavy amount of shots on goal. Edmonton has registered the league’s eighth-most shots on goal (33.7) while Carolina has attempted the fourth-most (34.2).
The Hurricanes are 16-24 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 25-34 when they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total.
Carolina is 3-3 in games decided by a shootout this season while Edmonton is 4-1 in shootouts.
Carolina is ranked 2nd overall with 11.1 takeaways per game. That figure has trended lower recently, however, as it has averaged 10.1 takeaways over its last 10 games and 9.2 takeaways over its last five.
Edmonton is ranked eighth in the NHL with 8.3 takeaways per game. That figure has trended upward recently, as it has managed 11.2 takeaways over its last 10 games and 9.6 takeaways over its last five.
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