In their final head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Los Angeles Kings and the Philadelphia Flyers face off at the Wells Fargo Center for a cross-country tilt. The match gets started at 7 p.m. ET on Monday, December 18, and it is being shown live on NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Los Angeles Kings at Philadelphia Flyers Odds
Philadelphia (+105) is currently the underdog to Philadelphia (-125), and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-135 under, +115 over).
Los Angeles is 20-14 straight up (SU) and has earned 3.8 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 34 regular season contests, 17 of its games have gone under the total, while 15 have gone over and just two have pushed. As an away team in 2017-18, the Kings are 10-7 SU.
Los Angeles has converted on just 16.5 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that places them in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. Its penalty kill is ranked third overall, and the team’s successfully killed off 86.7 percent of its penalties.
Los Angeles, as a collective unit, has been penalized 3.9 times per game overall during the 2017-18 season, 3.8 per game over its past five outings total, and 4.2 per game over its last five on the road. The team’s had to kill penalties just 7.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Sporting a .924 save percentage and 27.7 saves per game, Jonathan Quick (15-11-1) has been the best option in goal for Los Angeles this year. If head coach John Stevens chooses to rest him, however, the team could turn to Darcy Kuemper (5-5-3 record, .934 save percentage, 2.11 goals against average).
The visiting Kings have relied on Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown heavily this year. Kopitar (39 points) is up to 17 goals and 22 assists, and has recorded two or more points 11 times. Brown has 12 goals and 15 assists to his creditand has registered a point in 17 games.
On the other bench, Philadelphia is 14-18 straight up (SU) and has lost 6.5 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 32 regular season outings, 16 of its games have gone over the total, while 15 have gone under and just one has pushed. This season, the team’s 7-10 SU as the home team.
Philadelphia has converted on 19.4 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 28th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.1 percent of all penalties.
Philadelphia players have been penalized 3.8 times per game in total this season, and 1.8 per game over their last five games. The team has been forced to stave off opponent power plays just 6.1 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Brian Elliott has stopped 27.6 shots per game as the top choice in goal for Philadelphia. Elliott has 12 wins, 13 losses, and six OT losses to his credit and has registered a pedestrian 2.61 goals against average and a .915 save percentage this year.
Jakub Voracek (seven goals, 33 assists) will lead the offensive attack for the Flyers.
Los Angeles Kings at Philadelphia Flyers Free Picks
Predictions: SU Winner – Kings, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
The under has hit in three of Philadelphia’s last five outings.
Los Angeles has attempted 31.1 shots per contest overall this season (ranked 18th in the NHL), and 26.6 in its last five road games.
The Flyers are 4-10 SU in games where they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Kings are 9-6 SU when they spend more time in the box than their opponent.
Philadelphia is 0-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Los Angeles is 2-0 in shootouts.
Philadelphia is ranked 28th this season with 5.5 takeaways per game. That figure’s trended upward lately, as the team has forced 6.1 takeaways over its last 10 games and 6.2 takeaways over its last five.
Los Angeles has scored 3.0 goals per game overall this season, but has been averaging 2.0 goals per contest over its last three games (0-3 SU over that span).
Los Angeles is ranked 30th in the league this season with 5.2 takeaways per game. That figure has trended upward, as the team has averaged 5.8 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.8 takeaways over its last five.
