Considered by some to be the two weakest clubs in the NHL, the Ottawa Senators and the Buffalo Sabres meet at the KeyBank Center for a divisional showdown. The action gets started at 7:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 4, and you will be able to catch it live on Sportsnet 360.
Ottawa Senators at Buffalo Sabres Odds
Ottawa (+110) is entering this one as the underdog to Buffalo (-130), and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-120 for the over, +100 for the under).
Ottawa is 27-52 straight up (SU) and has lost 20.9 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 79 regular season contests, 42 of its games have gone over the total, while 37 have gone under and none have pushed. As an away team this season, the Sens are 11-27 SU.
Ottawa has converted on just 17.0 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that places them in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. Its penalty kill is ranked 30th overall, and the team’s successfully killed off only 75.6 percent of its penalties.
For the team as a whole, Ottawa has been called for penalties 3.4 times per game overall in the 2017-18 season, and 2.7 per game over its last ten outings. The team’s been forced to kill penalties just 6.0 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Averaging 27.4 saves per game with a .898 save percentage, Craig Anderson (23-33-6) has been the top option in goal for Ottawa this year. If it decides to rest him, however, head coach Guy Boucher could turn to Mike Condon (6-25-5), who has a .902 save percentage and 3.25 goals against average this year.
The visiting Senators have relied on Erik Karlsson and Mark Stone this year. Karlsson (62 points) is up to nine goals and 53 assists, and has recorded two or more points in 18 different games. Stone has 20 goals and 42 assists to his nameand has registered at least one point in 39 games.
On the other side of the ice, Buffalo is 25-54 straight up (SU) and has lost 16.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. 38 of its contests have gone under the total, while 36 have gone over and just five have pushed. It’s 11-29 SU at home this year.
Buffalo has converted on 18.7 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 26th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.6 percent of all penalties.
Buffalo players have been sent to the penalty box 3.5 times per game in total this season, and 2.6 per game over their last five at home. The team has been forced to defend opponent power plays just 6.4 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Robin Lehner (26.7 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Buffalo. Lehner has 14 wins, 39 losses, and nine overtime losses and has registered a pedestrian 3.01 goals against average and a poor .908 save percentage this year.
Jack Eichel (25 goals, 37 assists) will lead the attack for Buffalo.
Ottawa Senators at Buffalo Sabres Betting Predictions
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Sabres, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
The total has gone over in three of Buffalo’s last five games.
Ottawa has managed 26.6 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Buffalo is averaging 32.8 shots per game over its last five home outings.
Power plays and penalty kills may prove to be key tonight. The Senators are 11-26 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 19-35 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total. The Sabres are 9-22 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 21-37 when their penalty minutes are in the single digits.
Buffalo is 1-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Ottawa is 2-7 in shootouts.
Buffalo is ranked 30th in the league this season with 5.5 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down, however, as the team has created 4.7 takeaways over its last 10 games and 3.8 takeaways over its last five.
Ottawa skaters have managed 6.8 takeaways per game (ranked 20th in the NHL).
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