Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Saturday 2/2/19
NHL – TRENDS OF THE DAY
After a busy Friday night in the NHL, Saturday will be an even busier one, as there are 13 games scheduled. This includes a great battle in the Western Conference as the Anaheim Ducks head north of the border to take on the Winnipeg Jets. In other great action, the St. Louis Blues will battle the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Vancouver Canucks take on the Colorado Avalanche.
Featured Game
Anaheim Ducks(+180) vs.Winnipeg Jets(-220)
Anaheim is in fifth in the Pacific Division with 51 points (21-21-9). The Ducks are 11-13-1 on the road this season and are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games. The Jets lead the Central Division with 68 points (33-16-2) and have been one of the best teams in the NHL at home this season with a 19-6-2 record. Winnipeg is 7-3-0 in their last 10 games.
Goaltending Matchup:
John Gibson will be in net for the Ducks. Gibson is 17-16-8 this season with a 2.74 goals against average and a .919 save percentage. Gibson allowed five goals in his start, a loss to the St. Louis Blues on January 23. Prior to that, he allowed two goals combined in his prior two starts.
Connor Hellebuyck will start for Winnipeg. Hellebuyck is 23-14-1 this season with a 2.85 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. The Winnipeg goaltender has won two straight, allowing three goals in each of those contests.
Hot Trends:
The Anaheim Ducks are…
2-14 in their last 16 games.
0-8 in their last eight games against teams with a winning record.
2-7 in their last nine road games.
The Winnipeg Jets are…
62-21 in their last 83 games at home.
20-8 in their last 28 games.
40-14 in their last 54 games against teams with a losing record.
Stat Pack:
Ducks:
Goals For:2.4
Goals Against:3.0
Power-Play:14.5%
Penalty Killing:80.7%
Jets:
Goals For:3.5
Goals Against:2.8
Power-Play:26.4%
Penalty Killing:80.9%
Prediction
The home team has won five of the last six meetings between these two teams, and Jets have won four of the last five overall. However, the Ducks have won seven of the last 10 in Winnipeg. That would normally be a trend to hang your hat on, but the fact that the Ducks have lost eight straight to teams with a winning record and are 2-14 in their last 16 games makes Winnipeg the smart pick.
The total is set for 6.0 and that seems likely to be eclipsed in this contest. Hellebuyck has allowed at least three goals in each of his last four starts, and Gibson is coming off a performance where he allowed five goals. Winnipeg is one of the best offensive clubs in the NHL, and Anaheim has just enough offense to make help push the over. Take the Jets, 5-2.
Two Games to Watch
Louis Blues (+130) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (-150)
St. Louis is in sixth place in the Central Division with 49 points (22-22-5). The Blues are 10-9-3 on the road this season and are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games. The Blue Jackets are in fourth in the Metropolitan Division with 59 points (28-19-3). Columbus is 14-10-2 at home this season and they are 5-5-0 in their last 10 games.
Why St. Louis Wins:
Blues are 6-2 in their last eight games on the road when facing a team with a winning record at home.
Blue Jackets have lost four straight games.
Blue Jackets are 5-13 in their last 18 games on a Saturday.
Jordan Binnington allowed one goal on 13 shots in his last appearance.
Sergei Bobrovsky has lost three straight games, allowing 11 total goals.
Why Columbus Wins:
Blue Jackets are 9-3 in their last 12 games against teams with a losing record.
Blues are 4-12 in their last 16 games following a win.
Home team is 10-4 in the last 14 meetings.
What About the Total?
Go under 5.5, because…
Total has gone under in five of the last seven meetings.
Louis has gone under in 12 of their last 18 on the road.
Columbus has gone under in nine of their last 13 at home.
Louis has gone under in seven of their last 10.
Vancouver Canucks (+130) vs. Colorado Avalanche (-155)
Vancouver is in fourth place in the Pacific Division with 52 points (23-22-6). The Canucks are 11-12-3 on the road this season and are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games. The Avalanche are in fifth in the Central Division with 52 points (22-20-8). Colorado is 10-8-5 at home this year and are 3-7-0 in their last 10 games.
Why Vancouver Wins:
Canucks are 6-2 in their last eight against teams with a losing record.
Avalanche are 5-16 in their last 21 games.
Avalanche are 2-5 in their last seven games against teams with a losing record on the road.
Canucks are 27-10 in the last 37 meetings.
Canucks are 4-1 in the last five meetings in Colorado.
Why St. Louis Wins:
Canucks are 18-36 in their last 56 games on the road.
Jacob Markstrom gave up give goals on 34 shots in his last start.
Semyon Varlamov has allowed four total goals in his last two starts.
What About the Total?
Go over 6.0, because…
Total has gone over in three of the last five games.
Markstrom allowed five goals in his last start.
Varlamov allowed three goals in his last start.
Avalanche have gone over in eight of their last 10 games.
Avalanche have gone over in four of their last five at home.
Allen Moody
A split on the ice Friday, coming up a goal short in Florida and winning the Islanders under the total. Full slate of games for Saturday, as the leagues have a sparse schedule on Super Bowl Sunday, which is usually the case. We’ll look at a few of the games and have two plays.
Pittsburgh at Toronto: Solid game here, where the Maple Leafs will be smaller favorites when the line finally comes out. The Leafs can be excused for last night’s loss, as they were clearly looking ahead to this one, although Toronto hasn’t been the greatest team after a loss, going 11-8 and 8-9-2 in totals. The Leafs also fare better on the road than they do at home, partly because of the pressure that comes with playing in Toronto in a season where fans are expecting nothing less than making the Eastern Finals, and a bit more. The Penguins are 15-12 after a win and 17-7-3 in totals following a victory and have gone 5-4 as an away underdog this season, while Toronto is just 14-12 as a home favorite.
Los Angeles at NY Islanders: The Islanders opened -170 and the line has stayed there with New York getting close to 70% of the wagers. The total has shifted slightly from 5.5 to 5.5-under (-120) with a little more than 60% of the wagers coming in on the under, which makes sense, as the Kings are 5-13-1 in totals after a victory and New York is now 8-17 at home, while the Kings are 6-16 as an away underdog. Will go ahead and take the under here, as the Islanders won 7-2 earlier this season and the Kings are 0-3 after allowing 6 or more goals to a team the previous meeting, giving up two goals in those three games.
Las Vegas at Florida: Our over chances took a bit of a hit before the game when the Panthers dealt a couple of players away to clear some cap space and they may have Brassard tonight, as the Knights pay a visit. Everybody knows that Vegas is a better home team, but the Knights are 12-5 as an away favorite. Where they’re hurting on the road is when they’re underdogs, as they’ve failed to pull off an away upset all season, going 0-10 as an away dog. With the Knights 15-8 after a loss and the Panthers just 11-17 following a setback will have to go ahead and take Vegas -115 in this one.