NHL Betting Info. 2/25

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: New Jersey at Columbus
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
The Columbus Blue Jackets are buried in last place in the Metropolitan Division but they have been anything but an easy matchup for the New Jersey Devils. The Blue Jackets own a pair of victories over the Devils – both at New Jersey – and look to make it three in a row when the teams square off Thursday night in Columbus.
The Blue Jackets are 7-2-3 in their last 12 games after dropping a 2-1 shootout decision at Detroit, the fifth time in nine games they have gone beyond regulation. Columbus has won four straight against the Devils, permitting a total of six goals in that span. New Jersey halted a three-game skid, erupting for the final four goals in a 5-2 victory over the New York Rangers on Tuesday night. “You can see where we are in the standings,” Devils forward Lee Stempniak said. “Losing three games, it’s tough to keep pace with teams. To not get points in three straight, you are going to fall behind.”
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG-Plus (New Jersey), FSN Ohio (Columbus)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (30-24-7): Rookie forward Sergey Kalinin, who was held off the scoresheet in 11 consecutive games and had not tallied since Dec. 22, scored one goal, set up another and was involved in his first career fight in the win over the Rangers. “I think tonight was an exceptional game for him,” New Jersey coach John Hynes said. “I think we always saw the potential in him.” Goaltender Cory Schneider matched his career high with his 26th victory, but he may not start Thursday with the Devils facing a back-to-back versus Columbus and Tampa Bay.
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (24-29-8): Rookie goaltender Joonas Korpisalo had his string of 12 straight starts come to an end, giving way to Curtis McElhinney, who made his first start since sustaining a high ankle sprain on Jan. 2. “It’s been a great process for (Korpisalo) to continue to grow, to handle the ups and downs,” Columbus coach John Tortorella said. “He’s had a really good mental stiffness about him in that position, which is such a tough position. He just looks a little tired to me.” Boone Jenner has scored five goals in his last five games.
OVERTIME
1. The Devils have scored 11 power-play goals in 11 games this month.
2. McElhinney is 3-1-0 with a 1.61 goals-against average versus New Jersey.
3. Hynes said F Michael Cammalleri (hand), sidelined since Jan. 26, will not return this week.
PREDICTION: Blue Jackets 3, Devils 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Carolina at Toronto

When: 7:30 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario
The Carolina Hurricanes are hanging around in the Eastern Conference playoff race and look to add another victory when they visit the injury-ravaged Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. The Hurricanes began Wednesday two points out of the second wild-card spot and are 5-2-2 in their last nine contests after knocking off Philadelphia 3-1 the previous night thanks to a huge effort in net from Cam Ward.
“He stole this game for us,” Carolina coach Bill Peters told reporters in reference to Ward, who is 7-1-4 in his last dozen decisions. “He allowed us to stay in the game and get our footing a little bit.” The Hurricanes, who are 5-0-1 in their last six meetings with Toronto, might split the goaltending duties between Ward and Eddie Lack with another huge game against Boston set for Friday. The Maple Leafs almost always put up a fight but are winless in four games (0-3-1) and have gone 1-6-1 in their last eight to fall into a tie for last in the league with Edmonton at 50 points. Toronto once again will be without its leading scorer as Leo Komarov (35 points) finishes serving his three-game suspension for an illegal hit.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Carolina), Sportsnet Ontario (Toronto)
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (28-23-10): Captain Eric Staal snapped his 16-game goal-scoring drought last time out and will attempt to build off that as his brother Jordan tries to stay red-hot. The younger Staal has recorded four goals and four assists during a six-game point streak and tops the team with 39 points overall as seven Hurricanes have notched at least 29. Victor Rask has registered three assists in four games and Jeff Skinner leads the club with 21 goals while defenseman Justin Faulk (34 points) returned from a leg injury against Philadelphia.
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (20-28-10): Third-leading scorer Tyler Bozak (31 points), who has been out almost three weeks with a suspected concussion, is skating again and could return to the lineup soon. The talented center is among eight injured players for the Maple Leafs, and that has allowed several youngsters to get a good look while other veterans are showcased for Monday’s trade deadline. “I think it’s going to help us out in the long run,” 21-year-old defenseman Morgan Rielly (25 points) told reporters.
OVERTIME
1. Toronto C Nazem Kadri is second on the team with 32 points and has notched four assists in his last two games.
2. Carolina C Joakim Nordstrom is riding a three-game goal-scoring streak and has recorded eight points in his last nine contests.
3. The Maple Leafs are 4-for-64 on the power play over their last 19 games and rank last in the league with a 14.5 percent success rate.
PREDICTION: Hurricanes 4, Maple Leafs 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Arizona at Florida

When: 7:30 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Florida
The Atlantic Division-leading Florida Panthers could get a pair of important players back in the lineup when they host the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday. First-line center Aleksander Barkov and top-four defenseman Erik Gudbranson have been skating with the team and likely are ready to return from injury as the Panthers look to extend their point streak to four games (2-0-1).
Barkov, who has recorded 35 points in 43 games, has been out since Feb. 8 with a suspected concussion while Gudbranson (upper body) has not played since Feb. 4. Florida is 2-2-1 on its six-game homestand and heads out on the road for five in a row after facing the Coyotes, who are in danger of dropping under .500 for the first time since Dec. 17. Arizona, which is 6-1-1 in its last eight meetings with the Panthers, has dropped three straight contests after suffering a 2-1 defeat at Tampa Bay on Tuesday. “I got no problem with the way we competed,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett told reporters. “We just have to execute better and find ways to generate a few more chances.”
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona Plus, FSN Florida
ABOUT THE COYOTES (27-27-6): Jordan Martinook scored the only goal Tuesday for Arizona, which also lost at Washington 3-2 on Monday to start its five-game road trip. Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson tops the team with 46 points and has registered 200 in his first 400 NHL games while Louis Domingue has kept the team in the last two contests by turning aside 65-of-70 shots. Captain Shane Doan notched an assist Tuesday and tops the team with 22 goals while Mikkel Boedker (13) has gone nine games without a tally.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (34-18-7): While Barkov and Gudbranson may be back in uniform, top-line left wing Jonathan Huberdeau (40 points) likely will be out after suffering an upper-body injury in the 3-1 win over Winnipeg on Saturday. Jaromir Jagr, who was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week on Monday, has scored three goals in his last two contests to move into third place on the all-time list with 742. Jagr leads the way with 43 points for Florida, which has struggled on the power play (1-for-21) over its last seven games.
OVERTIME
1. Arizona D Michael Stone has collected a goal and six assists while posting a plus-4 rating in his last seven games.
2. Florida G Roberto Luongo is on track for his best save percentage (.925) since 2010-11, when he finished at .928.
3. The Coyotes are 0-for-10 on the power play during their three-game losing streak, dropping to 14th in the league (18.7 percent).
PREDICTION: Panthers 4, Coyotes 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: NY Rangers at St. Louis
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Goaltender Jake Allen will make his first start in more than six weeks when the St. Louis Blues host the New York Rangers on Thursday night. Allen, who has been sidelined since suffering a knee injury on Jan. 8, is returning just in time for St. Louis, which lost netminder Brian Elliott for at least four weeks in Monday’s loss to the San Jose Sharks.
“With Brian going down, we’re fortunate that we’ve got Jake back and vice versa when it happened to Jake,” Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk said. “We’re in a good position and the best part is we know what we get out of both goalies every time.” St. Louis also will be without forward Ryan Reaves, who received a three-game suspension for boarding San Jose’s Matt Tennyson. The Rangers had been red hot before opening their three-game road trip with a 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. Captain Ryan McDonagh and fellow defenseman Marc Staal could both return to the lineup for New York, which is 7-2-1 in its last 10 games.
TV: 8 p.m. ET; MSG (New York), FSN Midwest (St. Louis), NHL.TV
ABOUT THE RANGERS (34-20-6): McDonagh has missed the past two games with an injury to his neck and jaw after taking an elbow from Toronto Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov last week, but he had no issues after skating Tuesday morning. “The feedback that I got was everything went well,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “So (Wednesday) is just a travel day for us, he’s going to be on the trip and we’ll see how he feels.” Kevin Hayes scored one of New York’s two goals versus the Devils to give him four tallies in his last seven games.
ABOUT THE BLUES (35-18-9): Allen saw his first action since he was hurt, coming on in relief Monday after Elliott was injured and stopping 15-of-17 shots.
“It was just nice to get my feet wet and tomorrow will be another chance for me to get back out there and feel comfortable again,” Elliott said. “It might take me a game or so to get back into it, but no excuses for me. I’m 30-odd games into the season … I’m ready to go and face the challenge and these guys will help me out.” Allen allowed three goals on five shots in a 6-3 loss at New York on Nov. 12.
OVERTIME
1. Blues F Vladimir Tarasenko, who has scored in each of the past two games, had three goals and five points in five contests versus New York.
2. Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist is 2-4-0 with a 2.72 goals-against average versus St. Louis.
3. The Blues have scored five power-play goals in the past four games.
PREDICTION: Rangers 4, Blues 3

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Nashville at Chicago

When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
The Chicago Blackhawks look to rid the sour taste from their mouths following a lopsided loss when they host the Nashville Predators on Thursday. Corey Crawford yielded four goals on 23 shots before being relieved in what he deemed to be an “embarrassing” performance in a 6-1 setback to Minnesota in the Stadium Series tilt on Sunday.
“We certainly did a lot of funny things in the last game, Sunday, without a real good explanation,” coach Joel Quenneville told CSN Chicago. “Let’s nip that in the bud. That can’t happen.” Crawford is expected to be back in net versus Nashville, against which the two-time Jennings Trophy winner has posted a 3-0-0 mark with a 1.33 goals-against average and .966 save percentage. The Predators have been playing much better of late, extending their overall point streak to seven games (4-0-3) and their franchise-best road point streak to nine (7-0-2) with a 3-2 victory over Toronto on Tuesday. Filip Forsberg notched a natural hat trick against the Maple Leafs to increase his goal total to nine in the last nine contests.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CSN Chicago
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (29-21-11): Pekka Rinne has turned his fortunes around after a disastrous stretch, answering a 3-6-1 run with a 6-3-2 mark and a 2.08 goals-against average. The tough stretch saw the 33-year-old Finn yield three goals in a pair of losses to the Blackhawks. Veteran forward James Neal has scored twice versus Chicago, increasing his goal total to 14 in 22 career meetings.
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (38-19-5): Patrick Kane scored his team’s lone goal on Sunday to push his career-high total to 35, with five tallies and six assists coming in the nine contests following the All-Star break. Kane has scored three goals and set up two others against Nashville this season, raising his point total to 41 (20 goals, 21 assists) in 47 encounters with the Music City representatives. Captain Jonathan Toews notched an assist for the third straight game on Sunday and has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last eight contests.
OVERTIME
1. Chicago has permitted eight power-play goals in the last six games.
2. Nashville is just 6-11-3 against its division representatives.
3. Predators C Ryan Johansen has just one goal in his last 14 contests.
PREDICTION: Blackhawks 4, Predators 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Winnipeg at Dallas
When: 8:30 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
In a season full of disappointment and diminishing expectations, the most poignant sign for the Winnipeg Jets came on captain Andrew Ladd’s second-period shorthanded goal in Tuesday’s loss to Dallas. The Jets hit the road for the next two games starting Thursday against the Stars, and it is likely Ladd – who has scored 110 goals as a Jet in the team’s five seasons in Winnipeg – will be on the move at Monday’s trade deadline.
Hours after Ladd admitted he may have taken his final game-day drive to the MTS Centre, the pending free agent scored his 17th goal – drawing a long standing ovation – but it was not enough to keep Winnipeg from losing its fourth in a row and 13th in the past 19 games. The home-and-home with the Jets comes along at the right time for Dallas, which was torched for 13 goals in back-to-back losses last week before Jamie Benn scored twice in Tuesday’s 5-3 victory. “It’s a tough stretch here, a lot of important games for us and we want to play as well as possible,” Dallas defenseman John Klingberg told reporters after the Stars opened a stretch of five games in eight days. The victory vaulted the Stars over Chicago and back into first place in the Western Conference.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, TSN3 (Winnipeg), FSN Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE JETS (25-30-4): Ladd certainly has raised his trade value, scoring seven goals in his past 10 games and four in the past three, but Winnipeg continues to backslide in the standings and now sits just four points ahead of Edmonton for last in the West. “Our confidence is low right now,” goaltender Ondrej Pavelec admitted to reporters after Tuesday’s game, the fifth time in the past 10 games the Jets have surrendered five goals or more. Maybe going on the road will be beneficial for Winnipeg, which has lost seven of its past eight home contests but is 3-2-1 in its past six road matchups.
ABOUT THE STARS (38-17-6): Benn has points in eight of his last nine games and five (three goals, two assists) in his past three, and ranks second in the NHL to Chicago’s Patrick Kane in points (69) — sitting third in the league in goals (32). Dallas more closely resembled one of the West favorites Tuesday after dreadful losses to Arizona and Boston last week as coach Lindy Ruff put Benn, Jason Spezza and Tyler Seguin together (82 goals total) on the same line. Goaltender Antti Niemi made 22 saves and benefited from some good luck Tuesday as the Jets rang the post three different times in the third period.
OVERTIME
1. Dallas is 4-0-0 against the Jets this season, scoring 17 goals while holding Winnipeg’s power play scoreless on 13-of-14 chances.
2. Tests on Winnipeg C Bryan Little – who suffered a head injury last week at Tampa Bay – raised what coach Paul Maurice called a “red flag” after practice Wednesday and he will not travel to Dallas.
3. Stars F Patrick Eaves did not play Tuesday and is expected to miss at least a week with an illness.
PREDICTION: Stars 4, Jets 1

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: NY Islanders at Calgary
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
The New York Islanders look to take advantage of a soft portion of their schedule when they continue their franchise record-tying seven-game road trip against the struggling Calgary Flames on Thursday. The third contest of the trek versus the Flames marks the first of four straight against teams that have yet to record 60 points on the season.
Frans Nielsen posted his fourth multi-goal performance of 2015-16 on Tuesday as New York notched its second consecutive win and improved to 6-1-1 in its last eight with a 4-1 victory over Minnesota. Jaroslav Halak made 30 saves versus the Wild to improve to 3-1-0 in his last four contests and turned aside all 29 shots he faced in the Islanders’ 4-0 triumph over Calgary on Oct. 26. While New York is ascending, the Flames have dropped two in a row and five of six as they languish near the bottom of the Pacific Division. Forward Johnny Gaudreau extended his point streak to five games (one goal, six assists) by setting up Sean Monahan’s power-play tally in Calgary’s 2-1 setback to Los Angeles on Tuesday.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, MSG-Plus 2 (New York), RSW (Calgary)
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (32-19-7): Captain John Tavares scored a power-play goal and set up another tally with the man advantage versus the Wild to extend his point total to 13 (six goals, seven assists) in the past nine games. New York has made considerable strides on the power play of late, going 8-for-31 in the last nine games, and faces Calgary’s 30th-ranked penalty kill. “The guys are moving the puck, they’re shooting pucks,” coach Jack Capuano told Newsday. “They’re not just looking for the sexy play right now.”
ABOUT THE FLAMES (26-30-3): Joni Ortio deserved a better fate on Tuesday after stopping 35-of-37 shots against the Kings. “He kept us in the game. I thought he was real strong, tracking the puck well,” coach Bob Hartley told the team’s website of Ortio. The 24-year-old Finn could be in line for his fourth start of the season and second versus the Islanders, against whom he made 31 saves in October.
OVERTIME
1. New York owns a 16-4-2 record against the Western Conference, including an 8-2-1 mark versus Pacific Division representatives.
2. Flames LW Jiri Hudler, who has notched an assist in back-to-back contests overall, has yet to score a goal in eight career outings with the Islanders.
3. New York has outscored Calgary by an 8-2 margin en route to winning each of the last three encounters.
PREDICTION: Islanders 5, Flames 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Ottawa at Vancouver
When: 10:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia
At least one Canadian team has reached the Stanley Cup playoffs in the last 45 seasons, but that streak is in serious jeopardy as the Ottawa Senators visit the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday in a clash of 11th-place teams. Ottawa sits four points behind Pittsburgh for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference but has played two more games than the Penguins while Vancouver trails Colorado by 10 points in the West with four contests in hand on the Avalanche.
The Senators kicked off a three-game road trip through western Canada with a 4-1 victory over Edmonton on Tuesday for their fourth straight win. “We want to keep this thing going, because we still have a lot of work to do,” Ottawa center Curtis Lazar told reporters. “Winning is fun and confidence can be a scary thing, but we can’t look too far ahead. The game against Vancouver is going to be big, and anytime the puck drops we have to be ready to go.” The Canucks snapped a four-game slide – all 5-2 losses – with a 5-1 victory over Colorado on Sunday that began a five-game homestand and snapped a six-game losing streak (0-5-1) at Rogers Arena. Vancouver needs Ryan Miller to stay hot after his 37-save performance prompted Avalanche coach Patrick Roy, who knows a thing or two about goaltending, to tell reporters: “It’s probably one of the better performances I’ve seen from a goaltender against us this year.”
TV: 10 p.m. ET, RDS, TSN5 (Ottawa), Sportsnet Pacific (Vancouver)
ABOUT THE SENATORS (29-26-6): Zack Smith scored in his last three games and has a career-high 15 goals – one of eight Senators with 10 or more. Mike Hoffman and Bobby Ryan pace the team with 24 and 20 goals, respectively, while defenseman Erik Karlsson leads the NHL with 54 assists and is fourth in the league with a team-best 65 points. Chris Wideman, a 26-year-old rookie defenseman who has five goals and nine points in 44 games this season, signed a two-year, one-way contract extension worth $1.6 million Wednesday.
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (23-24-12): Daniel Sedin leads the team with 22 goals and 52 points after recording three assists Sunday and has seven assists in his last four contests as part of a five-game point streak. Radim Vrbata, who has 12 goals this season after scoring 31 in 2014-15, isn’t expected to play after leaving Sunday’s game with an undisclosed injury. Markus Granlund, a 22-year-old center, is expected to make his Vancouver debut after he was acquired from Calgary on Monday as the former second-round pick compiled four goals and seven points in 31 games with the Flames this season.
OVERTIME
1. Vrbata and teammate Bo Horvat (10 goals, 26 points) are an NHL-worst minus-32 and minus-30, respectively.
2. Vancouver continues its five-game homestand with its first meeting of the season against Pacific Division rival San Jose on Sunday as the Canucks and Sharks play their five-game series in a 33-day span with the initial three contests in seven days.
3. Ottawa, which prevailed 3-2 at home Nov. 12 in the opener of the two-game season series, has lost six of its last seven contests in Vancouver.
PREDICTION: Canucks 3, Senators 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 2/25

Preview: Edmonton at Los Angeles
When: 10:30 PM ET, Thursday, February 25, 2016
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
The Los Angeles Kings attempt to maintain their slim lead in the Pacific Division and extend their winning streak to three games when they continue their three-game homestand Thursday against the basement-dwelling Edmonton Oilers. Los Angeles leads Anaheim by two points thanks to its second straight 2-1 victory – a home triumph over Calgary on Tuesday.
Anze Kopitar has regained his scoring touch, netting five goals in as many games – including the power-play winner versus the Flames in his first contest back after missing one with a lower-body injury. Edmonton is coming off a disastrous six-game homestand on which it lost the final five contests. The Oilers are last in the Western Conference and tied with Toronto for the fewest points in the league with 50. Los Angeles won each of the first three meetings in the five-game season series, two of which were one-goal decisions.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet 360 (Edmonton), FSN West (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE OILERS (22-33-6): Jordan Eberle is one away from reaching the 20-goal plateau for the third consecutive season after netting the lone tally in Tuesday’s loss to Ottawa but is among the worst on the team with a minus-12 rating. Edmonton cut ties with Philip Larsen on Wednesday, trading the defenseman to Vancouver for a conditional 2017 fifth-round draft pick. The 26-year-old Dane, who was a fifth-round pick of Dallas before being acquired for Shawn Horcoff in July 2013, recorded three goals and nine assists over 30 games with the Oilers in 2013-14 – his only season in the NHL.
ABOUT THE KINGS (35-20-4): Tyler Toffoli leads the team in goals (24) and power-play tallies (nine) while ranking third with four game-winners but has scored just once in his last eight games. Defenseman Drew Doughty is riding a four-game assist streak and needs one point to reach 40 for the fourth time in his career. Jeff Carter, who is mired in a seven-game goal-scoring drought and has netted only one in his last 16 contests, needs six to avoid his first sub-20 season since 2006-07 with Philadelphia.
OVERTIME
1. Los Angeles has been held to fewer than three goals in five straight contests, going 2-2-1 in that span.
2. Edmonton recalled 21-year-old LW Jujhar Khaira, who notched two assists over 12 games in his NHL debut earlier this season, from Bakersfield of the American Hockey League on Wednesday.
3. Los Angeles G Jonathan Quick has hit the 30-win mark for the second season in a row and fifth time in his career.
PREDICTION: Kings 4, Oilers 2