NHL Betting Info. 3/8

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Preview: Pittsburgh at NY Islanders
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
The New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins have ratcheted up the intensity as each prepares for the stretch run toward the postseason. The surging Metropolitan Division rivals look to continue their good fortune at the other’s expense on Tuesday when they meet at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The Islanders posted a 6-4 victory over the New York Rangers on Sunday to win their third straight and wrap up a franchise high-tying seven-game road trip with a 6-1-0 mark. “The road trip was so long and you go through so many stages. This win right now was the biggest one,” fourth-liner Cal Clutterbuck told the team’s website after he scored the game-winning goal to send New York to its 10th win in 13 outings (10-2-1). While the Islanders reside three points behind the second-place Rangers, Pittsburgh has won four of six to move into the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Evgeni Malkin, who had three assists in the Penguins’ 5-2 win over the Islanders on Jan. 2, increased his point total to six (four goals, two assists) in his last four games after scoring twice in a 6-1 victory over New Jersey on Sunday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBC Sports, ROOT (Pittsburgh)
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (34-23-8): Captain Sidney Crosby scored two power-play goals in the first meeting with New York and has three tallies and six assists on his current five-game point streak. Patric Hornqvist saw his five-game point streak come to a halt versus the Devils, but he has scored eight goals and set up three others in his last 10 encounters with the Islanders. Fellow forward Carl Hagelin, who is questionable to face New York, passed the team’s concussion protocol on Monday after sitting out versus New Jersey.
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (36-20-7): Captain John Tavares has torched the Penguins of late, scoring in the most recent encounter to increase his point total to six (three goals, three assists) in the last four meetings. Despite picking up an assist for his first point in four games, Tavares now finds himself one behind Kyle Okposo (52 points) for the team lead. Okposo, who has recorded three straight multi-point performances overall, has 30 points (13 goals, 17 assists) in 36 career encounters with Pittsburgh.
OVERTIME
1. Pittsburgh G Marc-Andre Fleury, who is 6-1-1 in his last eight games versus Metropolitan Division representatives, is one win shy of 350 for his career.
2. New York G Jaroslav Halak, who is 4-1-0 in his last five contests, is one win shy of 200 for his career.
3. Islanders C Casey Cizikas has six points (two goals, four assists) in his last seven games.
PREDICTION: Islanders 4, Penguins 3

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Preview: Dallas at Montreal
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Where: Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec
Engaged in a fierce battle with reigning Stanley Cup champion Chicago and St. Louis for supremacy in the Central Division, the Dallas Stars go for their third straight victory when they visit the sliding Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night. Dallas has bounced back from a four-game skid to win two in a row and remain tied with the Blackhawks atop the division.
The Stars eked out a 2-1 win at Ottawa on Sunday on a late goal by Antoine Roussel to improve to 19-10-6 away from home, but coach Lindy Ruff was hardly satisfied with the team’s performance. “It might be the worst puck moving game for missing passes and not making plays in the three years I’ve coached here,” Ruff said. The Canadiens completed a winless four-game road trip (0-3-1) with a 4-2 setback at Winnipeg on Saturday, but they hope to regain some momentum at the Bell Centre in the opener of a four-game homestand. Sitting nine points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, Montreal is riding a six-game home point streak (5-0-1).
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), RDS, Sportsnet (Montreal), NHL.TV
ABOUT THE STARS (40-20-7): Captain Jamie Benn led the league in scoring last season and tops Dallas with 72 points this season, but he is mired in a six-game goalless drought – a span in which he checks in at a minus-9. “Sometimes, you try too hard and try to do too much, and it doesn’t help yourself or your team,” Benn said. “I have to find a way to keep it as simple as possible.” While Benn and second-leading scorer Tyler Seguin are mired in slumps, center Jason Spezza has scored in three straight games and has six goals in his last seven contests.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (30-30-6): Montreal has been ravaged by injuries and the trend continued in the loss at Winnipeg as red-hot Alex Galchenyuk and forward Brendan Gallagher were injured. Gallagher (lower body) already has been ruled out of Tuesday’s contest while Galchenyuk (upper body), who scored twice against Winnipeg and has seven goals in his last six games, is questionable along with forward Lars Eller (lower body). None of those players were at Monday’s practice for the Canadiens, who scored only eight goals during the four-game road trip.
OVERTIME
1. Benn has five goals and nine points in seven games versus the Canadiens.
2. Montreal is 0-for-14 on the power play over the past five contests.
3. Stars D John Klingberg and F Patrick Sharp are not expected to play but F Patrick Eaves appears set to rejoin the lineup after a seven-game absence.
PREDICTION: Canadiens 3, Stars 2

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Preview: Boston at Tampa Bay
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida
The Boston Bruins can sweep their two-game trip to the Sunshine State and take over first place in the Atlantic Division when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. The Bruins have earned points in four straight contests (3-0-1) and gone 5-1-1 in their last seven as they posted a 5-4 overtime victory at Florida on Monday, making Claude Julien (388) the franchise’s all-time leader in coaching wins after blowing a three-goal lead.
Patrice Bergeron has scored in four consecutive games for Boston, totaling five goals, and Lee Stempniak has notched six points in four contests since being acquired from New Jersey at the trade deadline. The Lightning will try to keep a hold on first place after seeing their nine-game winning streak come to an end with a 4-2 defeat at Philadelphia on Monday. “Let’s not get all panicky and worried,” Tampa Bay captain Steven Stamkos told reporters after the team was outshot 40-18. “That was a crappy game, and we realize that. It’s time to get back to work.” Ben Bishop is expected back in net after being rested Monday and carries a six-game winning streak into the contest.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, TVA, NESN (Boston), Sun Sports (Tampa Bay)
ABOUT THE BRUINS (37-23-7): Stempniak scored his first goal for Boston in overtime Monday to go along with five assists in a week with the team while playing on a line with Bergeron (team-best 59 points) and Brad Marchand (club-high 33 goals). Tuukka Rask was forced to make 47 saves on Monday, and that workload could give Tuesday’s start to backup Jonas Gustavsson (10-5-1, .909 save percentage). Defenseman Kevan Miller did not make the trip to Florida after suffering an upper-body injury on a hit from Washington’s Alex Ovechkin on Saturday.
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (39-23-4): Tyler Johnson has raised his level of play, recording three goals and four assists over his last four contests, and linemate Ondrej Palat has netted four tallies in a three-game span. Nikita Kucherov leads Tampa Bay with 54 points – four in his last three games – and Stamkos is next with 52, including a team-high 29 goals. Slater Koekkoek notched his first career point Monday and could play again Tuesday with fellow defensemen Braydon Coburn (lower body) and Andrej Sustr (undisclosed) considered day-to-day.
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay continues to struggle on the power play, going 4-for-47 over its last 15 contests.
2. Boston RW Brett Connolly, who was acquired from Tampa Bay a little over a year ago, notched his second goal in 19 games Monday.
3. The Lightning have won both meetings in Boston this season but lost at home 3-1 on Oct. 31.
PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Lightning 1

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Preview: Nashville at Winnipeg
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Where: MTS Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
The Nashville Predators have gone nearly a month without a regulation loss as they continue their five-game road trip with a visit to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night. The Predators kicked off the trek with an impressive 5-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday to extend their franchise-record point streak to 12 games (8-0-4).
Nashville, which hasn’t lost in regulation since a 5-3 setback to Washington on Feb. 9, holds a six-point edge over Minnesota for the No. 7 slot in the Western Conference. “We’re just trying to focus on setting ourselves up and catching some of the teams ahead of us – and put some distance between the teams that are chasing us,” Predators captain Shea Weber said. While Nashville may be unable to climb in the standings due to the play of division rivals Chicago, Dallas and St. Louis, Winnipeg has dropped eight of 10 (2-6-2) following a 2-1 setback to visiting Edmonton. The teams have split four meetings this season.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Tennessee (Nashville), TSN3 (Winnipeg)
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (33-21-12): Since returning from a three-game injury absence, Weber has two goals and three assists during a three-game point streak – including an empty-net tally Saturday that tied him with Martin Erat for second on the franchise goal-scoring list with 163. “Guess I’ve been around here too long,” Weber said. “Took long enough, I guess. I don’t even pay attention to it, honestly.” It’s hard not to pay attention to red-hot forward Filip Forsberg, who scored his 14th goal in the the past 14 games Saturday to boost his season total to 28.
ABOUT THE JETS (27-33-5): Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele is on a tear of his own, averaging a goal per game over the past nine contests – punctuated by a six-goal outburst over the past three games that earned him NHL Second Star of the Week honors on Monday. The 22-year-old Scheifele has amassed 14 points during the past nine contests, but he has netting only six of his 21 goals in 30 away games. Goaltender Ondrej Pavelec, who missed nearly three months with a knee injury, appeared in his first back-to-back over the weekend and had two solid outings by allowing four goals.
OVERTIME
1. Nashville has won five straight away from home to extend its road point string to 10 games (9-0-1).
2. The Jets are 2-for-21 on the power play over the past seven contests.
3. Predators F James Neal has three goals and three assists in the season series and 16 goals in his last 19 games against the Winnipeg franchise.
PREDICTION: Predators 4, Jets 2

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Preview: San Jose at Edmonton
When: 9:00 PM ET, Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Where: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta
The San Jose Sharks seek their fifth victory in six games when they conclude their two-game trip to Alberta on Tuesday against the Edmonton Oilers. San Jose further strengthened its hold on third place in the Pacific Division with a 2-1 overtime victory at Calgary on Monday as captain Joe Pavelski scored 19 seconds into the extra session to reach the 30-goal plateau for the third consecutive season and fourth time in his career.
Sharks defenseman Brent Burns, who was named the NHL’s Third Star of the Week on Monday, is riding a four-game goal-scoring streak during which he also has notched four assists. Edmonton returns home from a successful 3-1-0 road trip, capping the trek with a 2-1 triumph at Winnipeg on Sunday that gave it points in five of its last six overall contests (4-1-1). Cam Talbot earned the NHL’s First Star of the Week honors after going 3-0-0 with one shutout, a 0.65 goals-against average and a .981 save percentage, while Taylor Hall leads the Oilers with 57 points, notching one in three straight games and seven in his last 11. San Jose and Edmonton split their first two meetings this season, with each club winning at home.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, CSN California (San Jose), Sportsnet West (Edmonton)
ABOUT THE SHARKS (36-23-6): James Reimer is likely to make his second start for San Jose after Martin Jones produced a career-best 47-save performance Monday. The 27-year-old Reimer allowed three goals on 25 shots in a loss to Vancouver on Saturday in his debut with the Sharks after being acquired from Toronto. Joe Thornton enters Tuesday with a five-game point streak (one goal, six assists) and has landed on the scoresheet in 32 of his last 36 contests.
ABOUT THE OILERS (26-35-7): Edmonton lost Brandon Davidson — possibly for the rest of the season — in Sunday’s victory as the defenseman suffered an apparent knee injury on a hit by Dustin Byfuglien. “He will get some MRIs and pictures done,” coach Todd McLellan told reporters Monday. “Without knowing the results and just listening to the trainers talk, I think Davy’s going to be a bit more long-term than short-term.” Blue-liner Oscar Klefbom, who hasn’t played since Dec. 11 because of several injuries, could be returning soon as he skated in full equipment Monday.
OVERTIME
1. The Oilers recalled D Griffin Reinhart from Bakersfield of the American Hockey League on Monday as a result of Davidson’s injury.
2. San Jose has earned at least one point in 22 of its last 27 contests (18-5-4).
3. Edmonton LW Patrick Maroon has recorded four points in three games since being acquired from Anaheim, where he notched only 13 in 56 contests.
PREDICTION: Oilers 3, Sharks 2