NHL Betting Info. 1/17

[TheGame]

Preview: Hurricanes (20-18) at Penguins (19-16)


Date: January 17, 2016 3:00 PM EDT


The Pittsburgh Penguins certainly remember Carl Hagelin's goal that eliminated them from the playoffs last year. They're hoping he can play a big role in eventually getting them back there.


Hagelin makes his debut for the struggling Penguins on Sunday against the Carolina Hurricanes.


Hagelin spent his first four NHL seasons with the New York Rangers, who ousted Pittsburgh (20-16-7) from the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. The left wing did the honors himself April 24, scoring in overtime of a 2-1 victory in Game 5.


The Penguins were probably happy to see him get traded to Anaheim over the summer. They're thrilled to take him from the Ducks on Saturday in exchange for David Perron and Adam Clendening.


"It'll be nice to see him practice a little bit, and stop him," goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury told the team's official website in jest. "No, it'll be good though. He's a good player. He's a fast player. He's got some skills. We've seen him play a lot over the years."


That's certainly true for coach Mike Sullivan, who was an assistant with the Rangers during Hagelin's first two seasons.


"He can really skate," Sullivan said. "And he's a real good guy. I think he's going to make us faster. I think he's versatile, he can play up and down the lineup. He's a good penalty killer, and he can bring a lot to the team.


"Right off the bat he brings an element of speed that will bring our team speed to another level."


That didn't happen for Hagelin in an underwhelming stint with the Ducks, scoring four goals with eight assists in 43 games.


He's going to get every chance to do better than that with Sullivan planning to use him on a line with Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel.


Malkin leads Pittsburgh with 19 goals and 41 points. The center has 11 points over the past eight games after getting two assists in Friday's 5-4 overtime loss at Tampa Bay.


The Penguins are three points back of the Lightning and Montreal for the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference. They've dropped 13 of their last 19 games (6-8-5), including two defeats to Carolina (20-18-8) after losing 3-2 in overtime Tuesday.


The Hurricanes' four-game winning streak ended with Friday's 3-2 OT defeat to Vancouver.


"I'm glad we got the point," coach Bill Peters said. "I'm glad we stuck with it and were resilient. We were able to find a way to get a point on a night when we didn't play a complete game."


Kris Versteeg has been hot of late, scoring three goals and setting up three others over the past five games. He had a goal and an assist against the Penguins on Tuesday, and Eric Staal matched that.


Staal has nine points in his last seven meetings with Pittsburgh, but he was held off the score sheet in a 2-1 home loss Dec. 19.


The Hurricanes have had a tough time with Sidney Crosby, who has 47 points in 36 career meetings - including the playoffs. He has four assists over the last three matchups, getting two earlier this week.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Canucks (15-17) at Islanders (21-15)


Date: January 17, 2016 4:00 PM EDT


Bo Horvat is in the midst of the most successful offensive stretch of his young career with the Vancouver Canucks.


Brock Nelson hasn't had trouble scoring for the New York Islanders of late, either.


Both young forwards look to stay hot Sunday when the visiting Canucks try to continue their success against the Islanders.


Horvat has recorded nine of his 19 points with six goals and three assists during a six-game point streak. His second goal Friday in overtime helped Vancouver (18-17-10) improve to 1-1-0 on its six-game trip with a 3-2 victory at Carolina.


"To get on a streak in the New Year, it helps my confidence a lot," he told the NHL's official website. "You enjoy coming to the rink. You enjoy the next shift, the next period, everything. It lifts you.


"It's something I wasn't feeling at the beginning of the year."


The ninth overall pick in 2013, Horvat had 25 points in 68 games as a rookie last season but has struggled to elevate his game with a minus-20 rating in 2015-16. Horvat, though, was a plus-2 on Friday and has earned the praise of coach Willie Desjardins.


"Bo has started taking a lot of faceoffs and doing extra things and he has seemed to flourish," said Desjardins, whose team is 7-3-2 since losing three straight Dec. 13-17. "When he got more given to him, he seemed to find his game. He has been good the last six games, not only offensively but defensively."


Horvat had a goal in a 4-0 win at New York last season. Vancouver has averaged 3.8 goals while taking five of its last six against the Islanders (24-15-5) and has won three road meetings in a row and earned at least a point in six straight at New York.


Nelson has one goal in four games against the Canucks but five in his last four overall. His team-leading 18 goals are two shy of a career high set last season.


Two nights after the third-year center recorded his first hat trick, Nelson scored the equalizer to open a three-goal third period in Thursday's 3-1 win over the Rangers.


"Starting to get into a little bit of a rhythm," said Nelson, who has scored all but five of his goals in Brooklyn and has seven with three assists in the last eight at Barclays Center.


Second in the league with an 87.3 percentage on the penalty kill at home, the Islanders have thwarted 31 of 32 opportunities while winning eight 11 there.


Vancouver has scored a power-play goal in five consecutive games in which it's skated with the man-advantage, but never got the chance to extend that streak Friday.


Daniel Sedin will again try to become Vancouver's all-time goals leader after matching Markus Naslund at 346 with two in Monday's 3-2 overtime win over Florida. Sedin has two goals with eight assists during a six-game road point streak against the Isles.


Vancouver's Jacob Markstrom made 38 saves Friday and has a 1.73 goals-against average in his last four road starts. However, No. 1 starter Ryan Miller could play for the second time in three games since missing almost a month with muscle issues.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Panthers (21-13) at Lightning (21-17)


Date: January 17, 2016 5:00 PM EDT


It's not clear if the balance of power in the Sunshine State has shifted to the Florida Panthers, whose two wins over the Tampa Bay Lightning can partly be credited to good fortune.


The Lightning have used a season-high four-game win streak to creep closer to the Atlantic Division leaders heading into Sunday evening's matchup against a visiting Panthers team that was crushed in its last contest.


Florida (26-13-5) has used a club-record 12-game win streak that ended with Monday's 3-2 overtime loss at Vancouver to take over the division lead. The Lightning are seven points behind.


The Panthers didn't finish higher than sixth place in each of the two previous seasons while Tampa Bay (23-17-4) finished second both times and reached the Stanley Cup Final last season to further establish itself as the best team in the state.


Florida swept a home-and-home set in November against Tampa Bay, though both contests could easily have gone the other way.


The Panthers won 5-4 in a shootout on Nov. 14, with Aaron Ekblad scoring a tying power-play goal with 38 seconds left after an ill-timed penalty by Ryan Callahan. Tampa Bay held a 28-23 edge in shots.


Two days later, the Lightning outshot the Panthers by 19 but Roberto Luongo stopped all 39 in a 1-0 victory in which Ekblad scored with 21 seconds left.


The feisty nature of this rivalry was seen in the first meeting as the Panthers' Shawn Thornton and Lightning's J.T. Brown both drew misconduct penalties for a third-period altercation.


Ekblad won't be around for any heroics this time since he is out with an upper-body injury.


The Panthers' win streak came with the defenseman in the lineup. He missed his second straight game Wednesday, a 6-0 defeat at Calgary in which Florida was outshot 36-15.


The Panthers have been outshot in all seven games in January, including five times by double digits.


"I think, at the end of the day, it's a good thing," defenseman Erik Gudbranson said. "I don't think anybody's really felt really good about our game over the past four or five games, so we needed a good spanking like that."


Luongo was pulled after a four-goal first period. He had allowed at least three goals in five straight starts against Tampa Bay prior to his shutout in the last meeting.


Ben Bishop is 6-1-1 with a 2.17 goals-against average in eight starts against the Panthers.


Florida is enduring an 0-for-13 drought on the power play in its last six games while Tampa Bay ended an 0-for-12 stretch over five games by converting twice in five attempts in Friday's 5-4 overtime home win over Pittsburgh.


"Sometimes the stats don't always show but in a game tonight where you're scoring five and you need every single one of them to win a game, the PP gets two," coach Jon Cooper said.


Vladislav Namestnikov's first career hat trick was capped with the winning goal. He has eight points in a four-game run and Nikita Kucherov has five in a four-game streak.


Jaromir Jagr leads Florida with 32 points, though his five-game streak in which he amassed six ended Wednesday.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Rangers (22-15) at Capitals (31-8)


Date: January 17, 2016 5:00 PM EDT


The Washington Capitals stunned the New York Rangers last week with a dramatic comeback to continue rolling. They're trying to bounce back from a different kind of surprising effort.


Less than 24 hours after losing to one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference, the Capitals will try to extend their home winning streak to 12 games Sunday against the Rangers.


Washington (33-8-3) owns the most points in the NHL and has won the last two matchups with New York (24-15-5). The most recent meeting, though, seemed headed in the Rangers' favor as the Capitals blew a two-goal, third-period lead. However, Nicklas Backstrom forced overtime by scoring with 5.7 seconds left in regulation, and Alex Ovechkin converted Washington's first shot in the extra session of the 4-3 road win last Saturday.


The Capitals won their next two games to push their run to five before that streak unexpectedly ended with Saturday's 4-1 loss at Buffalo


"We didn't invest enough to win a hockey game," coach Barry Trotz said. "We were really easy on them in the first. We didn't touch anybody, we just played."


Washington, 21-3-2 since Nov. 21, isn't having any such issues at home, where it's won 11 straight games while averaging 4.09 goals. It's the club's longest home winning streak since a franchise-record 13-game run from Jan. 5-March 6, 2010.


Ovechkin has 10 goals during the current streak, and his 26 on the season are tied with Dallas' Jamie Benn for second - two behind Patrick Kane of Chicago. The All-Star left wing has 10 goals during an eight-game regular-season scoring streak against the Rangers, netting a pair at New York last week.


Ovechkin, though, was held to three tallies as the Caps lost to New York in seven games of a second-round playoff series last year.


While Henrik Lundqvist posted a 1.65 goals-against average in that series, he's surrendered nine goals on 55 shots over the last two against Washington this season.


That could be partly why he's expected to be rested in favor of Antti Raanta, who is 0-2-1 with a 3.16 GAA in his last four starts after winning his first four with a 1.25 GAA.


Raanta is also slated to get the call since Lundqvist made 34 saves while turning aside all three shootout attempts in a 3-2 win at Philadelphia on Saturday.


"You need a goaltender's 'A' game and there's no doubt we got (Lundqvist's) 'A' game," coach Alain Vigneault said.


New York has alternated wins and losses over the last nine games, going 5-3-1 since losing 7-3 to Washington at home on Dec. 20.


Chris Kreider had a goal in that meeting but went without one in his next six games before finding the net Saturday. He scored twice in the most recent visit to Washington, leading the Rangers to a 4-3 win in Game 6 on May 10.


That's the last time Rick Nash scored against the Capitals, getting just one assist in four overall matchups since. He's failed to score in six straight games as his 12 goals are a far cry from his career-high 42 from last season.


It's unknown if the Rangers will have to contend with Braden Holtby, who was pulled midway through the second period Saturday after giving up three goals on 16 shots. He was 20-0-2 with a 1.85 GAA over his previous 23 games, including both matchups at New York.


Philipp Grubauer replaced him Saturday and stopped 12 of 13 shots. He's 2-1-0 with a 2.62 GAA against the Rangers, last facing them in January 2014.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Canadiens (21-18) at Blackhawks (29-13)


Date: January 17, 2016 7:00 PM EDT


The Chicago Blackhawks survived a challenge to their lengthy win streak when Corey Crawford shined again this past week versus his hometown Montreal Canadiens.


The Blackhawks will try to match a franchise record with their 11th consecutive victory Sunday night in a quick rematch against the slumping Canadiens.


Crawford stopped 39 shots in Montreal on Thursday and all 17 in the third period to allow Chicago to hang on for a 2-1 victory. Jonathan Toews and Ryan Garbutt scored in the opening period.


Crawford, owner of a 1.49 goals-against average in his last six games, got to take a break Friday, and Patrick Kane's first regular-season hat trick provided Scott Darling with enough support for a 4-1 victory in Toronto.


Kane, who also had an assist, is now two goals shy of matching his career-high 30 from 2009-10. He has helped push the Blackhawks (30-13-4) to a one-point lead over Dallas in the Western Conference after they trailed by 13 on Dec. 27.


"We're happy with the way we're trending but we're not satisfied with where we're at," Kane said. "We still feel like we can improve. Our coaches feel like we can improve so there's plenty of things we can do better."


Crawford is 4-0-2 with a 1.32 GAA - his lowest versus any opponent - in six career matchups against Montreal (23-18-4). He has given up three goals on 98 shots while winning his last three.


"We've seen him progress here each and every year. He's having a great stretch for us right now," coach Joel Quenneville said. "He's one of the reasons why we've been winning."


Chicago is seeking to match its 11-game win streak from 2012-13 - the second of its three recent victorious Stanley Cup campaigns - and its season-best six-game home win streak Oct. 10-Nov. 2.


The Blackhawks will face a team that's 4-14-1 in its last 19 after a 4-3 overtime loss in St. Louis on Saturday. The Canadiens outshot the Blues 49-22 but couldn't hold on to a pair of one-goal leads in regulation, losing the final one with 5:25 remaining.


Montreal also went 1 for 7 on the power play in its ninth defeat in the last 11 road games. The Canadiens are 5 for 60 on the power play in their past 19 contests.


"We've got to be better. We've got to find ways to win. That's what it comes down to," forward Brendan Gallagher said. "We have to forget about this one, as much as it hurts. We have to move on and find a way to win (against the Blackhawks). It's not going to be easy. It was an emotional game. They found a way to win and we didn't. It (stinks)."


Chicago has won its past four games against Montreal and is 6-0-2 in its last eight. The Blackhawks have claimed five consecutive home matchups dating back to Oct. 18, 2006.


With Carey Price still out because of a leg injury, the Canadiens started Mike Condon in the most recent game against Chicago but are expected to turn to Ben Scrivens in this one.


Scrivens is 1-2-1 with a 3.19 GAA in four career games versus the Blackhawks but made 38 saves in a 2-1 shootout loss for Edmonton on March 6.


Toews has four goals and three assists in a five-game point streak against Montreal. Kane has two goals and four assists in his last seven matchups.


Max Pacioretty and Tomas Plekanec - Montreal's two leading scorers - have never scored against the Blackhawks. Pacioretty has gone seven games and Plekanec 11 meetings.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Flyers (18-15) at Red Wings (22-14)


Date: January 17, 2016 7:30 PM EDT


The Detroit Red Wings are hoping to continue their momentum after an exceptional road trip but will have to face a team that's also been successful of late in their return home.


The Philadelphia Flyers will seek to extend their season-high point streak when they face Detroit for the first time this season Sunday night.


Detroit (23-14-7) finished 5-1-0 on its longest trip in 2015-16 by rallying for a 3-2 overtime win against Arizona on Thursday. Danny DeKeyser had the winning goal after Pavel Datsyuk and Gustav Nyquist scored in the third period.


The Red Wings will play at Joe Louis Arena for the first time since a 5-2 loss to Pittsburgh on Dec. 31 and are 1-3-1 in their last five games there.


"You're supposed to have an advantage at home so we've got to take the consistency we had on the road and bring it back here," forward Riley Sheahan told the team's official website. "Obviously we're excited to play in front of our own fans. There's always a buzz in the rink and we get up for these games.


"I think we've got to bring that same effort and consistency we had on the road back here."


Philadelphia (19-15-8) will try to send Detroit to a season high-tying third consecutive home loss while moving its point streak to six games. The Flyers were denied a season-best fifth consecutive win Saturday with a 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Rangers.


Wayne Simmonds' third-period goal got that game into an extra session, but Philadelphia missed on all three shootout attempts in its fourth consecutive loss in that format.


"We thought we deserved to win this game, but we can't get frustrated about this," captain Claude Giroux said. "If we keep playing the way we're playing right now, we're going to win a lot of games."


The Flyers have won four of five against the Red Wings and took two of three meetings last season. They lost 5-2 in their latest visit to Joe Louis on Nov. 26, 2014, are 2-19-2 in their past 23 games there, including playoffs.


Philadelphia had lost a season-high five in a row on the road until a 4-3 overtime win against Minnesota on Jan. 7.


Detroit goaltender Petr Mrazek will try to send the Flyers to another road loss while extending his personal win streak to a career-best six. Mrazek, who has a 1.39 goals-against average during his run, will face Philadelphia for the first time.


The Flyers started Steve Mason on Saturday and might turn to Michal Neuvirth for this game. Neuvirth, though, is 2-3-1 with a 3.57 GAA in six all-time games against Detroit while Mason is 4-1-0 with a 2.21 GAA in his last five matchups.


Giroux has four goals and nine assists in a seven-game point streak versus the Red Wings. Datsyuk has nine goals and six assists in his past nine meetings with the Flyers, including a seven-game point streak.


Datsyuk has one goal and four assists in the past two contests after registering a pair of assists in his previous five.


The Red Wings are expected to get forward Teemu Pulkkinen back following a six-week absence because of a dislocated right shoulder.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Kings (25-13) at Ducks (17-17)


Date: January 17, 2016 9:00 PM EDT


The Anaheim Ducks captured all three home meetings with the Los Angeles Kings last season, although they all were topsy-turvy affairs that could have gone the other way.


These Pacific Division rivals have yet to meet in 2015-16, and the Ducks will likely debut newcomer David Perron to try to boost their struggling offense when they host the Kings on Sunday night.


Los Angeles (27-13-3) has dropped its last four regular-season visits to Orange County by one goal. Last season's three defeats there saw the Kings blow third-period leads in all of them, including a pair of two-goal margins.


Anaheim (19-17-7) went 4-0-1 in the 2014-15 season series, with four games going to overtime. That gave Ducks fans much-needed bragging rights after the club lost in seven games to the Kings in the 2014 playoffs.


"We all know the importance, we know how these games usually turn out," Anaheim center Nate Thompson said. "They're emotional, it's playoff-style hockey, it's a war out there but they're fun games and we're looking forward to it."


The Ducks have the league's worst offense with an average of 1.95 goals. They made a move to improve that Friday by acquiring Perron and defenseman Adam Clendening from Pittsburgh for Carl Hagelin, who flopped with 12 points in 43 games with Anaheim.


Perron has scored at least 20 goals three times, but had only 16 points in 43 games this season with the Penguins. He has failed to score in 19 straight games.


"I think it gives us more skill," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "Obviously we're a team that's struggling to score. Dave, that's been his history."


Corey Perry has a team-high 17 goals, with no other Duck having more than eight.


The Kings also made a major off-ice move Saturday by finalizing an eight-year, $80 million contract extension with top center Anze Kopitar, though he wasn't in too good a mood after a 5-3 loss to Ottawa that day that capped a 2-1-1 homestand.


"We definitely can't be as sloppy as we were,' said Kopitar, who has six of his team-high 36 points in a three-game streak.


No-nonsense coach Darryl Sutter was critical of his team's effort, and wasn't too eager to look ahead to the Ducks.


"We haven't played them this year," Sutter said. "I'm not very familiar with them. I haven't seen them play. Don't watch them very much, haven't seen them play, so I can't tell you much about them."


Boudreau was more forthcoming about what to expect from a Kings team that entered the weekend averaging a Western Conference-leading 28.6 hits.


"They just play hard, they've got good players that go hard," he said. "I don't want to use the term they play the right way but they play right to the T of the system that Darryl wants them to play, so it makes it difficult to play against them."


Anaheim did all its scoring in the first period and improved to 4-2-0 on an eight-game homestand with Friday's 4-2 victory over Dallas.


'The first period might have been our best period of the year,' Boudreau said.


Jakob Silfverberg is showing signs of coming alive with three two-point efforts in his last four games. The winger has 12 points this season after he had a career-high 39 in 2014-15.

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Grand Salami - January


The Grand Salami in pro hockey is decided by adding up all the goals scored in every game scheduled for that particular day. You can wager on 'over' or 'under' the Grand Salami total. The total is set by adding up all listed 'over/under' odds for each game on that particular day.


Note: The Grand Salami will have no action if any game is suspended or cancelled before the regulation time of three twenty minute periods. Also, regardless of the number of goals scored during the shoot out portion of the overtime, the final scored recorded for the game will give the winning team on more goal than its opponent based on the score at the end of regulation time.


*The majority of sportsbooks do not put out a total on the Grand Salami when there is only one game on the card. For tracking purposes, we will continue to show the 'over/under' for goals and combined goals scored on days with just one game.


NHL GRAND SALAMI
Date No. of Games Total Goals Combined Goals Scored Result
1/1 2 10.5 9 UNDER
1/2 12 61.5 63 OVER
1/3 4 21 22 OVER
1/4 5 27 17 UNDER
1/5 8 43.5 46 OVER
1/6 5 26.5 23 UNDER
1/7 7 38.5 29 UNDER
1/8 6 31.5 34 OVER
1/9 10 53 47 UNDER
1/10 6 30 32 OVER
1/11 4 20.5 22 OVER
1/12 8 42.5 45 OVER
1/13 4 21.5 20 UNDER
1/14 8 42.5 37 UNDER
1/15 6 31 31 PUSH
1/16 10 - - -
1/17 7 - - -
1/18 5 - - -
1/19 8 - - -
1/20 3 - - -
1/21 10 - - -
1/22 6 - - -
1/23 11 - - -
1/24 5 - - -
1/25 6 - - -
1/26 9 - - -
1/27 4 - - -
1/28 No games scheduled - - -
1/29 No games scheduled - - -
1/30 No games scheduled - - -
1/31 No games scheduled - - -

[TheGame]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

NHL


Hot teams
-- Carolina won four of its last five games.
-- Islanders won three of last four home games.
-- Lightning won its last four games.
-- Washington won five of its last six games.
-- Blackhawks won their last ten games.
-- Red Wings won five of last six games. Philly won four of its last five games.
-- Kings won seven of their last nine games. Anaheim won three of its last four.


Cold teams
-- Penguins lost four of their last five games.
-- Vancouver is 0-4 in game following its last four wins.
-- Florida lost last two games, 3-2ot/6-0 after winning nine in row before that.
-- Rangers lost four of their last six road games.
-- Montreal lost eight of its last eleven games.


Series records
-- Carolina won five of last seven games with Pittsburgh.
-- Islanders lost five of last six games with Vancouver.
-- Lightning is 7-3 in last ten games with Florida, but lost last two.
-- Washington won 4-3ot/7-3 in last two games with Rangers.
-- Canadiens lost their last four games with Chicago.
-- Flyers won four of last five games with Detroit.
-- Ducks won four of last five games with the Kings.


Totals
-- Under is 3-1-1 in last five Carolina-Pittsburgh games.
-- Under is 4-0-6 in Vancouver's last ten games. Yes, 4-0-6.
-- Under is 7-2-1 in last ten Florida games.
-- Four of last five Ranger-Washington games went over.
-- Under is 4-1-1 in last six Chicago games.
-- Five of last six Philly-Detroit games went over.
-- Five of last six Los Angeles games stayed under.


Back-to-backs
-- Rangers 5-4 (1-2 on road) if they played night before. Washington is 5-2
-- Montreal is 5-4 if it played the night before.
-- Philadelphia is 1-3 if it played the night before.

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Carolina at Pittsburgh
When: 3:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Pittsburgh Penguins hope an infusion of speed will help them overcome their recent troubles. After acquiring the shifty Carl Hagelin from Anaheim, the Penguins look to post just their second win in six outings on Sunday when they host the Metropolitan Division-rival Carolina Hurricanes.
“(Hagelin’s) got a lot of speed. He’s a threat and can make big plays at key times,” Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby told reporters. A two-time Hart Trophy winner, Crosby has overcome a horrific start – by his standards – to get back on track and has three assists in a pair of setbacks to Carolina this season, including two in a 3-2 overtime loss on Tuesday. While Pittsburgh is 1-1-3 in its last five contests, Carolina suffered its first setback in five outings with a 3-2 overtime loss versus Vancouver on Friday. Jordan Staal, who was the second overall pick of the 2006 draft by the Penguins, has just one goal in 10 career encounters versus his former team.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, FSN Carolinas, ROOT (Pittsburgh)
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (20-18-8): Kris Versteeg scored against the Canucks for his third goal in four contests, although this also includes Tuesday’s bank-shot tally that resulted from a fortunate carom off the glass before trickling down the back of Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury. Elias Lindholm picked up one of his three assists on that improbable goal to increase his point total to six during a three-game stretch, but has been held off the scoresheet in each of the last two contests. Jeff Skinner scored in overtime against Pittsburgh for just his third goal in 19 career encounters versus the club.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (20-16-7): Patric Hornqvist won’t have to introduce himself to his newest teammate, as the two Swedes routinely train with each other in the summer. “He’s a good friend. I think he’ll fit in really well,” Hornqvist told reporters of the 27-year-old Hagelin, who didn’t mesh well with the Ducks. Hagelin, who was acquired from the New York Rangers for fellow forward Emerson Etem on June 27, scored four goals and set up eight others in 43 games with Anaheim.
OVERTIME
1. Carolina G Cam Ward has stopped 60-of-63 shots to win both contests versus Pittsburgh this season and improve his career mark to 16-7-3 against the club.
2. Penguins D Kris Letang has scored in back-to-back games and boasts five goals and seven assists in his last seven contests.
3. The Hurricanes have scored one power-play goal in each of their last five outings after going 0-for-14 in the previous eight contests.
PREDICTION: Penguins 3, Hurricanes 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Vancouver at NY Islanders
When: 4:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
Brock Nelson and the New York Islanders look to complete a three-game homestand in style on Sunday when they host the Vancouver Canucks. Nelson recorded his first career hat trick and added an assist in the Islanders’ 5-2 win over Columbus on Tuesday and also tallied two nights later in a 3-1 triumph over the New York Rangers.
Nelson has been giving the home fans a thrill, scoring 13 of his team-leading 18 goals at the Barclays Center this season. While the Islanders have won five of their last eight to move into a virtual second-place tie in the Metropolitan Division, Vancouver improved to 7-3-2 in its last 12 after posting a 3-2 overtime victory versus Carolina on Friday. Bo Horvat tallied twice versus the Hurricanes to record his second multi-goal performance during his career-high six-game point streak. The 20-year-old has six goals and three assists during this run after posting just 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in his first 39 contests this season.
TV: 4 p.m. ET, Sportsnet Pacific (Vancouver), MSG Plus (New York)
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (18-17-10): After scoring twice versus Florida, Daniel Sedin has been held off the scoresheet in each of the last two contests as he bids to break a tie with Markus Naslund (346) to become Vancouver’s all-time goals leader. The 35-year-old Swede has recorded 13 points in as many career meetings with the Islanders, including an assist in his last encounter. Ryan Miller, who returned from an eight-game absence to make 36 saves in a 4-1 setback to Washington on Thursday, will look to improve upon his already strong 17-9-2 career mark versus the Islanders on Sunday.
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (24-15-5): Defenseman Nick Leddy has scored two goals in the last six contests after failing to tally in his first 38 games. The offense is a welcome addition for coach Jack Capuano, who is trying to put the puzzle together without several key pieces – including blue-liners Travis Hamonic (lower body) and Johnny Boychuk (shoulder). “I thought our defense at times made a couple of mistakes but overall with Hamonic and Boychuk being out, they picked up the slack,” Capuano told reporters. “… Leddy’s goal was a big goal for us.”
OVERTIME
1. New York has killed off all 16 short-handed situations over the last four games overall and 35 its last 36 at home.
2. The Canucks swept last season’s series with the Islanders and have won five of the last six encounters.
3. New York is 9-0-1 at home versus Western Conference representatives this season.
PREDICTION: Islanders 5, Canucks 2

[Satch]

Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Florida at Tampa Bay
When: 5:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida
The Atlantic Division-leading Florida Panthers, who saw their 13-game point streak come to a crashing halt last time out, look to begin another run when they visit the surging Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday. The Panthers managed only 15 shots in Wednesday’s 6-0 loss at Calgary and must find a way to cool off Tampa Bay, which has won a season-high four in a row.
Florida had won 12 straight games before a 3-2 overtime defeat at Vancouver on Monday and Jonathan Huberdeau told reporters his team “had to regroup and be positive” after the debacle in Calgary. The Lightning have won five of their last six after Vladislav Namestnikov’s hat trick keyed to a 5-4 overtime victory over Pittsburgh on Friday that started a stretch of 14 games during which 11 are at home. Namestnikov has recorded three goals and five assists during his four-game point streak. “He’s had to fight for everything,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper told reporters of the former first-round pick. “He stuck with it. He’s made a choice to be an NHL hockey player, and you really pull for guys like that.”
TV: 5 p.m. ET, FSN Florida, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay)
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (26-13-5): Defenseman Aaron Ekblad, who has missed the last two games with a concussion, was back on the ice Saturday but is expected to sit out Florida’s contests on Sunday and Monday. The Panthers need to fix their power play as it has converted just two of its 33 chances over the last 10 contests. Veteran Jaromir Jagr has notched six points in as many games to lead the team with 32 while linemates Huberdeau (six in five) and Aleksander Barkov (10 in nine) are next with 31 and 28, respectively.
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (23-17-4): Namestnikov has prospered since being put on a line with Ondrej Palat and captain Steven Stamkos (team-high 20 goals), posting a plus-8 rating over the last four games. Nikita Kucherov, playing with Tyler Johnson and Alex Killorn of late, leads the team in scoring with 35 points – five in his last four contests. Defenseman Victor Hedman has raised his production level during the winning streak as well, recording six points to stand third on the team with 24 overall.
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay G Ben Bishop, who was rested Friday and is expected back in net, is 6-1-1 in eight career games against the Panthers.
2. Florida C Nick Bjugstad has yet to register a point in six games since returning from more than a month away due to migraines.
3. The Panthers won both meetings with Tampa Bay in mid-November, posting a come-from-behind 5-4 overtime win and a 1-0 shutout by G Roberto Luongo, who is slated to start Sunday.
PREDICTION: Lightning 4, Panthers 2

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Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: NY Rangers at Washington
When: 5:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: Verizon Center, Washington, District Of Columbia
Coming off their first regulation loss of the month, the league-leading Washington Capitals look to take out their frustrations on the visiting New York Rangers on Sunday. Washington began January with a 5-0-1 run before coming up flat in Saturday’s 4-1 loss at Buffalo, as it allowed the first four goals before finally getting on the board early in the third period.
Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin is among the league leaders with 26 goals but has been held in check in his last two games after netting five tallies over his previous three contests. New York looks to put together consecutive wins for the first time since Nov. 21 and 23 after edging Philadelphia in a shootout on Saturday to improve to 1-1-0 on its three-game road trip. Henrik Lundqvist could get the day off after becoming the first goaltender in NHL history to begin his career with 11 straight 20-win seasons with the triumph over the Flyers. The first three contests of the five-game season series between the Metropolitan Division rivals took place in New York, with Washington winning two.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, NHL Network, TVA, MSG (New York), CSN-DC (Washington)
ABOUT THE RANGERS (24-15-5): Saturday’s victory provided Lundqvist with several more honors, as he snapped a tie with Mike Richter to set the franchise record for most 20-win seasons. The 33-year-old Swede also joined Tony Esposito and Martin Brodeur as the only netminders in NHL history to post 11 consecutive 20-win campaigns. Mats Zuccarello is the franchise leader in game-deciding shootout goals after scoring the seventh of his career to snap a tie with Brendan Shanahan.
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (33-8-3): Braden Holtby took the loss Saturday, leaving him one short of Jose Theodore’s franchise record of 23 decisions without a regulation defeat. The 26-year-old Holtby, who leads the league with 28 victories, went 20-0-2 after a 1-0 setback at Detroit on Nov. 10. Mike Richards made his debut for Washington on Saturday, recording one shot while going 5-6 on faceoffs in 13 minutes, 1 second of ice time.
OVERTIME
1. The Rangers are 52-1-1 when leading after two periods since the start of last season.
2. Washington LW Marcus Johansson has collected 12 points (six goals) over his last 12 games.
3. New York is 29-7-5 in its last 41 games against division rivals.
PREDICTION: Capitals 4, Rangers 3

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Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Montreal at Chicago
When: 7:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
It’s been a season filled with memorable performances for NHL scoring leader Patrick Kane, and he finally notched his first career regular-season hat trick last time out. Kane looks for an encore as his Chicago Blackhawks go after their 11th consecutive victory when the snake-bitten Montreal Canadiens pay them a visit on Sunday.
Kane has scored five goals in his last four contests and is two away from his career high of 30 set in 2009-10 to lead Chicago, which has recorded 38 tallies during its 10-game run. Corey Crawford, who was rested in Friday’s 4-1 triumph over Toronto, is expected to start with a personal seven-game winning streak on the line. Montreal registered a season-high 49 shots Saturday before coughing up a third-period lead in a 4-3 overtime loss at St. Louis to fall to 4-14-1 since Dec. 3. The Canadiens posted 40 shots against the Blackhawks on Thursday in a 2-1 loss at home as Crawford, a Montreal native, shut the door.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, RDS (Montreal), WGN (Chicago)
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (23-18-4): Defenseman P.K. Subban, who leads the team in assists (28), notched his third goal of the season in St. Louis while Tomas Plekanec notched two points to give him six in as many contests. Subban’s tally came on the power play as Montreal scored with the man advantage for only the third time in 30 opportunities over its last 10 games. Captain Max Pacioretty leads the team with 35 points after notching a goal and an assist Saturday, but Alex Galchenyuk has recorded one point and a minus-6 rating in six contests.

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (30-13-4): Kane, who has two postseason hat tricks, has amassed 67 points – 13 more than anyone else in the league entering Saturday – but Chicago’s surge has involved several players increasing their production. Captain Jonathan Toews has posted seven points in the last five games and 12 in 11 while two-time Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith has collected 10 points in as many contests with a plus-8 rating in that span. Artemi Panarin has been a huge addition this season with 42 points – the most among all NHL rookies.
OVERTIME
1. The Blackhawks have gained at least one point in eight straight games in the series (6-0-2).
2. Montreal G Ben Scrivens, who has allowed seven goals in two games since being acquired from Edmonton, is expected to start Sunday.
3. Chicago LW Bryan Bickell, who has been limited to two points in 23 contests, was placed on waivers Saturday.

PREDICTION: Blackhawks 5, Canadiens 2

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Re: NHL Betting Info. 1/17

Preview: Philadelphia at Detroit
When: 7:30 PM ET, Sunday, January 17, 2016
Where: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
The Detroit Red Wings return home from an extremely successful six-game road trip to host the streaking Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday. Detroit completed its 5-1-0 trek with an overtime triumph at Arizona on Thursday but has struggled at home of late, losing four of its last five (1-3-1) at Joe Louis Arena.
Dylan Larkin, who ranks second among all NHL rookies with 14 goals, shares the team scoring lead with captain Henrik Zetterberg at 30 points and has landed on the scoresheet in six of his last seven contests – notching one goal, five assists in that span. Philadelphia has earned at least one point in a season-high five straight contests despite dropping a 3-2 decision to the New York Rangers in a shootout on Saturday. The Flyers would like to see Claude Giroux find his scoring touch as the captain is tied with Wayne Simmonds for the team lead with 12 goals but has recorded only one in his last 13 games. The home team won each of the three meetings between Philadelphia and Detroit last season, with the Flyers claiming two victories.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network
ABOUT THE FLYERS (19-15-8): Giroux’s goal-scoring slump pales in comparision to that of Jakub Voracek, who registered a total of one tally in his first 30 games of 2015-16. The 26-year-old Czech, who has scored at least 22 goals each of the last three seasons, recorded four over his last 12 contests. Shayne Gostisbehere has notched 16 points in 24 games, putting him two behind St. Louis’ Colton Parayko for the league lead among rookie defensemen.
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (23-14-7): Detroit will receive a boost with the return of Teemu Pulkkinen to the lineup. The 24-year-old Finn, who has recorded six goals and five assists in 24 games this season, has not played since Dec. 3 due to a dislocated right shoulder. Detroit parted ways with 22-year-old defenseman Richard Nedomlel on Friday, trading the 2011 sixth-round draft pick to St. Louis for future considerations.
OVERTIME
1. Red Wings C Pavel Datsyuk has collected five points (one goal) over his last two contests.
2. The Flyers have scored first in five consecutive games.
3. Philadelphia’s Michal Neuvirth and Detroit’s Petr Mrazek are expected to start in goal.
PREDICTION: Red Wings 4, Flyers 2