NHL Betting Info. 3/28

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Preview: Colorado at Nashville
When: 8:00 PM ET, Monday, March 28, 2016
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
A dominating stretch at home has the Nashville Predators on the verge of clinching their second straight postseason appearance and ninth in franchise history. Winners of three in a row overall and sporting a 7-0-3 mark in their last 10 home games, the Predators can officially punch their ticket to the playoffs on Monday with a regulation victory over the visiting Central Division-rival Colorado Avalanche.
James Neal reached the 30-goal plateau for the second time in his career after he netted his seventh tally in six contests during Saturday’s 5-1 rout of Columbus. The 28-year-old also scored in Nashville’s 5-2 victory over Colorado on March 5, his team’s lone triumph in three meetings thus far with the Avalanche. While the Predators are sitting pretty as the top wild card and reside four points behind third-place Chicago in Central, the Avalanche suffered a crucial 4-0 setback to Minnesota on Saturday to drop five points behind the Wild for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. “We have seven games and we’re five points (behind), so it’s possible,” Colorado veteran Jarome Iginla told NHL.com. “We have to get back at it (Monday), regroup and try to get better. We need to put a winning streak together.”
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Altitude (Colorado), FSN Tennessee (Nashville)
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (38-33-4): Colorado won its last three contests on the road to improve to 21-16-0 away from the Pepsi Center before dropping two in a row in front of its fans. “It’s obvious that our home record (17-17-4) this year hasn’t been good enough, but let’s go on the road and let’s see what we can do,” coach Patrick Roy said of his team’s fading playoff hopes. Semyon Varlamov turned aside 53 of 58 shots to win both of his starts versus Nashville this season and improve to 10-4-1 in his career against Nashville.
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (39-23-13): Nashville’s defensemen are packing a punch as Roman Josi notched three assists on Saturday to increase his season total to a franchise-best 44 while his 56 points matched captain Shea Weber (2013-14) for most by a blue-liner in a single campaign. “Shea has been a great role model for me,” Josi told the team’s website. “Having as many points as him is a big honor for me. He’s been one of the best defensemen in the league for years, and I’ve learned so much from him, so it’s definitely a big honor for me.” Weber netted his 164th career goal on Saturday to move into second place all-time with Nashville, with one coming in the last meeting with Colorado.
OVERTIME
1. Nashville G Pekka Rinne is 11-1-1 in his last 13 outings, with a 34-save performance against Colorado included in that stretch.
2. The Avalanche are 1-for-12 on the power play in the last five contests.
3. The Central Division rivals will conclude their five-game season series in Music City on April 5.
PREDICTION: Predators 4, Avalanche 2

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Preview: Anaheim at Edmonton
When: 9:00 PM ET, Monday, March 28, 2016
Where: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta
The Anaheim Ducks have had no issue going the extra mile during their road trip as they have ventured past regulation in three of the four contests on a five-game journey. Anaheim has collected five points (2-1-1) thus far on the trek heading into Monday’s clash with the Pacific Division-rival Edmonton Oilers.
Rickard Rakell extended his career-high goal total to 20 on Saturday when he tallied in overtime of a 4-3 victory over Ottawa and also provided the heroics in a 2-1 OT win over Edmonton on Feb. 26. Saturday’s triumph improved the Ducks to 15-4-2 in their last 21 contests and moved them within three points of first-place Los Angeles with dates on the horizon versus struggling clubs such as Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver and Winnipeg. A familiar face also will greet Anaheim on Monday as former Duck Patrick Maroon will play versus his former team for the first time since being dealt at the trade deadline. The 27-year-old has been hot of late, collecting a goal and two assists in Edmonton’s 6-3 victory over San Jose on Thursday before tallying twice two nights later in a 6-4 setback to the Kings.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN West (Anaheim), Sportsnet West (Edmonton)
ABOUT THE DUCKS (41-23-10): Jakob Silfverberg scored versus the Senators for his seventh goal to go along with two assists during his last seven games. The 25-year-old Swede also tallied in Anaheim’s 5-3 win over Edmonton on Feb. 16, however that goal accounts for his lone point in four meetings this season with the Oilers. Captain Ryan Getzlaf has collected two goals and two assists in his last three encounters with Edmonton and had one of each against Ottawa to extend his point streak to three games.
ABOUT THE OILERS (30-41-7): Connor McDavid entered the NHL with plenty of fanfare and the top overall pick hasn’t disappointed when he has been able to take the ice. The 19-year-old scored and set up a goal versus Los Angeles to extend his point streak to a season high-tying seven games and has 10 tallies and 23 assists in 28 contests since missing the previous 37 with a fractured collarbone. Jordan Eberle scored in his third straight contest and fifth in seven outings on Saturday and also tallied against Anaheim on Feb. 26.
OVERTIME
1. Anaheim boasts an impressive 17-4-4 mark versus Pacific representatives while Edmonton has dropped 17 of 25 decisions (8-13-4) against its division foes.
2. Maroon has recorded 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 12 games with the Oilers.
3. The Ducks have scored four times on the power play during their road trip after going 2-for-14 in their previous six games.
PREDICTION: Ducks 4, Oilers 3

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Preview: Calgary at Arizona
When: 10:00 PM ET, Monday, March 28, 2016
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale, Arizona
Despite being all but officially eliminated from postseason contention, the Arizona Coyotes hope to end 2015-16 on a high note as they look to make it a perfect four-game homestand with a victory over the Calgary Flames on Monday. Arizona remains mathematically alive for a playoff spot but trails Minnesota by 10 points for the second wild card in the Western Conference with only seven games remaining.
The Coyotes have performed as if they still had a chance, however, allowing a total of four goals in winning the first three games of the homestand while capturing six of their last eight contests overall. Calgary, which will be a postseason spectator for the sixth time in seven seasons, begins a four-game road trip having lost three straight contests. Defenseman Dougie Hamilton scored the lone goal in the Flames’ 4-1 loss to Chicago on Saturday, with younger brother Freddie notching his first assist in 33 career games. Arizona attempts to complete a sweep of the five-game season series after limiting Calgary to one goal in each of the first four meetings.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet Flames (Calgary), FSN Arizona
ABOUT THE FLAMES (31-38-6): Josh Jooris, who has disappointed with only 11 points in 53 games after notching 24 in 60 contests as a rookie last season, participated in Sunday’s practice after missing two games with a lower-body injury. Sean Monahan trails Johnny Gaudreau (28) by two goals for the team lead but has been stalled in his pursuit, failing to tally in his last three contests. Gaudreau has had a superb sophomore season, eclipsing his rookie totals for goals, assists, points and game-winners but needing four power-play tallies to top the eight he scored last campaign.
ABOUT THE COYOTES (34-34-7): Arizona lost both captain Shane Doan and defenseman Michael Stone in the third period of Saturday’s triumph over Philadelphia, with the latter’s injury appearing more serious. Doan scored his team-leading 26th goal in the second session but departed after being drilled into the boards by Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas, while Stone – who netted what proved to be the winning tally with one second left in the middle period – suffered a lower-body injury when he got tangled up with Michael Raffl. “I watched it on tape,” coach Dave Tippett told reporters. “It didn’t look very good.”
OVERTIME
1. Coyotes D Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who leads the club with 51 points and has set an NHL record for defensemen with eight game-winning goals, is just the second blue-liner in franchise history (Phil Housley, 1990-92) to reach the 20-goal plateau in consecutive seasons.
2. Calgary D Jyrki Jokipakka, who has notched four assists in 13 games since being acquired from Dallas on Feb. 29, did not skate on Sunday.
3. Arizona G Mike Smith has won four of his five decisions since returning from abdominal surgery.
PREDICTION: Coyotes 4, Flames 2

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Preview: Los Angeles at San Jose
When: 10:00 PM ET, Monday, March 28, 2016
Where: SAP Center at San Jose, San Jose, California
The San Jose Sharks attempt to earn a split of their six-game homestand and – more importantly – a spot in the postseason when they host the Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Kings on Monday. San Jose has squandered several opportunities to lock up a playoff berth, losing to St. Louis, Edmonton and Dallas after beginning its lengthy stretch at the SAP Center with victories over the New York Rangers and Arizona.
Joe Thornton has overtaken captain Joe Pavelski for the scoring lead on the Sharks with 72 points despite having been kept off the scoresheet in two of his last three contests. San Jose, which sits in third place in the Pacific and seven points behind the Kings, is looking to return to the postseason after missing out for the first time in 11 seasons while Los Angeles already has clinched a spot after also failing to qualify in 2014-15. The Kings, who are three points ahead of Anaheim, halted their season high-tying three-game losing streak with a 6-4 home victory over the Oilers on Saturday as the line of Tyler Toffoli, Jeff Carter and Milan Lucic combined for four goals and six assists. San Jose and Los Angeles split their first four meetings this season, with each team posting a pair of road victories.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet
ABOUT THE KINGS (45-25-5): Toffoli scored twice on Saturday to raise his team-leading total to 29 goals and added two assists for a four-point performance after entering the contest needing one to set a new career high. The 23-year-old center notched 49 points in 2014-15 and registered the same amount in 74 games prior to facing Edmonton. Carter also tallied two times versus the Oilers, ending his eight-game drought and reaching the 20-goal plateau for the ninth straight season and 10th time in his 11 NHL campaigns.
ABOUT THE SHARKS (41-28-6): Thornton’s next assist will be the 957th of his career, breaking a tie with Mark Recchi for 14th place on the all-time list. The 36-year-old also is five points away from passing Mike Gartner (1,335) for 30th in NHL history. Pavelski needs three goals to ecclipse last season’s total of 37 and nine points to top his career-high of 79 that he recorded in 2013-14.
OVERTIME
1. Sharks D Brent Burns leads all NHL blue-liners with a career-best 26 goals and is two assists shy of matching his personal high of 43, which he reached last season.
2. Los Angeles RW Kris Versteeg (foot) skated Sunday but did not travel with the team to San Jose.
3. San Jose RW Joonas Donskoi could return to the lineup Monday after missing one game with a lower-body injury.
PREDICTION: Sharks 3, Kings 2