Betting news, trends, odds and predictions for Friday, March 23, 2018 from various handicappers and websites
Preview: Canadiens at Sabres
Gracenote
Mar 22, 2018
The Montreal Canadiens are only six points out of the cellar in the Atlantic Division and could inch closer when they visit the last-place Buffalo Sabres on Friday night. The staggering Canadiens have dropped four games in a row and nine of their last 10 (1-7-2), but they have won all three meetings against Buffalo this season.
Montreal owns the worst road record in the NHL at 9-24-4 and Wednesday's 5-3 loss at Pittsburgh marked its seventh consecutive defeat away from home. "I don't think anyone in here is happy with how it's been going lately," Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher said. "You come to the rink everyday with the expectation that you're going to win a hockey game, and too many times, I think we've left disappointed. It's been tough." The mood is fairly similar with Buffalo, which is coming off a lackluster 4-1 home loss to Arizona that lifted the Coyotes out of last place in the Western Conference. “We got to make sure we step on the gas and have a little pride,” Sabres forward Jason Pominville said. “That’s what it is, have a little pride in the room to come out with an effort."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, TSN2, RDS (Montreal), MSG-Buffalo
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (26-36-12): Carey Price returned from a month-long absence against the two-time defending Stanley Cup champs, but he will sit Friday in favor of backup Antti Niemi, who has allowed two goals or fewer in five of his last six starts. Rookie Nikita Scherbak scored a short-handed goal against the Penguins, the fourth goal in the last 12 games for the 2014 first-round pick. “When you give him an opportunity to score, he’s going to score most of the time; he’s a pretty skilled player,” coach Claude Julien said.
ABOUT THE SABRES (23-38-12): Buffalo has lost four of its last five games, scoring four goals in the four defeats, and star Jack Eichel said he can understand why the fan base is restless. “What have we really put on the ice for a product for them this year?" Eichel said at Thursday's practice. "We don’t score goals, we really haven’t made them coming to the game worthwhile. So can you blame them? No, you can’t." Linus Ullmark will get the start after Chad Johnson took a shot off the mask in Wednesday's game.
OVERTIME
1. Eichel has zero goals and four assists in 11 games versus the Canadiens.
2. Montreal has allowed 15 power-play goals in its last 11 games.
3. Sabres F Zemgus Girgensons is expected back in the lineup after missing two games.
PREDICTION: Sabres 3, Canadiens 2
Preview: Devils at Penguins
Gracenote
Mar 22, 2018
The New Jersey Devils began a season-high six-game road trip with impressive victories over three Western Conference heavyweights, only to find themselves against the ropes with back-to-back losses. The Devils hope to answer the bell in the finale of their trek on Friday, as they vie for their third win in as many meetings this season versus the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"The later it gets in March, and then in April, our group really has to learn quickly after the two (recent losses)," New Jersey coach John Hynes said. "I think there's a lot of things we can gather from these two games to make us a better team going into Pittsburgh and then Tampa (Saturday at home)." Taylor Hall, who scored for his career-high 32nd time in Tuesday's 6-2 setback in San Jose, collected a goal and two assists to power the Devils to pair of victories over the Penguins in February. While New Jersey holds the second wild card and is bidding to snap a five-season playoff drought, the two-time reigning Stanley Cup champion Penguins have loftier goals as they keep tabs on first-place Washington in the Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh posted its fourth straight home victory and 15th in its last 16 at PPG Paints Arena with a 5-3 triumph over Montreal on Wednesday, with the lone stumble being a 3-2 setback to the Devils on Feb. 27.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NHL Network, TVAS, MSG-Plus (New Jersey), AT&T Sportsnet-Pittsburgh
ABOUT THE DEVILS (37-28-8): With Cory Schneider receiving a quick hook in his last outing and unable to break into the win column since Dec. 27, Hynes declared Keith Kinkaid as his starter for Friday's tilt. The 28-year-old Kinkaid has turned aside 51 of 54 shots to win both encounters versus Pittsburgh this season after losing his first three career matchups against the club. Travis Zajac has five points (three goals, two assists) in his last six games overall heading into a tilt with the Penguins, against whom he has recorded five points (two goals, three assists) in the first two meetings this season.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (42-27-5): Superstar captain Sidney Crosby and fellow former Hart Trophy recipient Evgeni Malkin each had a goal and an assist against the Canadiens, with the former boosting his point total to 43 (10 goals, 33 assists) in his past 32 games while the latter has 59 (29 goals, 30 assists) in his past 37. Despite the gaudy numbers, Crosby insists the team can play much better as it heads toward the second season. "We're still working toward playing our best," the 30-year-old Crosby said. "We've got a number of games here that are really important, and we hope they bring the best out in us."
OVERTIME
1. Pittsburgh RW Phil Kessel set up a pair of goals against Montreal to increase his point total to 16 (five goals, 11 assists) in the past 13 contests.
2. New Jersey RW Stefan Noesen notched two assists in a 3-1 triumph over the Penguins on Feb. 3 before scoring the go-ahead goal 5:01 into the third period in the second meeting.
3. Pittsburgh C Jake Guentzel has 14 points (three goals, 11 assists) in the past 14 contests.
PREDICTION: Devils 4, Penguins 2
Preview: Canucks at Blues
Gracenote
Mar 23, 2018
The St. Louis Blues hope to have their top goal scorer back in the lineup Friday as they continue their surge toward a playoff berth when they host the Vancouver Canucks. Vladimir Tarasenko, who is three tallies away from his fourth straight 30-goal season, has missed two games with an upper-body injury but skated during Thursday's optional practice and could be on the ice against Vancouver.
"He felt good today," Blues coach Mike Yeo told the team's website on Thursday. "The next step is, we'll see how the morning skate goes tomorrow. If he's ready to play, then we have a spot for him, no question. We're anxious to get him back." St. Louis, which trails Anaheim by three points for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference, is coming off its third straight overtime victory - a 2-1 home triumph over Boston on Wednesday in which Jaden Schwartz scored his second goal of the game 30 seconds into the extra session. Vancouver has split the first two contests of its four-game road trip after ending its seven-game slide with a 5-2 triumph at Chicago on Thursday. Defenseman Alex Edler scored twice in the win, giving him three goals in as many games after he recorded only two over his first 59 contests this season.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Sportsnet Pacific (Vancouver), FS Midwest (St. Louis)
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (26-39-9): Bo Horvat scored against the Blackhawks, giving him 20 goals for the second consecutive season. The 22-year-old center, who also registered an assist, joined rookie Brock Boeser (29) and Daniel Sedin (21) as the only members of the team to reach the plateau this campaign. Captain Henrik Sedin ended his 55-game goal-scoring drought on Thursday, tallying for only the third time this season and first since Nov. 14 at Los Angeles.
ABOUT THE BLUES (40-28-5): Brayden Schenn notched a pair of assists against the Bruins to raise his team-leading - and career-high - point total to 62. The 26-year-old center is one goal shy of matching the personal best of 26 he recorded in 2015-16 with Philadelphia but has scored just once in his last 13 contests. Schenn, who has landed on the scoresheet in four of his last five games, also tops St. Louis with 37 assists, eight power-play tallies and eight game-winners.
OVERTIME
1. Schwartz's multi-goal performance Wednesday was his third of the season and first since Nov. 25 versus Minnesota.
2. Barring a furious barrage over his last eight games, Henrik Sedin will finish with a single-digit goal total for the first time since recording eight in 2002-03.
3. St. Louis D Jay Bouwmeester needs two points to reach 400 for his career.
PREDICTION: Blues 5, Canucks 1
Preview: Ducks at Jets
Gracenote
Mar 22, 2018
The Winnipeg Jets begin what they hope is just the first of two contests without superstar Patrik Laine on Friday when they continue their six-game homestand against the Anaheim Ducks. Laine, whose 43 goals trail only Washington captain Alex Ovechkin for the league lead, sustained a bruised left foot while blocking a shot during the second period of Tuesday's 2-1 overtime win over Los Angeles.
The early exit by the 19-year-old Laine brought an end to his NHL-record 15-game point streak (18 goals, eight assists) by a teenager, but that's not the primary concern of Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice. "Quite a bit of swelling down from Day 1 to Day 2. He's getting around under his own power," Maurice said of Laine, who could be sidelined anywhere from four to 14 days. While the Jets have posted a 12-4-1 mark in their last 17 contests overall to reside comfortably in second place in the Central Division, the Ducks are 11-4-1 in their last 16 and one point behind Los Angeles for third place in the Pacific with a game in hand. John Gibson improved his save percentage to .943 in his last 12 outings (10-2-0) on Wednesday after turning aside all 29 shots he faced as Anaheim opened its four-game road trip with a 4-0 triumph over Calgary.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS West (Anaheim), TSN3 (Winnipeg)
ABOUT THE DUCKS (38-24-12): Rickard Rakell and captain Ryan Getzlaf have been leading by example as Anaheim extended its winning streak to four games, with the former notching 15 points (nine goals, six assists) in his past 11 contests while the latter has 18 (three goals, 15 assists) in his last 10. "We need every point we can get," the 24-year-old Rakell said. "Even though we put together a streak here, not much has changed. It's still a matter of one point here and one point there and we could be out of it. We have to fight all the way in." Adam Henrique notched an assist on Wednesday to boost his point total to 12 (five goals, seven assists) in his past 19 games overall and 29 (16 goals, 13 assists) in 49 games with the club.
ABOUT THE JETS (44-19-10): Bryan Little, who scored a goal and set up two others in Winnipeg's 4-1 victory over Anaheim on Nov. 24, skated on the right wing with Paul Stastny and Nikolaj Ehlers at Thursday's practice. "I'm going to try and hopefully keep them going," the 30-year-old Little said. "They've been on a roll and have had really good chemistry since day one. Those guys have been playing really well. I want to come in and try not to disrupt that too much, and hopefully pick up where they left off." The 22-year-old Ehlers scored twice in the first five minutes and added an assist in the first encounter with the Ducks.
OVERTIME
1. Rakell resides one assist shy of 100 for his career.
2. Winnipeg LW Kyle Connor has scored five times in his last four games, with multi-goal performances in two of his last three.
3. Anaheim D Francois Beauchemin matched his point total of his previous 18 games with a goal and an assist versus the Flames.
PREDICTION: Ducks 4, Jets 3
Preview: Bruins at Stars
Gracenote
Mar 22, 2018
A miserable road trip has put a major dent into the postseason hopes of the Dallas Stars, who are hoping to get back on track when they open a three-game homestand against the Boston Bruins on Friday night. The Stars failed to win on their six-game trek and earned only two points (0-4-2) to slide into 10th place in the Western Conference.
Leading scorer Tyler Seguin called it the "road trip from hell" after Dallas blew a two-goal lead in the third period of Tuesday's 4-3 loss at Washington to fall into fifth place in the Central Division -- one point behind ninth-place St. Louis. "We've got to go home, we've got to get points," Seguin said. "We're playing some good teams, but we've got to find a way here." The Bruins are trying to chase down first-place Tampa Bay in the Atlantic Division but have lost two in a row since they clinched a playoff berth after Wednesday's 2-1 overtime setback in St. Louis. "Going into the season, we wanted to make the playoffs, be a Stanley Cup contender," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. "Going forward, we want to be in the best position possible, playing the best hockey going in."
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET; Sportsnet East, Sportsnet West, NESN (Boston), FS Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE BRUINS (45-17-10): Boston has earned points in 10 of 12 games despite a depleted lineup that is missing seven regulars, including three of its top defensemen, No. 1 center Patrice Bergeron and trade-deadline acquisition Rick Nash. "Health going into the playoffs now that we're officially in is probably the most important factor," Cassidy said. Team USA Olympian Ryan Donato has made a striking first impression with a goal and two assists in his NHL debut on Monday and a goal against St. Louis on Wednesday.
ABOUT THE STARS (38-28-8): Veteran forward Jason Spezza, who has been limited to one assist over his last 19 games, sat out Tuesday's game with a back injury and could be lost for the remainder of the regular season. The team announced that Spezza will be re-evaluated in two weeks, but forward Brett Ritchie is expected to play against Boston and defenseman Marc Methot could be back in the lineup after returning to practice Thursday. Methot, who is dealing with a hand injury, has been sidelined for the past four games.
OVERTIME
1. Bruins F Brad Marchand has seven goals in nine games in March.
2. Seguin, drafted No. 2 overall by Boston in 2010, needs one goal to reach 40 for the first time.
3. Bruins G Tuukka Rask is 5-2-1 with a 2.34 goals-against average versus Dallas.
PREDICTION: Dallas 4, Bruins 3
NHL
Long Sheet
Friday, March 23
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MONTREAL (26-36-0-12, 64 pts.) at BUFFALO (23-38-0-12, 58 pts.) - 3/23/2018, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MONTREAL is 26-49 ATS (+78.0 Units) in all games this season.
MONTREAL is 10-26 ATS (+44.8 Units) second half of the season this season.
MONTREAL is 3-17 ATS (+28.3 Units) in road games after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game this season.
MONTREAL is 1-13 ATS (+21.5 Units) in road games after 3 or more consecutive losses this season.
BUFFALO is 287-258 ATS (-48.1 Units) vs. division opponents since 1996.
BUFFALO is 28-20 ATS (+51.3 Units) in home games after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 3 seasons.
BUFFALO is 233-233 ATS (+470.3 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
BUFFALO is 23-51 ATS (-33.1 Units) in all games this season.
BUFFALO is 10-23 ATS (+43.4 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5.5 this season.
BUFFALO is 14-35 ATS (+63.0 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
MONTREAL is 8-4 (+2.4 Units) against the spread versus BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
MONTREAL is 8-4-0 straight up against BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
5 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.5 Units)
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NEW JERSEY (37-28-0-8, 82 pts.) at PITTSBURGH (42-27-0-5, 89 pts.) - 3/23/2018, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NEW JERSEY is 8-25 ATS (+37.7 Units) on Friday nights over the last 3 seasons.
NEW JERSEY is 1-8 ATS (+10.0 Units) after playing 3 consecutive road games this season.
PITTSBURGH is 15-2 ATS (+11.4 Units) in home games second half of the season this season.
PITTSBURGH is 43-22 ATS (+12.2 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 11-1 ATS (+9.4 Units) in home games revenging a home loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 15-3 ATS (+9.5 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
PITTSBURGH is 21-5 ATS (+13.4 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
NEW JERSEY is 38-36 ATS (+78.8 Units) in all games this season.
NEW JERSEY is 17-13 ATS (+31.9 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
NEW JERSEY is 7-2 ATS (+10.1 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
PITTSBURGH is 7-4-0 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
6 of 11 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.0 Units)
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ANAHEIM (38-24-0-12, 88 pts.) at WINNIPEG (44-19-0-10, 98 pts.) - 3/23/2018, 8:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
ANAHEIM is 5-3 (+0.3 Units) against the spread versus WINNIPEG over the last 3 seasons
ANAHEIM is 5-3-0 straight up against WINNIPEG over the last 3 seasons
5 of 7 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+2.7 Units)
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VANCOUVER (26-39-0-9, 61 pts.) at ST LOUIS (40-28-0-5, 85 pts.) - 3/23/2018, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
VANCOUVER is 23-56 ATS (+105.7 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
VANCOUVER is 6-21 ATS (+33.4 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
VANCOUVER is 9-27 ATS (+44.9 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
ST LOUIS is 27-9 ATS (+16.2 Units) in March games over the last 3 seasons.
ST LOUIS is 24-8 ATS (+12.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
VANCOUVER is 55-45 ATS (+108.2 Units) in road games on Friday nights since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 199-225 ATS (+497.3 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
ST LOUIS is 7-1 (+5.5 Units) against the spread versus VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
ST LOUIS is 7-1-0 straight up against VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
4 of 7 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.9 Units)
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BOSTON (45-17-0-10, 100 pts.) at DALLAS (38-28-0-8, 84 pts.) - 3/23/2018, 8:35 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 3-2 (+0.1 Units) against the spread versus DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 3-2-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.7 Units)
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NHL
Friday, March 23
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Trend Report
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MONTREAL @ BUFFALO
Montreal is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Buffalo
Montreal is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games when playing on the road against Buffalo
Buffalo is 15-7 ATS in its last 22 games
Buffalo is 10-5 ATS in its last 15 games at home
NEW JERSEY @ PITTSBURGH
New Jersey is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
New Jersey is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 15-1 SU in its last 16 games at home
Pittsburgh is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against New Jersey
VANCOUVER @ ST. LOUIS
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Vancouver's last 7 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Vancouver's last 7 games when playing St. Louis
St. Louis is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Vancouver
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of St. Louis's last 7 games at home
ANAHEIM @ WINNIPEG
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Anaheim's last 8 games on the road
Anaheim is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing on the road against Winnipeg
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Winnipeg's last 9 games at home
Winnipeg is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
BOSTON @ DALLAS
Boston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Dallas
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Dallas's last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Dallas's last 5 games at home
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