Friday's Best NHL Bets
By Covers.com
Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes (-155, 5.5)
The Hurricanes' start to the season has been stormy, especially trying to put the puck in the net.
Through three games, Carolina has totaled just four goals. One of those came by way of shootout in Tuesday’s 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Things took a turn for the worse this week when winger Erik Cole suffered a fracture in his lower left leg, keeping him out for four to six weeks.
The team has preached aggression since taking a 7-2 beating from the Boston Bruins last weekend. The Canes came out firing in the first period of Tuesday’s game, peppering the Lightning with 14 shots. However, they totaled just 14 more shots over the next two periods and only two in overtime.
Pick: Under 5.5
Dallas Stars at Calgary Flames (-163, 5.5)
The Dallas Stars are learning that close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. They’re 0-2 to start the season, losing both contests in shootouts.
"You can say it’s just a skills competition or whatever, but it’s really important," said defenseman Stephane Robidas told the Star-Telegram. "It’s an extra point for the winner, and that can be big at the end of the year."
The Stars have been monsters when it comes to the shootout. Despite their recent SO losses, the team posts a 32-16 record in shootouts since it was introduced in 2005. However, the team knows it needs to avoid these situations by getting the job done in regulation.
"I think we are very close," coach Marc Crawford said. "I think we have the players who can score goals, and Marty Turco has a very strong history in stopping shots."
Dallas will face one of the NHL’s fastest starters in the Calgary Flames Friday, who will be coming off a hard-fought game against the rival Edmonton Oilers last Thursday night. The Stars took Wednesday off and will practice at Pengrowth Saddledome Thursday, coming into Friday night’s tilt well rested and focused on avoiding another shootout.
Pick: Dallas +150
Hot Teams
-- Flames won their first four games, scoring 17 goals.
Cold Teams
-- Carolina lost two of first three games, scoring four goals. Florida split its first two games overseas, scoring four goals.
-- Dallas Stars lost first two games, in SO/OT.
Series Records
-- Panthers lost 13 of their last 14 visits to Carolina.
-- Visitor won six of last eight Calgary-Dallas games.
Totals
-- Four of last five Carolina-Florida games stayed under the total.
-- First four Calgary games went over the total.
FLORIDA vs. CAROLINA
Florida is 2-16-1 SU in its last 19 games when playing on the road against Carolina
Florida is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Carolina is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
Carolina is 17-6 SU in its last 23 games at home
DALLAS vs. CALGARY
Dallas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
Dallas is 2-8 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Calgary is 5-8-2 SU in its last 15 games when playing at home against Dallas
The total has gone UNDER in 19 of Calgary's last 24 games when playing at home against Dallas
Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes
The Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes will both be trying to pick up a win on Friday when they battle at RBC Center.
Tomas Vokoun allowed four goals on 29 shots as Florida lost 4-0 to Chicago on Saturday afternoon.
The Panthers lost as +150 underdogs, while the final score played UNDER the day's posted total of 5.5.
Tuomo Ruutu netted the winner in the shootout to lift the Hurricanes past the Lightning 2-1 on Tuesday night.
Carolina won as -165 home favorites, while the game played UNDER the 6-run total listed by sportsbooks.
Team records:
Florida: 1-1-0
Carolina: 1-2-0
Florida most recently:
When playing on Friday are 5-5
Before playing NY Rangers are 6-4
After playing Chicago are 4-4-1
After a loss are 5-5
Carolina most recently:
When playing on Friday are 5-5
Before playing Boston are 5-5
After playing Tampa Bay are 6-4
After a win are 4-6
A few trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Florida's last 5 games when playing Carolina
Florida is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Florida's last 11 games on the road
Florida is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Carolina is 15-2 SU in its last 17 games when playing at home against Florida
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Carolina's last 5 games when playing Florida
Carolina is 17-6 SU in its last 23 games at home
Carolina is 15-6 SU in its last 21 games when playing Florida
Next up:
Florida home to New Jersey, Saturday, October 10
Carolina at Tampa Bay, Saturday, October 10
Dallas Stars vs. Calgary Flames
The Dallas Stars and the Calgary Flames will both be gunning for a victory on Friday when they meet at Pengrowth Saddledome.
Brenden Morrow put up two goals and an assist for Dallas in its 5-4 shootout loss to Edmonton on Tuesday night.
Edmonton won as -145 home favorites, while the teams played OVER the 5.5-goal total set by oddsmakers.
The Flames extended their season-opening win streak to four games by knocking off the Oilers 4-3 in a shootout on Thursday. The Flames won the game as +105 underdogs, while the combined score made it OVER the posted over/under (5.5).
Daymond Langkow, Nigel Dawes, and Rene Bourque scored in regulation for the Flames. Miikka Kiprusoff made 25 saves in the victory.
Current streak:
Dallas has lost 2 straight games.
Calgary has won 4 straight games.
Team records:
Dallas: 0-0-2
Calgary: 4-0-0
Dallas most recently:
When playing on Friday are 7-3
Before playing Los Angeles are 2-8
After playing Edmonton are 6-4
After a loss are 3-7
Calgary most recently:
When playing on Friday are 6-4
Before playing Los Angeles are 4-6
After playing Edmonton are 6-4
After a win are 4-6
A few trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas's last 6 games when playing Calgary
The total has gone UNDER in 19 of Dallas's last 24 games when playing on the road against Calgary
Dallas is 2-8 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Dallas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Calgary's last 8 games
Calgary is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Calgary's last 6 games when playing Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Calgary's last 5 games at home
Next up:
Dallas at Vancouver, Sunday, October 11
Calgary at Chicago, Monday, October 12
FLORIDA at CAROLINA
FLORIDA: 81-117 SU after a non-conference game
CAROLINA: 24-7-3 SU at home against Florida
DALLAS at CALGARY
DALLAS: 18-28 SU AWAY when the total is 5.5
CALGARY: 7-13 SU on Friday nights
FLORIDA vs. CAROLINA
Florida is 2-16-1 SU in its last 19 games when playing on the road against Carolina
Florida is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Carolina is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
Carolina is 17-6 SU in its last 23 games at home
DALLAS vs. CALGARY
Dallas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
Dallas is 2-8 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Calgary is 5-8-2 SU in its last 15 games when playing at home against Dallas
The total has gone UNDER in 19 of Calgary's last 24 games when playing at home against Dallas
FLORIDA (0-1-1-0, 1 pts.) at CAROLINA (0-2-1-0, 1 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
FLORIDA is 214-239 ATS (-77.3 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record since 1996.
FLORIDA is 16-9 ATS (+25.5 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
FLORIDA is 18-8 ATS (+9.5 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
FLORIDA is 13-5 ATS (+7.7 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
CAROLINA is 8-6-0 straight up against FLORIDA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.9 Units)
DALLAS (0-0-2-0, 2 pts.) at CALGARY (3-0-1-0, 7 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 71-50 ATS (+17.8 Units) in road games after allowing 4 goals or more since 1996.
DALLAS is 17-10 ATS (+28.7 Units) in road games after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 3 seasons.
CALGARY is 7-13 ATS (-9.0 Units) on Friday nights over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
DALLAS is 4-4 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
CALGARY is 4-4-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
7 of 7 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+7.2 Units)