Sunday's Best NHL Bets
Vancouver Canucks at Nashville Predators (+100, 5.5)
The Nashville Predators may have had their three-game winning streak snapped with a loss to the Detroit Red Wings Friday night but the good times continued to roll for total bettors.
Nashville has topped the total in five straight games and in eight of its past 10 contests including Friday’s 5-2 defeat to Detroit which toppled the 5.5-goal number set by sportsbooks.
The Predators’ blueline was dealt a blow in that loss when top defenseman Shea Weber left the game in the first period with an arm or hand injury. Weber was hit from behind by Tomas Holmstrom and went down in a scrum in the corner, possibly getting stomped on by the skate of Johan Franzen.
"It was something that started (on Thursday) and I started playing through it, but I reaggravated it (Friday),'' Weber told The Tennessean.
With Weber listed as day-to-day and the high-flying Canucks coming to town (fourth in the NHL in scoring), total bettors are licking their chops. Vancouver has also favored over betters in recent games, playing beyond the total in five straight outings.
Pick: Over
New Jersey Devils at Edmonton Oilers (+185, 5.5)
Is New Jersey Devils star goaltender Martin Brodeur suffering from an Olympic hangover?
The legendary netminder’s soft performance at the 2010 winter games has apparently carried over to the second half of the NHL season.
In his first two games back off the two-week break, Brodeur nearly ruined a solid defensive effort from his blueline by giving up three goals on 20 shots to the San Jose Sharks Tuesday (New Jersey won 4-3). Then the future Hall of Famer got burned by the Calgary Flames for five goals in a 5-3 loss Friday evening.
"He could've stopped a few pucks that came to him," Devils coach Jacques Lemaire told the New Jersey Star-Ledger. "But, again, when there is a big crowd in front of the net it's always hard to see a puck coming."
Brodeur echoed his coach’s critical comments, telling the media he has had a tough time controlling rebounds and that he hasn’t really felt comfortable between the pipes.
"Yeah, it doesn't happen too often," Brodeur said. "Lately the puck isn't hitting me. On the last goal (Matt) Stajan just fans on it and it still goes through everything and goes through my legs. These bounces are happening right now. I just have to practice more and get myself in a better frame of mind."
New Jersey doesn’t score enough (2.3 goals per game -23rd in the NHL) to make up for an off night or two from its goaltender. Even with the lowly Edmonton Oilers on tap, who won the most recent meeting with the Devils, a less-than-perfect Brodeur could prove costly.
Pick: Edmonton
What Bettors Need To Know: Red Wings at Blackhawks
By JON KUIPERIJ
The Detroit Red Wings visit the Chicago Blackhawks for an Original Six showdown as the NHL on NBC returns from the Olympic break Sunday.
Chicago is challenging the Capitals and Sharks for first place in the NHL standings and is threatening to end its 49-year Stanley Cup drought. Detroit, which has reached the Cup final each of the past two years, is in a dogfight with several other teams for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Payback time
After being dominated by their Central Division rivals for many seasons, the Blackhawks are evening the score this year. Chicago has defeated Detroit in all three meetings in the 2009-10 campaign, shutting out the Wings twice.
In the most recent matchup between the clubs, Patrick Sharp scored the shootout winner as the Blackhawks prevailed 4-3 in Detroit on January 17.
Chicago forward Patrick Kane isn't ready to talk trash quite yet, though.
"It's one of those situations where I still think they're the team to beat until proven otherwise in the playoffs," Kane said after the last meeting between the clubs. "They've proven that the last couple of years."
Injury report
For the first time all season, the Red Wings are finally healthy. Johan Franzen, Tomas Holmstrom, Andreas Lilja, Niklas Kronwall and Valtteri Filppula are back in the lineup after missing much of the year.
"We have the makings of a real good team," Detroit coach Mike Babcock told reporters. "Now, we have to play like a real good team each and every night to get ourselves into the (playoffs)."
Chicago is nearly at full strength itself, with only winger Adam Burish listed on its injury report.
Streak on the line
The Red Wings' streak of 18 straight postseason appearances – the longest streak in sports - is in jeopardy this year. But Detroit captain Nicklas Lidstrom feels his team will not only make the playoffs, they can also make some noise.
"I'm real confident in our chances," he told the media. "As long as you get in, you've got a chance to do anything in the NHL playoffs. We've seen that upsets do happen because, from top to bottom, teams are so close."
Goalie Jimmy Howard, who has replaced Chris Osgood as the Wings' No. 1 man, also believes in his team.
"Our leadership is second to none and that's why we didn't panic when things didn't look so good and that's why we're in a position to make a push now," Howard told the press. "The rest during the Olympics couldn't have come at a better time for some guys and for other guys, the Olympics gave them some more playing time to come back from their injuries."
Huet's the man
Though the Blackhawks rank second in the league in goals against, critics aren't sold on their goaltending tandem of Cristobal Huet and Antti Niemi. Neither netminder has won a playoff series in their career.
Chicago general manager Stan Bowman seems confident in the duo. Bowman chose not to acquire another goaltender at the NHL trade deadline.
It appears Huet, who is 25-12-4, will be given the bulk of the playing time down the stretch and in the postseason.
"We're going to rely on him to take control here," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "We'll definitely be riding one guy in the playoffs."
Trends
Chicago is 14-3 in its last 17 games against division opponents, 19-7 in its last 26 against the Western Conference and 8-1 in its last nine Sunday contests.
Detroit is 3-8 in its last 11 games on the road and has lost six of its last seven games when coming off a victory.
The Blackhawks have gone over the total in their last four home games and last six games overall, while the Wings are 32-15-4 to the under when they've won their previous outing.
DETROIT (30-22-0-12, 72 pts.) at CHICAGO (43-16-0-5, 91 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
DETROIT is 30-34 ATS (-16.0 Units) in all games this season.
DETROIT is 3-10 ATS (-10.1 Units) revenging a home loss versus opponent this season.
DETROIT is 9-15 ATS (-10.8 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
DETROIT is 5-10 ATS (-8.5 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
CHICAGO is 53-30 ATS (+1.3 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more over the last 3 seasons.
CHICAGO is 26-7 ATS (+14.7 Units) in home games after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO is 208-242 ATS (+456.7 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record since 1996.
CHICAGO is 52-61 ATS (-50.7 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 11-12 (+3.6 Units) against the spread versus DETROIT over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 12-11-0 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
10 of 21 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-1.6 Units, Under=-0.4 Units)
VANCOUVER (39-23-0-2, 80 pts.) at NASHVILLE (35-24-0-5, 75 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
NASHVILLE is 34-29 ATS (+3.3 Units) in all games this season.
NASHVILLE is 16-13 ATS (+31.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
NASHVILLE is 12-5 ATS (+20.3 Units) after a division game this season.
VANCOUVER is 123-131 ATS (+292.4 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 147-137 ATS (+295.6 Units) in road games second half of the season since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
VANCOUVER is 7-4 (+0.4 Units) against the spread versus NASHVILLE over the last 3 seasons
VANCOUVER is 7-4-0 straight up against NASHVILLE over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+1.4 Units)
CALGARY (31-24-0-9, 71 pts.) at MINNESOTA (31-27-0-5, 67 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
CALGARY is 30-33 ATS (-12.4 Units) in all games this season.
CALGARY is 50-49 ATS (-26.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 3 seasons.
CALGARY is 14-21 ATS (-19.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
CALGARY is 8-16 ATS (-11.7 Units) second half of the season this season.
CALGARY is 1-9 ATS (-8.6 Units) on Sunday games over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 114-91 ATS (-7.3 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game since 1996.
MINNESOTA is 11-6 ATS (+4.7 Units) after a division game this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
CALGARY is 11-6 (+4.9 Units) against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
CALGARY is 11-6-0 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
7 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+5.6 Units)
BOSTON (28-23-0-11, 67 pts.) at PITTSBURGH (38-22-0-4, 80 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
BOSTON is 28-34 ATS (-16.0 Units) in all games this season.
BOSTON is 8-15 ATS (-9.5 Units) second half of the season this season.
PITTSBURGH is 52-19 ATS (+26.1 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5.5 over the last 3 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 57-20 ATS (+22.1 Units) in home games second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
BOSTON is 44-34 ATS (+80.6 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5.5 over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
PITTSBURGH is 5-5-0 straight up against BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
6 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+3.2 Units)
CAROLINA (26-30-0-7, 59 pts.) at ATLANTA (28-24-0-10, 66 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
ATLANTA is 22-9 ATS (+31.7 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 33-34 ATS (-3.0 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 11-4 ATS (+16.5 Units) in March games over the last 2 seasons.
CAROLINA is 16-7 ATS (+24.3 Units) second half of the season this season.
CAROLINA is 12-3 ATS (+8.4 Units) in March games over the last 2 seasons.
CAROLINA is 38-18 ATS (+13.3 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
CAROLINA is 10-7 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
CAROLINA is 10-7-0 straight up against ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
13 of 17 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+8.5 Units)
BUFFALO (34-21-0-8, 76 pts.) at NY RANGERS (29-27-0-8, 66 pts.)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
NY RANGERS is 6-4 (+2.0 Units) against the spread versus BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
NY RANGERS is 6-4-0 straight up against BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+1.3 Units)
TORONTO (19-33-0-11, 49 pts.) at PHILADELPHIA (33-26-0-4, 70 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 19-44 ATS (+71.1 Units) in all games this season.
TORONTO is 5-17 ATS (+26.6 Units) second half of the season this season.
TORONTO is 264-262 ATS (+550.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
TORONTO is 22-21 ATS (+54.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
TORONTO is 9-5 ATS (+16.9 Units) in road games in March games over the last 3 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 40-57 ATS (-74.3 Units) in home games revenging a loss versus opponent since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
TORONTO is 5-5 (+1.1 Units) against the spread versus PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
PHILADELPHIA is 5-5-0 straight up against TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
7 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+3.9 Units)
NEW JERSEY (38-22-0-3, 79 pts.) at EDMONTON (20-38-0-6, 46 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
NEW JERSEY is 10-14 ATS (-10.1 Units) second half of the season this season.
NEW JERSEY is 91-60 ATS (+11.8 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW JERSEY is 11-3 ATS (+7.0 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more this season.
NEW JERSEY is 15-3 ATS (+11.3 Units) after playing 3 consecutive road games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW JERSEY is 34-18 ATS (+12.2 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 3 seasons.
EDMONTON is 19-43 ATS (-26.2 Units) in all games this season.
EDMONTON is 23-36 ATS (+67.5 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5.5 over the last 2 seasons.
EDMONTON is 7-29 ATS (+37.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
EDMONTON is 4-19 ATS (+23.7 Units) second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
EDMONTON is 1-1 (+0.0 Units) against the spread versus NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
EDMONTON is 1-1-0 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
2 of 2 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+2.0 Units)
MONTREAL (30-29-0-6, 66 pts.) at ANAHEIM (30-27-0-6, 66 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
MONTREAL is 29-43 ATS (-23.8 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
ANAHEIM is 44-36 ATS (-12.7 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
ANAHEIM is 2-0 (+2.7 Units) against the spread versus MONTREAL over the last 3 seasons
ANAHEIM is 2-0-0 straight up against MONTREAL over the last 3 seasons
1 of 2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.3 Units, Under=-0.2 Units)
DETROIT vs. CHICAGO
Detroit is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit's last 7 games when playing on the road against Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 7 games when playing at home against Detroit
BOSTON vs. PITTSBURGH
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston's last 5 games when playing on the road against Pittsburgh
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
CALGARY vs. MINNESOTA
Calgary is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Calgary is 5-14 SU in its last 19 games
Minnesota is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Calgary
Minnesota is 6-13 SU in its last 19 games when playing Calgary
VANCOUVER vs. NASHVILLE
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Vancouver's last 5 games on the road
Vancouver is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing Nashville
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Nashville's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Nashville's last 7 games at home
CAROLINA vs. ATLANTA
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Carolina's last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Carolina's last 8 games when playing on the road against Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Atlanta's last 15 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing Carolina
BUFFALO vs. NY RANGERS
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Buffalo's last 9 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
Buffalo is 4-2 SU in their last 6 games when playing NY Rangers
NY Rangers are 5-10 SU in their last 15 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of the NY Rangers last 7 games when playing Buffalo
TORONTO vs. PHILADELPHIA
Toronto is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games on the road
Toronto is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
Philadelphia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Toronto
Philadelphia is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
MONTREAL vs. ANAHEIM
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Montreal's last 9 games when playing on the road against Anaheim
Montreal is 1-4-1 SU in its last 6 games ,when playing Anaheim
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Anaheim's last 9 games when playing at home against Montreal
Anaheim is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Montreal
NEW JERSEY vs. EDMONTON
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 7 games when playing on the road against Edmonton
New Jersey5-0-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Edmonton
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Edmonton's last 7 games when playing at home against New Jersey
Edmonton is 0-4-1 SU in its last 5 games ,when playing at home against New Jersey
DETROIT at CHICAGO
DETROIT: 1-10 SU revenging a one goal loss
CHICAGO: 15-2 SU after BB home games
VANCOUVER at NASHVILLE
VANCOUVER: 4-8 SU after 5+ consecutive overs
NASHVILLE: 7-0 SU at home when playing 5 or less games in 14 days
CALGARY at MINNESOTA
CALGARY: 1-9 SU on Sunday
MINNESOTA: 18-7 SU at home when the money line is -100 to -150
BOSTON at PITTSBURGH
BOSTON: 7-12 SU revenging a same season loss
PITTSBURGH: 12-0 SU at home when playing 5 or less games in 14 days
CAROLINA at ATLANTA
CAROLINA: 12-4 SU in March
ATLANTA: 5-15 SU revenging a same season loss
BUFFALO at NY RANGERS
BUFFALO: N/A
NY RANGERS: N/A
TORONTO at PHILADELPHIA
TORONTO: 10-5 SU Away in March
PHILADELPHIA: 11-18 SU after 1+ consecutive losses
NEW JERSEY at EDMONTON
NEW JERSEY: 11-3 SU after allowing 4+ goals
EDMONTON: 4-19 SU second half of the season
MONTREAL at ANAHEIM
MONTREAL: 10-7 SU as a road underdog of +100 to +150
ANAHEIM: 1-7 SU at home when playing 3 or less games in 10 days