Sunday's Best NHL Bets
By Covers.com
Columbus Blue Jackets at Los Angeles Kings (-125, 5.5)
The Blue Jackets won’t get upset when they find themselves in the penalty box. They might actually be happy.
Columbus is killing a staggering 88.9 percent of its opponents' man advantages, allowing just four goals when down a skater. Even more impressive, the penalty kill unit has scored a league-high three short-handed goals, including two from star forward and leading-scorer Rick Nash.
The Kings do counter with a power-play unit that has netted 10 goals, but group is ranked just 13th in the league. Even more troubling, the group has allowed two short-handed goals, tied for second most in the league.
On the flip side, Columbus is connecting on 25 percent of its man advantages compared to Los Angeles, which is killing off a meager 71.4 percent of its penalties, the second-worst mark in the league. The Blue Jackets should net themselves a special victory.
Pick: Blue Jackets +115
San Jose Sharks at Philadelphia Flyers (-120, 6)
Many people think this matchup could be a preview of the Stanley Cup Finals. We aren’t convinced about that. But what this meeting definitely will be, however, is a high-scoring affair.
Combined, the teams have seen 11 of their 17 games top the total, including five of seven for the Flyers. In three meetings last season, both went over the number, including a pair of meetings that went past regulation.
And don’t look for the goaltenders to do anything special. The Shark’s Evgeni Nabokov and Ray Emery have combined to stop just 0.902 percent of their opponent’s shots and post a mediocre-at-best 2.80 goals-against average.
This game could showcase a pair of squads destined to play into June – but this fall, expect two teams who are going to put – and allow-- plenty of pucks in the net.
Pick: Over 6
SAN JOSE vs. PHILADELPHIA
San Jose is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Jose's last 5 games when playing Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing San Jose
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 5 games when playing San Jose
COLUMBUS vs. LOS ANGELES
Columbus is 3-6-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Columbus's last 8 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles
Los Angeles is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Los Angeles's last 6 games when playing Columbus
EDMONTON vs. VANCOUVER
Edmonton is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
Edmonton is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Vancouver
Vancouver is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Edmonton
Vancouver is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
SAN JOSE (6-4-0-1, 13 pts.) at PHILADELPHIA (5-2-0-1, 11 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
SAN JOSE is 130-108 ATS (+19.9 Units) in road games first half of the season since 1996.
SAN JOSE is 23-9 ATS (+11.0 Units) when playing on back-to-back days over the last 3 seasons.
SAN JOSE is 61-30 ATS (+21.3 Units) after 3 or more consecutive overs since 1996.
SAN JOSE is 13-2 ATS (+9.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the first half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 84-85 ATS (-83.8 Units) in home games after a win by 2 goals or more since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
SAN JOSE is 3-0 (+3.1 Units) against the spread versus PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
SAN JOSE is 3-0-0 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.0 Units)
COLUMBUS (6-3-0-0, 12 pts.) at LOS ANGELES (7-4-0-0, 14 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
COLUMBUS is 4-15 ATS (-11.4 Units) on Sunday games over the last 3 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 4-18 ATS (+28.5 Units) in road games after a win by 2 goals or more over the last 3 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 5-20 ATS (+32.2 Units) in road games after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 3 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 11-3 ATS (+14.4 Units) after 3 or more consecutive overs over the last 3 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 46-35 ATS (+88.2 Units) after playing 3 consecutive road games since 1996.
COLUMBUS is 26-23 ATS (+57.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 25-21 ATS (+52.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the first half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 49-70 ATS (-25.9 Units) in home games after a win by 2 goals or more since 1996.
LOS ANGELES is 40-67 ATS (+110.8 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record in the first half of the season since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
COLUMBUS is 6-3 (+2.2 Units) against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
COLUMBUS is 6-3-0 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
7 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+4.5 Units)
EDMONTON (6-3-0-1, 13 pts.) at VANCOUVER (5-5-0-0, 10 pts.)
Top Trends for this game.
EDMONTON is 14-6 ATS (+20.6 Units) on Sunday games over the last 3 seasons.
EDMONTON is 171-137 ATS (+23.4 Units) after a division game since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 70-90 ATS (-76.0 Units) in home games vs. division opponents since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
EDMONTON is 8-7 (+3.5 Units) against the spread versus VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
EDMONTON is 8-7-0 straight up against VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
7 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.5 Units)
Hot Teams
-- Sharks won three of their last four games.
-- Los Angeles won its last three home games. Columbus won six of its first nine games.
-- Oilers won five of their last seven games. Canucks won their last four home games.
Cold Teams
-- Flyers lost three of their last five games.
Series Records
-- Sharks won their last four games against Philadelphia.
-- Blue Jackets won six of last nine games against the Kings.
-- Canucks won six of their last eight games against Edmonton.
Totals
-- Over is 5-1-1 in Flyers' last seven games.
-- All four of Kings' home games went over the total
-- Last four Vancouver games stayed under the total.
SAN JOSE at PHILADELPHIA
SAN JOSE: 3-0 SU vs. Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA: 12-3 Over at home if total is 6 or higher
COLUMBUS at LOS ANGELES
COLUMBUS: 11-4 Under at Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES: 10-17 SU as home favorite
EDMONTON at VANCOUVER
EDMONTON: 15-9 SU Away after allowing 4+ goals BB Games
VANCOUVER: 17-8 Under at home after allowing 1 goal or less