NHL Game Previews for Sat 13th Feb
Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers
In the world of NHL betting odds the Flyers are favored in this home game to beat the Canadiens. The slow development of goaltender Carey Price has been a constant source of inconsistency for the Canadiens. Instead of being the number one goalie, he has been sharing time with Jaroslav Havlak. The two teams are battling for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and both teams come into this game with winning records in their last 10 games. The Flyers offer a more consistent and punishing scoring attack with power forwards such as Jeff Carter. At this point the Flyers may be more than the Canadiens can handle.
Pick: Flyers 4-2
New York Rangers @ Pittsburgh Penguins
Those who bet on sports know that for years the Rangers have tried to tip the winning scales in their direction by investing in what appeared to be top-flight talent. Chris Drury and Scott Gomez were brought in to add some toughness to the scoring attack of the Rangers. But those who give sports betting tips weren’t falling for it, and when Jaromir Jagr left to go play hockey back in his home country the Rangers fell apart. Scott Gomez left the team at the end of last season, and now the Rangers are a shell of what they used to be. Even though the Rangers are favored in this game, they don’t have the fire power to hang with the Stanley Cup champs.
Pick: Penguins 3-1
Toronto Maple Leafs @ St. Louis Blues
Oh what a difference a trade can make. When the Leafs acquired goaltender JS Giguere and hard-nosed defenseman Dion Phaneuf people knew the Leafs would be a better team, but few expected the effects of the trade to wear off. But for some reason, even though the Leafs have only won 2 of their last 10 games, they continued to be favored in these away games since the trade. The Blues have a gem in goaltender Chris Mason and even though Mason is not posting great numbers, when set in the context of how awful the Blues are it is amazing that Mason has a winning record. Keith Tkachuck is about the only person on the Blues roster capable of putting the puck in the net on a consistent basis. But even with all of that going against them, the Blues are still a better team than the new and improved Maple Leafs.
Pick: Blues 4-1
Coyotes @ Colorado Avalanche
This will easily be the best game of the night. The Avalanche and the Coyotes both play a hard-nosed and fast paced brand of hockey that is fun to watch. The visiting Coyotes are favored, but the Colorado Avalanche are a much-improved bunch compared to last year. Colorado goaltending standout Craig Anderson has put the Avalanche in a position to challenge for the Northwest division lead. The Coyotes have the misfortune of being stuck behind the runaway train known as the San Jose Sharks, but the Coyotes have put up enough points to lead in 3 of the 6 divisions in the league. Both teams are solid defensively, they both have great goaltending and they both have rising stars and veterans on offense that know how to play the game. This game will come down to a shoot out.
Pick: Avalanche 3-2 (shootout)
Add comment February 13th, 2010