Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, and the Carolina Hurricanes will do battle against Sidney Crosby, Phil Kessel, and the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena in a Metro Division showdown. The action gets started at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 5 and it can be caught live on AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh.
Carolina Hurricanes at Pittsburgh Penguins Odds
Losing 10.9 units for moneyline bettors, Pittsburgh is 28-24 straight up (SU) overall in the 2018-19 season. That winning percentage, ranked 3rd in the Metropolitan Division in this young season, is fairly close to the 47-35 record the team posted during the 2017-18 season campaign. Through 52 regular season matches, 25 of its games have gone over the total, while 22 have gone under and just five have pushed. The team’s 15-11 SU at home this season.
The Penguins have connected on 24.5 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s good enough for seventh-best in the NHL. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked eighth overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 81.9 percent of all penalties.
Averaging 27.2 saves per game with a .918 save percentage, Casey DeSmith (13-16-4) has been the principal goalkeeper for the Pens this year. If the Pens, however, decide to give him a breather, the team could go with Matt Murray (15-10-10 record, .910 save percentage, 2.96 goals against average).
In the other locker room, Carolina is 25-27 straight up (SU) and has lost 11.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year. A total of 29 of its contests have gone under the total, while 22 have gone over and just one has pushed. As a road team, the Hurricanes are 11-14 SU so far.
The Hurricanes have converted on just 16.1 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s ranked 27th in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 17th overall and it’s successfully defended 79.5 percent of all penalties.
Petr Mrazek (23.7 saves per game) has been the main choice in goal for Carolina. Mrazek has 11 wins, 14 losses, and three OT losses to his credit, and has registered a .894 save percentage and 2.83 goals against average this year.
Carolina Hurricanes at Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Picks
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Hurricanes, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- The Hurricanes are 9-14 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 16-21 in games where they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total.
- Pittsburgh is 1-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Carolina is 1-2 in shootouts.
- For both of these teams, the over has hit in three of their past five matchups.
- Carolina skaters have averaged 9.6 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 11.3 giveaways per game (ranked 20th).
- Pittsburgh has averaged 11.0 giveaways over its last five home games, a rise over its season average of 9.9 giveaways per game (ranked 14th in the NHL).
- This game features a couple of the more aggressive teams in the league. Carolina skaters have accounted for the league’s sixth-most hits per game (25.9) while the Pens have registered the second-most (29.2).
