Chicago Blackhawks vs. Florida Panthers Free Pick 2/29/20

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Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and the Chicago Blackhawks will face off against Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, and the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center in an East-West showdown. The action gets going at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 29, and it’ll air live on Fox SportsNet Florida.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Florida Panthers Odds

The Panthers (-165) are the solid favorite over the Blackhawks (+145) and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals (-135 to bet the over, +115 for the under). Florida is 33-31 straight up (SU) and has recorded -0.6 units for moneyline bettors thus far. That early-season winning percentage is a welcomed improvement compared to what the team managed during the 2018-19 season (36-46). Among the team’s 64 games this season, 38 have gone over the total, while 23 have gone under and just three have pushed. The team is 16-15 SU at home this year. The Panthers have converted on 22.1 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a figure that places them in the top-10 among NHL teams. On the other hand, their penalty kill is rated 21st overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 78.2 percent of all penalties. Sporting a .899 save percentage and 27.1 saves per game, Sergei Bobrovsky (24-25-5) has been the best option in goal for the Panthers this season. If Florida chooses to give him a rest, however, head coach Joel Quenneville might turn to Sam Montembeault (5-8-8 record, .890 save percentage, 3.37 goals against average). Over on the visiting bench, Chicago is 28-36 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.8 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 32 of its games have gone under the total, while 31 have gone over and just one has pushed. As an away team, the Blackhawks are 15-19 SU. The Blackhawks have converted on just 15.4 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that places them in the bottom-five overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 11th overall and it’s successfully killed off 81.9 percent of all penalties. Robin Lehner (32.1 saves per game) has been the primary option in the net for Chicago. Lehner owns a 16-17-6 record, while registering a .918 save percentage and 3.01 goals against average this year.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Florida Panthers Betting Predictions

Free Pick: SU Winner – Panthers, O/U – Over

Betting Trends

  • The Blackhawks are 3-4 in games decided by a shootout this season while the Panthers are 3-3 in shootouts.
  • For both of these clubs, the over has hit in three of their past five matchups.
  • Over Chicago’s last ten games, six of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 2-4 in those games).
  • Chicago skaters have given out the league’s 10th-most hits per game (22.4), but that number’s down to just 12.8 hits over their last five away games.