In their first head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Detroit Red Wings and the Florida Panthers meet at the BB&T Center. This Atlantic Division matchup gets going at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 2, and it will be showcased live on Fox Sports Detroit Plus.
Detroit Red Wings at Florida Panthers Odds
Detroit (+210) is entering this one as the underdog to Florida (-250) and the Over/Under (O/U) has been placed at 7 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -105 for the over and -115 for the under.
The Panthers are 6-7 straight-up (SU) and have punished moneyline bettors to the tune of -1.2 units so far. That early-season winning percentage hasn’t moved much from the 36-46 record the team posted during the 2018-19 season campaign. Of its 13 games this season, nine have gone over the total, while three have gone under and just one has pushed. The team’s 2-2 SU at home so far this year.
Florida’s converted on 20.5 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked sixth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 85.3 percent of all penalties.
As a team, Florida has been whistled for penalties just 3.1 times per game this season, a number that is pretty close to last year’s 3.4 penalties per game the team surrendered. After serving an average of 8.4 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team’s had to kill penalties for 7.6 minutes per matchup this season.
Sporting a .873 save percentage and 22.5 saves per game, Sergei Bobrovsky (5-6-3) has been the primary goalkeeper for the Panthers this season. If the Panthers decide to give him the night off, however, head coach Joel Quenneville could roll with Sam Montembeault (1-3-3 record, .905 save percentage, 2.81 goals against average).
Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov will both spearhead the attack for the Panthers. Huberdeau (15 points) has tallied seven goals and eight assists and has recorded multiple points in four different games this year. Barkov has one goal and 14 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in seven contests.
Detroit has lost 2.6 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far and is currently 4-10 straight up (SU). A total of six of its games have gone over the total, while four have gone under the total and three have pushed. Detroit’s 2-5 SU as the visiting team this season.
Detroit has converted on just 14.9 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s ranked 24th in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 30th overall and it’s successfully killed off 71.1 percent of all opponent power plays.
Detroit’s players have been penalized 3.6 times per game this season, a number that’s pretty close to the 3.5 penalties per game given up a year ago. After serving an average of 7.9 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team’s had to kill penalties for 8.6 minutes per outing this year.
Jimmy Howard (29.8 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Detroit. Howard has two wins and six losses to his credit, while registering a .898 save percentage and 3.67 goals against average this year.
Leading the offensive attack for the visiting Red Wings will be Tyler Bertuzzi (six goals, eight assists) and Anthony Mantha (nine goals, five assists).
Detroit Red Wings at Florida Panthers Betting Predictions
Pick: SU Winner – Panthers, O/U – Over
Betting Notes
- After going 3-7 in games decided by a shootout last year, Florida is off to a 1-3 start in shootouts this season. Detroit was 3-5 in shootouts last year and has yet to participate in one this time around.
- For both of these teams, the over has hit in four of their last five matches.
- Detroit has managed 29.8 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Florida is averaging 36.0 shots per game over its last five at home.
- Detroit skaters recorded 21.3 hits per game last season, while the Panthers logged 23.2 hits per contest.
