Calgary Flames at Vegas Golden Knights Game Preview

Daniel GimenezHockey, NHL

The Calgary Flames, spearheaded by Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau, are ready to take the ice against Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson, and the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena in a Pacific Division tilt. The opening faceoff will be at 6 p.m. ET on Friday, November 23, and it can be viewed live on Sportsnet ONE.

Calgary Flames at Vegas Golden Knights Odds

Offering a -135 moneyline, Vegas comes into the game as the favorite. The line for the Flames now stands at +115, and oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at an even 6 goals (-105 over, -115 under).

Calgary is 13-9 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 3.0 units this year. Through 22 regular season matches, 11 of its games have gone over the total, while 10 have gone under and just one has pushed. The Flames are 6-5 SU on the road in 2018-19.

Calgary has converted on 19.7 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 25th overall, and it’s successfully killed off only 76.5 percent of its penalties..

Averaging 22.8 saves per game with a .876 save percentage, Mike Smith (5-8-1) has been the top option in goal for Calgary this year. If Calgary chooses to rest him, however, they could turn to David Rittich (8-3), who has a .930 save percentage and 2.04 goals against average this year.

Over on the other bench, Vegas is 10-13 straight up (SU) and has lost 7.2 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 23 regular season matches, 14 of its games have gone under the total, while nine have gone over and none have pushed. This season, the team’s 5-4 SU at home.

The Golden Knights have converted on just 17.3 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that’s ranked 23rd in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 10th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 81.4 percent of all penalties.

Marc-Andre Fleury has denied 23.1 shots per game as the primary choice in goal for the Golden Knights. Fleury has 10 wins, nine losses, and one overtime loss and has maintained a fairly-weak .901 save percentage and 2.58 goals against average this year.

Calgary Flames at Vegas Golden Knights Free Picks

Pick: SU Winner – Flames, O/U – Over

Betting Notes

  • Over Calgary’s last ten games, five of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 4-1 in those games).
  • The Flames are 7-3 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 9-7 when they’re in the box for fewer than 10 total penalty minutes.
  • The total has gone under in three of Vegas’ last five outings.
  • Calgary is ranked 31st this season with 12.8 giveaways per game. That figure has trended higher, as it’s averaged 15.8 giveaways over its last 10 games and 14.6 giveaways over its last five.
  • Vegas is ranked 19th this season with 10.5 giveaways per game. That figure has regressed recently, as the team’s averaged 12.8 giveaways over its last 10 games and 13.2 giveaways over its last five.
  • The Golden Knights this season have recorded the second-most hits in the NHL (27.4 per game), but that number has climbed to 31.8 over their last five home outings.