T-Mobile Arena is the site for an East-West clash as the expansion franchise Vegas Golden Knights square off against the Ottawa Senators. It’s the last time that the two clubs will go at it in the regular season. The match will get underway at 10 p.m. ET on Friday, March 2, and fans at home can catch the game live on AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain.
Ottawa Senators at Vegas Golden Knights Odds
Vegas comes into the contest as the heavy favorite with a moneyline of -270. The line for Ottawa sits at +230 and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals (-120 money on the over, +100 on the under).
Vegas is 41-22 straight up (SU) and has earned 19.8 units for moneyline bettors this season. Of the team’s 63 games this season, 35 have gone over the total, while 26 have gone under and just two have pushed. The team is 24-8 SU at home this year.
The Golden Knights have connected on 21.4 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s good enough for eighth-best in the league. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 16th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 80.6 percent of all penalties.
As a collective unit, the Golden Knights have been penalized just 3.2 times per game overall this season, 3.8 per game over their past five matchups total, and 3.2 per game over their last five at home. The team’s had to defend opponent power plays for just 6.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, in total.
Averaging 28.6 saves per game with a .930 save percentage, Marc-Andre Fleury (21-10-3) has been the top option in goal for Vegas this season. If head coach Gerard Gallant decides to give him the night off, however, the team may turn to Malcolm Subban (12-4-4 record, .912 save percentage, 2.59 goals against average).
The Knights will continue looking for leadership from Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith. Marchessault (63 points) is up to 22 goals and 41 assists and has recorded two or more points in 19 different games this year. Smith has 21 goals and 37 assists to his credit and has recorded a point in 37 contests.
Ottawa is 21-41 straight up (SU) and has lost 20.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 33 of its contests have gone over the total, while 29 have gone under and none have pushed. As the visiting team, the Senators are 7-23 SU.
The Senators have converted on just 16.5 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that’s ranked 27th in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 28th overall and it’s successfully killed off 75.4 percent of all opponent power plays.
Ottawa’s skaters have been penalized 3.6 times per game this season, 3.2 per game over their last five outings total, and 3.4 per game over their last five road outings. The team has had to defend opponent power plays just 7.1 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Craig Anderson (27.5 saves per game) has been the primary choice in the net for Ottawa. Anderson has 18 wins, 28 losses, and five OT losses to his credit, while registering a .901 save percentage and 3.27 goals against average this year.
Mark Stone (19 goals, 38 assists) has been one of the most vital offensive playmakers for the visiting Senators.
Ottawa Senators vs. Vegas Golden Knights Betting Predictions
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Golden Knights, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- A majority (61.0 percent) of Vegas’ wins have come by two or more goals, and the team is 25-11 overall in such games. 8 of Ottawa’s 21 wins (38.1 percent) have been decided by two or more goals.
- Ottawa has averaged 2.4 goals per game, while allowing 4.0, over its five-game losing skid.
- Power plays and penalty kills could be extremely important tonight. The Senators are 8-20 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 14-26 in games where they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Golden Knights are 15-10 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 30-14 in games where total penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- Vegas is 2-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Ottawa is 2-6 in shootouts.
- Vegas may hold the upper hand if it’s a close one late. The team’s 16-11 in games decided by one goal, while Ottawa is 13-20 in such games.
- The total has gone under in three of Vegas’ last five games.
- Vegas is ranked 15th this season with 9.5 giveaways per game. That figure has regressed lately, as it’s averaged 10.8 giveaways over its last 10 games and 10.8 giveaways over its last five.
- Ottawa skaters have averaged 6.8 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 9.9 giveaways per game (ranked 19th in the NHL).
- Ottawa skaters have accounted for the league’s eighth-most hits per game (24.0).
