Phil Kessel, Sidney Crosby, and the Pittsburgh Penguins will do battle against Dylan Larkin, Andreas Athanasiou, and the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena in an Eastern Conference showdown. This one gets started at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 2 and it’s being shown live on AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Penguins at Detroit Red Wings Odds
Pittsburgh heads into the contest as the obvious favorite with a moneyline of -190. The line for the Red Wings now stands at +165, and oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at an even 6 goals (-110 for the over, -110 for the under).
Pittsburgh is 43-36 straight up (SU) and has lost 10.2 units for moneyline bettors this year. 39 of its games have gone under the total, while 34 have gone over and just six have pushed. This 2018-19 Penguins team is 21-19 SU on the road.
Pittsburgh has converted on 24.8 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that places them in the top-10 among NHL teams. Its penalty kill is ranked 18th in the league, and the team’s successfully killed off 80.4 percent of its penalties..
With a .920 save percentage and 29.4 saves per game, Matt Murray (28-19-5) has been the primary option in goal for Pittsburgh this season. If head coach Mike Sullivan decides to rest him, however, the team may go with Casey DeSmith (15-21-5), who has a .916 save percentage and 2.75 goals against average this year.
On the other side of the rink, Detroit is 31-48 straight up (SU) and has lost 0.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 79 regular season matches, 40 of its games have gone under the total, while 37 have gone over and just two have pushed. It’s 16-23 SU as the home team this year.
The Red Wings have converted on just 17.1 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 27th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 78.0 percent of all penalties.
Jimmy Howard (27.9 saves per game) has been the top selection in the crease for the Red Wings. Howard has 23 wins, 29 losses, and seven OT losses and has recorded a pedestrian 3.02 goals against average and a poor .909 save percentage this year.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Detroit Red Wings Free Picks
Free Prediction: SU Winner – Penguins, O/U – Over
Betting Notes
- Two of the Penguins’ last ten games have ended in a shootout. The team is 1-1 in those games and 2-3 overall in shootouts this season.
- The total has gone under in four of Pittsburgh’s last five games.
- Over Pittsburgh’s last ten games, six of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 4-2 in those games).
- Pittsburgh skaters have accounted for the league’s most hits per game (29.0), but that number’s down to just 20.2 hits over their last five away games.
