In their fourth and final head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Calgary Flames and the expansion Vegas Golden Knights clash at the Scotiabank Saddledome in a Pacific Division tilt. Sportsnet will showcase the game, which gets going at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 7.
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Calgary Flames Odds
Vegas is 51-30 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 16.9 units this season. 41 of its matches have gone over the total, while 38 have gone under and just two have pushed. As an away team this season, the Knights are 22-18 SU.
Vegas has converted on 22.0 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s good enough for ninth-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked seventh overall, and the teams successfully killed off 81.9 percent of its penalties.
For the team as a whole, Vegas has been penalized just 3.2 times per game this season, and 2.4 per game over its past five games. The team has been forced to kill penalties just 6.0 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Sporting a .931 save percentage and 28.1 saves per game, Marc-Andre Fleury (29-16-4) has been the primary option in goal for Vegas this year. If head coach Gerard Gallant decides to rest him, however, Vegas could turn to Malcolm Subban (15-6-2 record, .910 save percentage, 2.68 goals against average).
William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault will both lead the offensive attack for the visiting Golden Knights. Karlsson has 78 points on 43 goals and 35 assists, and has recorded multiple points in 19 different games. Marchessault has 27 goals and 48 assists to his name (and has registered a point in 46 games).
On the other bench, Calgary is 36-45 straight up (SU) and has lost 17.0 units for moneyline bettors thus far. 41 of its games have gone under the total, while 38 have gone over and just two have pushed. It’s 16-24 SU as the home team this year.
Calgary has converted on just 16.0 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that places it in the bottom overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked ninth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 81.6 percent of all opponent power plays.
Calgary players have been penalized 4.4 times per game in total this season, and 5.2 per game over their last five games. The teams been forced to stave off opponent power plays 9.6 minutes per contest over their last five home games.
Mike Smith has stopped 28.1 shots per game as the top selection in goal for Calgary. Smith has 26 wins, 29 losses, and six OT losses to his credit and has registered a .916 save percentage and 2.65 goals against average this season.
Johnny Gaudreau (23 goals, 59 assists) will pace the offensive counter for the Flames.
Vegas Golden Knights at Calgary Flames Betting Predictions
Free NHL Pick: SU Winner – Flames, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- The total has gone under in four of Calgary’s last five outings.
- Two offenses that have clobbered opposing nets with shots, Vegas has registered the leagues ninth-most shots on goal (32.8) while Calgary has attempted the seventh-most (33.7).
- Power plays and penalty kills may be even more critical than usual in the outcome of this matchup. The Golden Knights are 20-12 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 40-20 when they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total. The Flames are 14-19 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 18-25 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Two of Vegas last ten games have been decided by a shootout. The team is 1-1 in those games and 4-3 overall in shootouts this season.
- Calgary has forced 11.6 takeaways per game over its last five home games, an improvement over its season average of 8.2 takeaways per game (ranked 11th in the league).
- Vegas skaters have created 5.8 takeaways per game over its last five road games, a drop-off from its season average of 10.4 takeaways per game (ranked third in the NHL).
