In their second head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Winnipeg Jets face off at Bell MTS Place. NBC Sports Chicago will showcase this divisional matchup, and the puck drops at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 11.
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Winnipeg Jets Odds
Winnipeg enters the contest as the noticeable favorite with a -240 moneyline. The line for Chicago now stands at +200, and the Over/Under (O/U) has been set at an even 6 goals (-125 over, +105 under).
The Jets are 18-11 straight up (SU) and have netted 2.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. That winning percentage, ranked fourth in the NHL so far in this young season, isn’t too far off from to what the team posted during last year’s regular season (52-30). Among its 29 games this season, 13 have gone over the total, while 12 have gone under and just four have pushed. The team is 10-6 SU at home this year.
Winnipeg enters the matchup with the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as the team has converted on 28.7 percent of their extra-man opportunities this year. On the other hand, its penalty kill is rated 10th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 82.2 percent of all penalties.
As a collective unit, Winnipeg has been penalized 4.0 times per game overall this season, and 2.4 per game over its last five matchups at home. The team has been forced to kill penalties for just 7.7 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, in total.
Averaging 27.4 saves per game with a .910 save percentage, Connor Hellebuyck (13-10-1) has been the top option in goal for the Jets this season. If head coach Paul Maurice decides to rest him, however, the Jets could turn to Laurent Brossoit (5-2-2 record, .935 save percentage, 2.16 goals against average).
The Jets will continue relying on leadership from Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele. Wheeler (37 points) has tallied five goals and 32 assists and has recorded two or more points on 10 separate occasions this year. Scheifele has 16 goals and 19 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 19 games.
On the other side of the rink, Chicago is 9-22 straight up (SU) and has lost 13.5 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far. 16 of its matches have gone over the total, while 13 have gone under the total and just two have pushed. Chicago’s 4-13 SU as an away team this season.
Chicago has converted on just 11.6 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s ranked 31st in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 28th overall and it’s successfully killed off 74.2 percent of all opponent power plays.
Chicago’s skaters have been whistled for penalties only 3.4 times per game in total this season, and 4.4 per game over their last five games. The team has been forced to kill penalties an unhealthy 16.6 minutes per game over their last five outings.
Corey Crawford (28.4 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Chicago. Crawford owns a 5-15-1 record, while registering a .901 save percentage and 3.21 goals against average this year.
Patrick Kane (15 goals, 19 assists) will lead the attack for the visiting Blackhawks.
Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets Free Picks
Prediction: SU Winner \u2013 Jets, O/U \u2013 Over
Betting Trends
- For both of these teams, the over has hit in three of their last five matchups.
- Penalties and power plays may be extremely important tonight. The Blackhawks are 2-10 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 6-17 when they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Jets are 9-5 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 10-7 when they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Winnipeg is ranked 18th in the NHL this season with 7.2 takeaways per game. That figure has trended higher, as the team has averaged 8.1 takeaways over its last 10 games and 8.4 takeaways over its last five.
- Chicago has allowed 3.7 goals per game overall this season, but has allowed 4.7 goals per match up over its last seven games (0-7 SU over that span).
- Chicago skaters have averaged 8.4 takeaways per game over its last five road games, an improvement over its season average of 7.3 takeaways per game (ranked 17th overall).
