Two teams that are squarely in playoff contention, the Nashville Predators and the Calgary Flames take the ice at the Scotiabank Saddledome. CBC Sports will showcase this Western Conference matchup, and the opening face-off is at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday, December 8.
Nashville Predators vs. Calgary Flames Odds
Calgary enters the game as the favorite with a moneyline of -135. The line for Nashville is standing at +115, and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals. If bettors want to put some action on the game’s total, they’ll be looking at odds of -110 for the over and -110 on the under.
Nashville is 19-10 straight up (SU) and has netted moneyline bettors 3.0 units this season. 15 of its contests have gone under the total, while 13 have gone over and just one has pushed. As the away team this season, the Preds are 8-5 SU.
Nashville has converted on just 16.5 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a mark that’s ranked 24th in the NHL. Its penalty kill is ranked 13th overall, and the team’s successfully killed off 80.6 percent of all penalties.
Nashville, as a collective unit, has been sent to the penalty box 4.0 times per game this season, and 4.7 per game over its past ten contests. The team has had to kill penalties 9.4 minutes per contest over their last five road games.
With a .930 save percentage and 24.8 saves per game, Pekka Rinne (13-7-1) has been the best option in goal for Nashville this season. If head coach Peter Laviolette decides to rest him, however, the team may turn to Juuse Saros (7-5 record, .889 save percentage, 3.29 goals against average).
Ryan Johansen and Filip Forsberg will both be relied on to facilitate things for the visiting Predators. Johansen has 25 points on five goals and 20 assists, and has recorded two or more points in eight different games. Forsberg has 14 goals and eight assists to his nameand has registered a point in 15 games.
On the other bench, Calgary is 18-11 straight up (SU) and has netted moneyline bettors 5.1 units this season. Through 29 regular season matches, 14 of its games have gone over the total, while another 14 have gone under and just one has pushed. This year, the team is 9-5 SU at home.
Calgary has converted on 22.5 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 18th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.8 percent of all opponent power plays.
The Flames have been penalized 3.7 times per game this season, 4.0 per game over their past five contests total, and 3.8 per game over their last five home outings. The team has had to stave off opponent power plays 9.8 minutes per contest over their last five home games.
Mike Smith (22.4 saves per game) has been the top selection in goal for Calgary. Smith has 10 wins, eight losses, and one OT loss to his name and has registered a subpar .892 save percentage and 2.93 goals against average this season.
Johnny Gaudreau (12 goals, 25 assists) will pace the attack for the Flames.
Nashville Predators vs. Calgary Flames Free Picks
Free Pick: SU Winner \u2013 Predators, O/U \u2013 Under
Betting Notes
- For both of these clubs, the under has hit in three of their past five matchups.
- Power plays and penalty kills may prove to be critical tonight. The Predators are 9-3 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 14-6 when they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Flames are 11-4 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 12-9 in games where total penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- One of the best at creating pressure on opposing teams, Calgary is ranked 4th with 9.0 takeaways per game. That figure has trended higher lately, as the team has managed 10.2 takeaways over its last 10 games and 11.0 takeaways over its last five.
- Nashville has created 6.2 takeaways per game over its last five road games, a drop-off from its season average of 7.8 takeaways per game (ranked 13th).
