Pittsburgh’s Michael Bunting aims to score his fifth goal in his last nine games versus Ottawa among Tuesday’s Best Bets
Tuesday sees a loaded NHL schedule with 20 teams square off in ten exciting matchups that should have hockey fans on the edge of their seats with sports bettors sweating their lucrative bets.
The most intriguing matchups look to be the Penguins and Senators looking to rebound after rough recent stretches, the Sharks look to win their second game since mid-February against the Flyers and the Rangers battle against a metro division rival in the Hurricanes for the most exciting matchup of the night.
It should be an exciting night of NHL action and if you want to get in on all the action, here's a breakdown of the matchups with some insights for potential betting opportunities that could win you some cash as we are riding a perfect 4-0 run from last night.
All betting lines are from Bet365 and are subject to change. Please gamble responsibly.
Bet: Michael Bunting anytime goal (+260)
The Penguins have been on one of their worst stretches in the last two decades with losses in six of their last seven games and being outscored 30 to ten. They look to bounce back in a favourable matchup against the Senators, who have lost seven straight and have scored the fifth-fewest goals with 41 since the All-Star Break.
It should be an interesting matchup with the Senators being a great home scoring team with the ninth-highest goals per game average at 3.42 and the Penguins being a lethal defensive team with the tenth-lowest goals against average this season at 2.89 on average.
The Penguins have relied heavily on their captain Sidney Crosby, who is having possibly the greatest season of all time for a 36-year-old player with 32 goals and 62 points. He got a new addition to his line with recent acquisition from Carolina, Michael Bunting.
The former Hurricane has had a decent year with 13 goals and 36 points in 62 games. He will look to benefit from playing with Crosby, who has slashed through the Sens in the past with 11 assists in their last nine matchups and should look to get Bunting on the board for his fifth goal in his last nine games against Ottawa.
Bet: Mika Zibanejad over 0.5 points (-130)
The Blueshirts have been on fire lately with wins in 12 of their last 15 games and have beat the Hurricanes in eight of their last 11 matchups.
Carolina have been red hot as well with an 11-3-1 record in their last 15 games and have dominated on the defensive end with the third-fewest goals allowed since the All-Star break with 32, which is two more goals than the Rangers who are in second.
It looks to be the marquee matchup of the night and the Rangers will need to rely on what has worked for them all season, which has been their defense and top six scoring.
New York Centre Mika Zibanejad has had a terrific year with linemate Chris Kreider with the placing third and fourth on the team in points. Zibanejad has been through a bit of a scoring drought with one point over his last seven games but should bounce back against Carolina, who he dominated for seven goals and 18 points in their last 17 matchups.
Bet: Sharks +1.5 (+105)
There are few teams in pro sports playing as bad as the Sharks as they have just one win since mid-February and have no business being looked at when it comes to betting. Their last win did come in their most previous game with a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Senators and now get a very favourable matchup against the Flyers, who they have an 11-2-2 record against in their last 15 games.
People may also not expect much from their expected starter Magnus Chrona, who on the surface level has a 4.60 goals against average and a save percentage of .864 through five starts this season.
It’s not great but despite one blow up start to the Senators, Chrona has been decent with impressive showings against the Kings and Stars holding them both to two goals while also allowing just four goals to a Oilers team that was in the midst of their red hot 16-game winning streak.
He can be a quality netminder and if the Sharks can help him out and play like they did in their win over Ottawa there is a very real chance they can win as the Flyers have a 15-21-6 record when scoring at most three goals this season. If they can assist their netminder, they can cover the puck line, if not win this game.