The Calgary Flames will wrap up a quick two-game road trip this Monday night at Jobing.com Arena when they face off against the Phoenix Coyotes in this Western Conference clash. The game is set to get underway at 9 p.m. (ET), and it will be available on NHL Center Ice.

Calgary erased a two-goal deficit against Dallas on Sunday to pull out a much-needed 4-3 victory as a +117 road underdog. The win evened its mark to 5-5-3 on the year and 3-1-1 on the road. The total has now gone “over” in five of its last six games.

The Coyotes knocked off Columbus this past Saturday 5-3 as prohibitive -205 home favorites. They are now 7-6-2 overall and clinging to eighth place in the West with 16 points. They are 5-3-1 at home this season and the total has stayed “under” in seven of their last 10 games.

Flames at Coyotes Betting Storylines

The Flames have done a good job at putting the puck in the net this season with an average of three goals a game. Curtis Glenncross leads the team with six goals, and Alex Tanguay is the points leader with four goals and eight assists. Overall, they have eight players with three or more goals this season and four with at least 10 total points.

The problem has been on the other end of the ice with a defense that is ranked 28th in the NHL in goals allowed. Calgary is giving up an average of 3.4 goals a game and has been horrible against the power play with a kill rate of just 72.3 percent. It has been without goalie Miikka Kiprusoff, who is out with a knee injury, so Leland Irving and Joey McDonald have split time between the pipes. Neither has been all that effective with a save percentage under 90 percent.

Phoenix comes into this contest as one of the more balanced teams in the league. It is certainly not lighting things up on offense with 2.6 goals-per-game, but it has done a good job on defense by holding opponents to an average of just 2.7 goals a game. The Coyotes have been especially adept at killing off penalties with a kill rate of 83.9 percent.

The hot sticks so far have been Martin Hanzel and Radim Vrbata. Hanzel leads the team with seven goals, and Vrbata has recorded four goals and eight assists so far. Keep an eye on Vrbata’s status for Monday night after suffering a lower-body injury in Saturday’s game. Lauri Korpikowski and Shane Doan also have four goals on the year. Mike Smith has spent the majority of the time in goal and should get the start in this game. He has a goals-against-average of 2.80 with a .897 save percentage. Chad Johnson and Jason LaBarbera have also seen time in goal this season.

Flames at Coyotes NHL Betting Odds and Trends

BetOnline has Phoenix as a -168 home favorite and the Flames as +153 underdogs on the on the money line for this game. The total has been set at 5.5.

The Flames are 3-7 in their last 10 road games and 2-5 in their last seven games following a win. The total has gone over in four of their last five games against the Pacific Division.

The Coyotes are 2-6 in their last eight games following a win but a perfect 4-0 in their last four games on one day’s rest. The total has stayed under in four of their last five games following a win.

Head-to-head in this matchup, Calgary is 2-6 in the last eight meetings and 1-5 in its last six trips to Phoenix. The total has gone over in three of the last five meetings.

Flames at Coyotes Picks and Betting Predictions

It is always a risk to wager on a heavy favorite at home, but if you are going to play a side in this contest stick with Phoenix. Calgary is definitely not known for being a strong road team, especially in back-to-back games. The road wear shows as Calgary once again goes down in flames at Jobing.com Arena

Doc’s Sports is offering $60 worth of member’s NHL picks absolutely free – no obligation, no sales people – you don’t even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit any way you please on any of our top hockey handicappers. Click here for more details and take advantage of this free $60 picks credit today.

Read more articles by Dave Schwab