Chicago Blackhawks at Calgary Flames NHL Picks & Predictions 12/31/2017

Sunday, December 31, 2017

Scotiabank Saddledome

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Chicago Blackhawks head to Scotiabank Saddledome to take on the Calgary Flames on Sunday, December 31, 2017. The opening line for this contest has the Blackhawks at +131 and the Flames at -145.

Chicago has a record of 18-14-5 this year and away from home they have a record of 8-9-3-1. They are 6th in the Central Division. They have tallied 109 goals and surrendered 102 goals for a point differential of +7. For the year they have an ATS mark of 17-19-0 and an over/under record of 14-20-0. Calgary has a record of 18-16-4 including 9-11-0-0 on home ice this year. They are 5th in the Pacific Division. They've scored 104 goals and have given up 111 for a goal differential of -7. Their record against the spread is 18-19-0 while their over/under mark is 16-20-0.

Valuable Chicago Blackhawks Betting Trends

The Chicago Blackhawks are 17-19-0 straight up this year

The Chicago Blackhawks are 14-20-0 against the over/under this season

Important Calgary Flames Betting Trends

The Calgary Flames are 18-19-0 straight up this year

The Calgary Flames are 16-20-0 against the over/under this season

Key Chicago Blackhawks Injuries

12/29/17 C Artem Anisimov Upper Body IR (12/27)
12/27/17 GO Corey Crawford Upper Body IR (12/27)
10/05/17 RW Marian Hossa Infection IR (10/03)
10/05/15 D Michal Rozsival Upper Body IR (10/03)

Key Calgary Flames Injuries

12/29/17 RW Michael Frolik Jaw is out indefinitely
12/22/17 D Travis Hamonic Lower Body IR (12/20)
12/01/17 RW Kris Versteeg Lower Body IR (11/24)

Player Spotlight

Patrick Kane has scored 38 total points this year for the Blackhawks. He has 16 goals this season with 130 shots on net, giving him a shooting percentage of 12%. He has a total of 22 assists on the year and averages 20 minutes played per contest. Jonathan Toews averages 19.8 minutes of ice time per game this season. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 9% by tallying 9 goals on 103 attempts. He has 13 assists, giving him a total of 22 points on the year. Anton Forsberg has 2 wins and 5 losses this season in goal for the Blackhawks. He has 307 shots against him and he's surrendered 30 goals. He's made 277 stops for a save percentage of 90%.

Player Spotlight

Sean Monahan has 32 total points this season for the Flames. He has 17 goals this year with 99 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 17%. He has a total of 15 assists on the year and averages 18.5 minutes played per contest. Johnny Gaudreau averages 19.1 minutes of ice time per contest. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 13 goals on 114 attempts. He has 28 assists, giving him a total of 41 points on the year. Mike Smith has 14 wins and 13 losses this season in net for the Flames. He has 991 shots against him and he's given up 79 goals. He's made 912 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Blackhawks have 41 total points this year, which is 19th in the NHL. They've scored 109 goals while giving up 102 scores, which has them ranked 19th and 26th respectively. They have had 145 power play chances and scored 22 goals on those opportunities for a percentage of 15%. That is 29th in the league. The Blackhawks have given up 119 power play opportunities and surrendered 21 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%, ranking them 11th when short-handed. They average 35 shots per contest and as a team shoot 8.50% for the year. They allow 33 shot attempts to their opposition per game and have a team save percentage of 92%, which is 7th in the league.

Useful Team Statistics

The Flames are 21st in the league with a total of 40 points this season. They have 23 power play goals on 132 chances for a percentage of 17%. That is 20th in the NHL. They've given up 125 power play opportunities and surrendered 28 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 78%, ranking 26th overall. As a team, the Flames are 23rd with a total of 104 goals scored while they've given up 111 goals this season, ranking 15th in goals against. They average 33 shots per game and have a team shooting percentage of 8.37%. As a unit they give up 31 shots per contest and have a save percentage of 91%, putting them 17th overall in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Chicago has a Corsi percentage of 53% as they've tried 2,429 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,156 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 2nd in Corsi percentage. They are 12th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 51% as they have 1,714 shots while they've given up 1,647 attempts on defense. The Blackhawks start possessions in the offensive zone 58% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 42% for the year. That puts them 2nd and 30th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,127 face-off wins as opposed to 1,196 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.5%. That is 22nd overall in the NHL. On defense Chicago has 701 hits and they've blocked 509 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 26th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Flames start possessions in the offensive zone 52.4% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.6% for the year. That ranks them 10th and 22nd respectively in the NHL. They have 1,152 face-off wins as opposed to 1,171 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.6%. That is 15th in the league. On defense Calgary has 653 hits and they've blocked 514 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 25th in blocked shots. Calgary is ranked 7th in Corsi percentage with 52.4% as they've tried 2,423 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,199 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 11th in the NHL at 51.4%, as they have 1,784 shots while they've given up 1,685 attempts on defense.

Who will win tonight's Blackhawks/Flames NHL game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take Chicago +131

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