Colorado Avalanche at Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Picks & Predictions 12/11/2017

Monday, December 11, 2017

PPG Paints Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Colorado Avalanche travel to PPG Paints Arena to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, December 11, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Avalanche at +109 and the Penguins at -120.

Colorado has a record of 13-13-2 this season and on the road they have a record of 5-8-1. They are 7th in the Central Division. They've scored 90 goals and given up 94 goals for a point differential of -4. For the season they have an ATS record of 13-15-0 and an over/under record of 18-10-0. Pittsburgh has a record of 16-12-3 including 10-4-1 at home this season. They are 5th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 93 goals and surrendered 102 for a goal differential of -9. Their record against the spread is 16-15-0 while their over/under record is 18-12-0.

Valuable Colorado Avalanche Betting Trends

The Colorado Avalanche are 13-15-0 straight up this year

The Colorado Avalanche are 18-10-0 against the over/under this season

Important Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 16-15-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 18-12-0 against the over/under this season

Key Colorado Avalanche Injuries

11/19/17 C Vladislav Kamenev Arm IR (11/16)

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

12/09/17 RW Patric Hornqvist Facial left last game, is "?" Monday vs Colorado
12/09/17 RW Tom Kuhnhackl Upper Body is "?" Monday vs Colorado
12/07/17 D Justin Schultz Lower Body IR (12/06)
11/28/17 GO Matt Murray Lower Body IR (11/27)

Player Spotlight

Semyon Varlamov has 9 wins and 7 losses this season in net for the Avalanche. He has 580 shots against him and he's given up 55 goals. He's made 525 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Nathan MacKinnon has accumulated 33 total points this season for the Avalanche. He has 11 goals this year with 84 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 22 assists on the season and averages 19.7 minutes played per game. Mikko Rantanen averages 18.7 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 15% by scoring 9 goals on 60 shots. He has 15 assists, giving him a total of 24 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Sidney Crosby has scored 31 total points this year for the Penguins. He has 13 goals this season with 102 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 18 assists on the season and averages 20.7 minutes played per game. Tristan Jarry has 5 wins and 2 losses this year in goal for the Penguins. He has 245 shots against him and he's surrendered 21 goals. He's made 224 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Phil Kessel averages 18.5 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 14 goals on 118 shots. He has 22 assists, giving him a total of 36 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Avalanche have allowed 111 power play opportunities and have given up 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80% this year. That is 18th in the NHL. They average 30 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.88% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%, which is ranked 26th in the league. The Avalanche has 28 total points this season, ranking 25th in the NHL in offense. They are 12th in the league with 90 goals while they've given up 94 goals, which is 11th overall. They have had 116 power play opportunities and scored 22 goals on those chances for a percentage of 19%. That is 18th in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Penguins are 11th with 93 goals scored while they are 3rd in the NHL with 102 goals allowed this year. They average 35 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.52%. They give up 31 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them in 27th place in the league. The Penguins have a total of 35 points this year, which is 12th in the NHL. They have 31 power play goals on 115 opportunities for a percentage of 27%. That ranks their power play unit 2nd. They've allowed 118 power play opportunities and have given up 24 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%, which is 19th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Colorado is 25th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47.5%, as they've attempted 1,517 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,674 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 47.2% as they have 1,124 attempts while they have given up 1,256 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 27th in the league. The Avalanche start possessions in the offensive zone 49.3% of the time, which is 20th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 50.7% for the season. That is 8th overall in the NHL. They have 758 face-off wins compared to 980 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 43.6%. That ranks them 31st in the league. On defense Colorado has 506 hits and they have blocked 418 shots from the opposition, putting them 22nd overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Penguins are 10th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 53.3% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 46.7% for the season, which is 25th in the NHL. They have 994 face-off wins compared to 986 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.2%. That is 18th in the league. On defense Pittsburgh has 742 hits and they have blocked 473 shots from the opposition, which is 2nd in the league. Pittsburgh is 10th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 51.6% as they've attempted 1,896 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,780 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 52.8% ranks 6th as they have 1,462 attempts while they have given up 1,307 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Avalanche/Penguins NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Pittsburgh -120

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