Pittsburgh Penguins at Detroit Red Wings NHL Picks & Predictions 12/31/2017

Sunday, December 31, 2017

Little Ceasars Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Pittsburgh Penguins travel to Little Ceasars Arena to play the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, December 31, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Penguins at -125 and the Red Wings at +113.

Pittsburgh has a record of 19-17-3 this season and on the road they have a record of 7-11-2-1. They are 7th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 110 goals and given up 124 goals for a point differential of -14. For the season they have an ATS record of 19-19-0 and an over/under record of 20-16-0. Detroit is 14-16-7 including 7-6-6-1 at home this season. They are 6th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 100 goals and surrendered 118 for a goal differential of -18. Their record against the spread is 13-23-0 while their over/under record is 18-18-0.

Valuable Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 19-19-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 20-16-0 against the over/under this season

Important Detroit Red Wings Betting Trends

The Detroit Red Wings are 13-23-0 straight up this year

The Detroit Red Wings are 18-18-0 against the over/under this season

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

12/30/17 GO Matt Murray Upper Body is "?" Sunday vs Detroit
12/29/17 RW Bryan Rust Upper Body is out indefinitely
12/29/17 D Chad Ruhwedel Upper Body is out indefinitely
12/28/17 D Kris Letang Lower Body IR (12/24)
12/07/17 D Justin Schultz Lower Body IR (12/05)

Key Detroit Red Wings Injuries

12/29/17 RW Anthony Mantha Undisclosed is "?" Sunday vs Pittsburgh
12/22/17 RW Luke Glendening Hand is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Phil Kessel has accumulated 41 total points this season for the Penguins. He has 16 goals this year with 146 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 25 assists on the season and averages 18.8 minutes played per game. Sidney Crosby averages 20.8 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 14 goals on 115 shots. He has 21 assists, giving him a total of 35 points on the season. Matthew Murray has 14 wins and 10 losses this season in net for the Penguins. He has 774 shots against him and he's given up 74 goals. He's made 700 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Player Spotlight

Anthony Mantha has scored 24 total points this year for the Red Wings. He has 13 goals this season with 88 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 15%. He has a total of 11 assists on the season and averages 17.1 minutes played per game. Henrik Zetterberg averages 19.7 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 7% by scoring 6 goals on 83 shots. He has 19 assists, giving him a total of 25 points on the season. Jimmy Howard has 11 wins and 12 losses this year in goal for the Red Wings. He has 879 shots against him and he's surrendered 79 goals. He's made 800 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Penguins have 41 total points this season, which ranks them 20th in the NHL. They are 17th in the league in goals scored with 110 while they've given up 124 goals, ranking them 4th overall. They have had 141 power play opportunities and have scored 35 goals on those chances for a percentage of 25%. That is 3rd in the NHL. The Penguins have allowed 141 power play opportunities and have given up 27 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81%, putting them 18th in the league when short-handed. They average 35 shots per game and as a team shoot 8.11% for the season. They allow 31 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%. That puts them 28th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Red Wings are 28th in the NHL with a total of 35 points this year. They have 24 power play goals on 118 opportunities for a percentage of 20%. That ranks them 10th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 123 power play opportunities and have given up 23 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81%. That is 14th in the NHL. As a team, the Red Wings are 26th in the league with 100 goals scored while they've given up 118 goals, which is 11th overall. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.79%. As a team they give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 22nd in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Pittsburgh is 9th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 52%, as they've attempted 2,397 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,212 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 53.1% as they have 1,842 attempts while they have given up 1,630 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 3rd in the league. The Penguins start possessions in the offensive zone 53.7% of the time, which is 5th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 46.3% for the season. That is 27th overall in the NHL. They have 1,255 face-off wins compared to 1,203 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.1%. That ranks them 11th in the league. On defense Pittsburgh has 934 hits and they have blocked 582 shots from the opposition, putting them 7th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Red Wings start possessions in the offensive zone 51.1% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48.9% for the year. That ranks them 13th and 17th respectively in the NHL. They have 1,130 face-off wins as opposed to 1,191 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.7%. That is 23rd in the league. On defense Detroit has 745 hits and they've blocked 485 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 30th in blocked shots. Detroit is ranked 16th in Corsi percentage with 49.4% as they've tried 2,032 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,080 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 14th in the NHL at 49.9%, as they have 1,586 shots while they've given up 1,595 attempts on defense.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Detroit +113

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