Boston Bruins at Carolina Hurricanes NHL Picks & Predictions 12/23/2018

Sunday, December 23, 2018

PNC Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Boston Bruins travel to PNC Arena to play the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday, December 23, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Bruins at +102 and the Hurricanes at -113.

Boston has a record of 19-12-4 this season. They are 4th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 97 goals and given up 89 goals for a point differential of +8. For the season they have an ATS record of 19-16-0 and an over/under record of 12-22-0. Carolina is 14-14-5 this season. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They have scored 85 goals and surrendered 97 for a goal differential of -12. Their record against the spread is 14-19-0 while their over/under record is 11-22-0.

Valuable Boston Bruins Betting Trends

The Boston Bruins are 19-16-0 straight up this year

The Boston Bruins are 12-22-0 against the over/under this season

Important Carolina Hurricanes Betting Trends

The Carolina Hurricanes are 14-19-0 straight up this year

The Carolina Hurricanes are 11-22-0 against the over/under this season

Key Boston Bruins Injuries

12/22/18 C Patrice Bergeron Upper Body is upgraded to questionable Saturday vs Nashville
12/20/18 D Urho Vaakanainen Concussion is questionable Saturday vs Nashville
12/19/18 D Zdeno Chara Lower Body is out indefinitely
12/18/18 LW Jake DeBrusk Concussion is out indefinitely
11/29/18 D Kevan Miller Throat is out indefinitely

Key Carolina Hurricanes Injuries

12/20/18 D Haydn Fleury Concussion is questionable Saturday vs Pittsburgh
12/10/18 GO Curtis McElhinney Lower Body is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

David Pastrnak has accumulated 44 total points this season for the Bruins. He has 22 goals this year with 136 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 16%. He has a total of 22 assists on the season and averages 19.3 minutes played per game. Brad Marchand averages 19.9 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 11 goals on 101 shots. He has 25 assists, giving him a total of 36 points on the season. Tuukka Rask has 8 wins and 7 losses this season in net for the Bruins. He has 481 shots against him and he's given up 41 goals. He's made 440 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Sebastian Aho has scored 34 total points this year for the Hurricanes. He has 12 goals this season with 99 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 12%. He has a total of 22 assists on the season and averages 19.5 minutes played per game. Teuvo Teravainen averages 17.6 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 9% by scoring 6 goals on 71 shots. He has 19 assists, giving him a total of 25 points on the season. Petr Mrazek has 5 wins and 7 losses this year in goal for the Hurricanes. He has 351 shots against him and he's surrendered 36 goals. He's made 315 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Bruins have 42 total points this season, which ranks them 11th in the NHL. They are 24th in the league in goals scored with 97 while they've given up 89 goals, ranking them 31st overall. They have had 110 power play opportunities and have scored 29 goals on those chances for a percentage of 26%. That is 5th in the NHL. The Bruins have allowed 103 power play opportunities and have given up 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 79%, putting them 18th in the league when short-handed. They average 32 shots per game and as a team shoot 8.54% for the season. They allow 31 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%. That puts them 2nd in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Hurricanes are 24th in the NHL with a total of 33 points this year. They have 19 power play goals on 114 opportunities for a percentage of 17%. That ranks them 22nd in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 101 power play opportunities and have given up 20 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%. That is 15th in the NHL. As a team, the Hurricanes are 29th in the league with 85 goals scored while they've given up 97 goals, which is 25th overall. They average 37 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 6.87%. As a team they give up 28 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 25th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Boston is 10th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 51.5%, as they've attempted 2,068 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,945 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 51.6% as they have 1,596 attempts while they have given up 1,500 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 10th in the league. The Bruins start possessions in the offensive zone 54.4% of the time, which is 5th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 45.6% for the season. That is 25th overall in the NHL. They have 1,054 face-off wins compared to 1,063 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.8%. That ranks them 17th in the league. On defense Boston has 805 hits and they have blocked 445 shots from the opposition, putting them 28th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Hurricanes are 1st in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 58.1% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 41.9% for the season, which is 31st in the NHL. They have 1,055 face-off wins compared to 978 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.9%. That is 5th in the league. On defense Carolina has 913 hits and they have blocked 408 shots from the opposition, which is 30th in the league. Carolina is 1st in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 57.6% as they've attempted 2,328 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,712 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 57.3% ranks 1st as they have 1,749 attempts while they have given up 1,304 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Bruins/Hurricanes NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Carolina -113

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