Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Picks & Predictions 1/7/2018

Sunday, January 7, 2018

PPG Paints Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Boston Bruins travel to PPG Paints Arena to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday, January 7, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Bruins at -177 and the Penguins at +160.

Boston has a record of 22-10-6 this season and on the road they have a record of 9-5-3-2. They are 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 119 goals and given up 95 goals for a point differential of +24. For the season they have an ATS record of 22-16-0 and an over/under record of 17-20-0. Pittsburgh is 21-19-3 including 12-7-1-0 at home this season. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 120 goals and surrendered 133 for a goal differential of -13. Their record against the spread is 21-22-0 while their over/under record is 21-20-0.

Valuable Boston Bruins Betting Trends

The Boston Bruins are 22-16-0 straight up this year

The Boston Bruins are 17-20-0 against the over/under this season

Important Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 21-22-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 21-20-0 against the over/under this season

Key Boston Bruins Injuries

12/30/17 D Adam McQuaid Leg IR (10/19)

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

12/29/17 RW Bryan Rust Upper Body IR (12/27)
12/29/17 D Chad Ruhwedel Upper Body IR (12/27)
01/05/18 D Brian Dumoulin Concussion is "?" Sunday vs Boston
01/04/18 RW Carter Rowney Upper Body is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

David Pastrnak has accumulated 35 total points this season for the Bruins. He has 15 goals this year with 105 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 20 assists on the season and averages 18.3 minutes played per game. Brad Marchand averages 20.3 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 21% by scoring 16 goals on 78 shots. He has 18 assists, giving him a total of 34 points on the season. Tuukka Rask has 14 wins and 8 losses this season in net for the Bruins. He has 702 shots against him and he's given up 53 goals. He's made 649 saves for a save percentage of 93%.

Player Spotlight

Phil Kessel has scored 45 total points this year for the Penguins. He has 17 goals this season with 154 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 28 assists on the season and averages 18.7 minutes played per game. Sidney Crosby averages 20.7 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 15 goals on 121 shots. He has 25 assists, giving him a total of 40 points on the season. Matthew Murray has 14 wins and 12 losses this year in goal for the Penguins. He has 841 shots against him and he's surrendered 82 goals. He's made 759 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Bruins have 50 total points this season, which ranks them 9th in the NHL. They are 17th in the league in goals scored with 119 while they've given up 95 goals, ranking them 29th overall. They have had 126 power play opportunities and have scored 26 goals on those chances for a percentage of 21%. That is 8th in the NHL. The Bruins have allowed 116 power play opportunities and have given up 18 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 84%, putting them 2nd in the league when short-handed. They average 32 shots per game and as a team shoot 9.81% for the season. They allow 30 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%. That puts them 7th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Penguins are 19th in the NHL with a total of 45 points this year. They have 39 power play goals on 151 opportunities for a percentage of 26%. That ranks them 1st in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 151 power play opportunities and have given up 27 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%. That is 12th in the NHL. As a team, the Penguins are 16th in the league with 120 goals scored while they've given up 133 goals, which is 5th overall. They average 34 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.11%. As a team they give up 30 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 25th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Boston has a Corsi percentage of 51.7% as they've tried 2,260 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,109 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 6th in Corsi percentage. They are 4th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 52% as they have 1,706 shots while they've given up 1,573 attempts on defense. The Bruins start possessions in the offensive zone 54.1% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 45.9% for the year. That puts them 3rd and 26th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,222 face-off wins as opposed to 1,167 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.2%. That is 8th overall in the NHL. On defense Boston has 887 hits and they've blocked 536 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 27th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Penguins start possessions in the offensive zone 53.1% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 46.9% for the year. That ranks them 8th and 25th respectively in the NHL. They have 1,379 face-off wins as opposed to 1,326 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51%. That is 11th in the league. On defense Pittsburgh has 1,021 hits and they've blocked 633 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 9th in blocked shots. Pittsburgh is ranked 8th in Corsi percentage with 52% as they've tried 2,620 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,420 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 3rd in the NHL at 52.9%, as they have 2,008 shots while they've given up 1,787 attempts on defense.

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

Josh's Pick: Take Pittsburgh +160

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