Calgary Flames at Buffalo Sabres NHL Picks & Predictions 3/7/2018

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

KeyBank Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Calgary Flames travel to KeyBank Center to play the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday, March 7, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Flames at -141 and the Sabres at +128.

Calgary has a record of 32-25-10 this season and on the road they have a record of 18-10-6-4. They are 5th in the Pacific Division. They've scored 188 goals and given up 199 goals for a point differential of -11. For the season they have an ATS record of 32-35-0 and an over/under record of 32-33-0. Buffalo is 21-34-11 including 10-18-4-1 at home this season. They are 8th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 159 goals and surrendered 214 for a goal differential of -55. Their record against the spread is 21-45-0 while their over/under record is 29-33-0.

Valuable Calgary Flames Betting Trends

The Calgary Flames are 32-35-0 straight up this year

The Calgary Flames are 32-33-0 against the over/under this season

Important Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 21-45-0 straight up this year

The Buffalo Sabres are 29-33-0 against the over/under this season

Key Calgary Flames Injuries

12/01/17 RW Kris Versteeg Hip IR (11/24)
02/23/18 GO Mike Smith Lower Body IR (02/10)
02/20/18 LW Marek Hrivik Undisclosed IR (02/16)

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

03/05/18 LW Evan Rodrigues Upper Body is "?" Wednesday vs Calgary
03/05/18 C Kyle Criscuolo Shoulder left last game, is "?" Wednesday vs Calgary
02/11/18 C Jack Eichel Ankle IR (02/09)
02/08/18 D Jake McCabe Shoulder IR (02/06)
01/27/18 D Zach Bogosian Hip IR (01/09)

Player Spotlight

Sean Monahan has accumulated 58 total points this season for the Flames. He has 29 goals this year with 177 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 16%. He has a total of 29 assists on the season and averages 18.8 minutes played per game. Johnny Gaudreau averages 19.6 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 20 goals on 195 shots. He has 54 assists, giving him a total of 74 points on the season. Jon Gillies has 2 wins and 2 losses this season in net for the Flames. He has 178 shots against him and he's given up 17 goals. He's made 161 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Player Spotlight

Ryan O'Reilly has scored 49 total points this year for the Sabres. He has 19 goals this season with 177 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 30 assists on the season and averages 20.7 minutes played per game. Kyle Okposo averages 17.3 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 8% by scoring 11 goals on 133 shots. He has 27 assists, giving him a total of 38 points on the season. Robin Lehner has 13 wins and 24 losses this year in goal for the Sabres. He has 1,397 shots against him and he's surrendered 127 goals. He's made 1,270 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Flames have 74 total points this season, which ranks them 17th in the NHL. They are 19th in the league in goals scored with 188 while they've given up 199 goals, ranking them 10th overall. They have had 230 power play opportunities and have scored 41 goals on those chances for a percentage of 18%. That is 24th in the NHL. The Flames have allowed 227 power play opportunities and have given up 44 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81%, putting them 16th in the league when short-handed. They average 33 shots per game and as a team shoot 8.46% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 17th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres are 30th in the NHL with a total of 53 points this year. They have 35 power play goals on 200 opportunities for a percentage of 18%. That ranks them 25th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 194 power play opportunities and have given up 41 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 79%. That is 22nd in the NHL. As a team, the Sabres are 30th in the league with 159 goals scored while they've given up 214 goals, which is 5th overall. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 7.90%. As a team they give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 25th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Calgary has a Corsi percentage of 52.3% as they've tried 4,280 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,910 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 4th in Corsi percentage. They are 4th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 51.6% as they have 3,205 shots while they've given up 3,011 attempts on defense. The Flames start possessions in the offensive zone 51.9% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48.1% for the year. That puts them 8th and 21st in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 2,045 face-off wins as opposed to 2,110 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.2%. That is 19th overall in the NHL. On defense Calgary has 1,283 hits and they've blocked 899 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 28th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Sabres start possessions in the offensive zone 51.9% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48.1% for the year. That ranks them 7th and 20th respectively in the NHL. They have 2,036 face-off wins as opposed to 1,937 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.2%. That is 9th in the league. On defense Buffalo has 1,447 hits and they've blocked 906 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 27th in blocked shots. Buffalo is ranked 23rd in Corsi percentage with 48.1% as they've tried 3,558 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,844 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 23rd in the NHL at 48.2%, as they have 2,736 shots while they've given up 2,938 attempts on defense.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Buffalo +128

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