Calgary Flames at Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Picks & Predictions 3/5/2018

Monday, March 5, 2018

PPG Paints Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Calgary Flames head to PPG Paints Arena to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, March 5, 2018. The opening line for this contest has the Flames at +162 and the Penguins at -180.

Calgary has a record of 32-25-9 this year and away from home they have a record of 18-10-5-4. They are 5th in the Pacific Division. They have tallied 185 goals and surrendered 195 goals for a point differential of -10. For the year they have an ATS mark of 32-34-0 and an over/under record of 31-33-0. Pittsburgh has a record of 37-25-4 including 24-8-1-0 on home ice this year. They are 3rd in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 215 goals and have given up 200 for a goal differential of +15. Their record against the spread is 37-29-0 while their over/under mark is 35-29-0.

Valuable Calgary Flames Betting Trends

The Calgary Flames are 32-34-0 straight up this year

The Calgary Flames are 31-33-0 against the over/under this season

Important Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 37-29-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 35-29-0 against the over/under this season

Key Calgary Flames Injuries

12/01/17 RW Kris Versteeg Hip IR (11/24)
03/02/18 LW Micheal Ferland Lower Body is "?" Monday vs Pittsburgh
02/23/18 GO Mike Smith Lower Body IR (02/10)
02/20/18 LW Marek Hrivik Undisclosed IR (02/16)

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

03/02/18 RW Zach Aston-Reese Upper Body is out indefinitely
02/27/18 GO Matt Murray Concussion is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Sean Monahan has scored 58 total points this year for the Flames. He has 29 goals this season with 176 shots on net, giving him a shooting percentage of 17%. He has a total of 29 assists on the year and averages 18.8 minutes played per contest. Johnny Gaudreau averages 19.5 minutes of ice time per game this season. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by tallying 20 goals on 192 attempts. He has 53 assists, giving him a total of 73 points on the year. Jon Gillies has 2 wins and 2 losses this season in goal for the Flames. He has 146 shots against him and he's surrendered 13 goals. He's made 133 stops for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Phil Kessel has 74 total points this season for the Penguins. He has 27 goals this year with 222 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 12%. He has a total of 47 assists on the year and averages 18.8 minutes played per contest. Sidney Crosby averages 20.8 minutes of ice time per contest. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 22 goals on 193 attempts. He has 48 assists, giving him a total of 70 points on the year. Casey DeSmith has 3 wins and 4 losses this season in net for the Penguins. He has 231 shots against him and he's given up 20 goals. He's made 211 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Flames have 73 total points this year, which is 18th in the NHL. They've scored 185 goals while giving up 195 scores, which has them ranked 18th and 12th respectively. They have had 228 power play chances and scored 41 goals on those opportunities for a percentage of 18%. That is 23rd in the league. The Flames have given up 225 power play opportunities and surrendered 44 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%, ranking them 16th when short-handed. They average 33 shots per contest and as a team shoot 8.47% for the year. They allow 32 shot attempts to their opposition per game and have a team save percentage of 91%, which is 14th in the league.

Useful Team Statistics

The Penguins are 12th in the league with a total of 78 points this season. They have 56 power play goals on 210 chances for a percentage of 27%. That is 1st in the NHL. They've given up 217 power play opportunities and surrendered 40 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%, ranking 13th overall. As a team, the Penguins are 5th with a total of 215 goals scored while they've given up 200 goals this season, ranking 9th in goals against. They average 34 shots per game and have a team shooting percentage of 9.48%. As a unit they give up 31 shots per contest and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them 24th overall in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Calgary has a Corsi percentage of 52.2% as they've tried 4,216 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,856 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 51.5% as they have 3,152 shots while they've given up 2,972 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 2,018 face-off wins as opposed to 2,076 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.3%. That is 18th overall in the NHL. On defense Calgary has 1,256 hits and they've blocked 884 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 28th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Penguins start possessions in the offensive zone 52% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48% for the year. That ranks them 10th and 23rd respectively in the NHL. They have 2,064 face-off wins as opposed to 2,052 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.1%. That is 15th in the league. On defense Pittsburgh has 1,596 hits and they've blocked 970 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 13th in blocked shots. Pittsburgh is ranked 7th in Corsi percentage with 51.5% as they've tried 4,002 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,772 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 8th in the NHL at 52.1%, as they have 3,053 shots while they've given up 2,802 attempts on defense.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Calgary +162

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