Ottawa Senators at Columbus Blue Jackets NHL Picks & Predictions 12/31/2018

Monday, December 31, 2018

Nationwide Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Ottawa Senators travel to Nationwide Arena to play the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday, December 31, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Senators at +220 and the Blue Jackets at -275.

Ottawa has a record of 15-20-4 this season. They are 8th in the Atlantic Division. They have scored 123 goals and given up 153 goals for a point differential of -30. For the season they have an ATS record of 15-24-0 and an over/under record of 25-11-0. Columbus has a record of 22-13-3 this year. They are 2nd in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 123 goals and surrendered 116 for a goal differential of +7. Their record against the spread is 22-16-0 while their over/under record is 14-21-0.

Valuable Ottawa Senators Betting Trends

The Ottawa Senators are 15-24-0 straight up this year

The Ottawa Senators are 25-11-0 against the over/under this season

Important Columbus Blue Jackets Betting Trends

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 22-16-0 straight up this year

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 14-21-0 against the over/under this season

Key Ottawa Senators Injuries

12/29/18 D Justin Falk Concussion is questionable Monday vs Columbus
12/29/18 GO Craig Anderson Concussion is questionable Monday vs Columbus
12/29/18 D Thomas Chabot Upper Body is questionable Monday vs Columbus
10/04/18 RW Marian Gaborik Back is out indefinitely
10/01/18 C Jean-Gabriel Pageau Achilles is out indefinitely

Key Columbus Blue Jackets Injuries

12/30/18 LW Nick Foligno Personal is out Monday vs Ottawa

Player Spotlight

Craig Anderson has 14 wins and 13 losses this season in net for the Senators. He has 1,095 shots against him and he's given up 104 goals. He's made 991 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Thomas Chabot has accumulated 38 total points this season for the Senators. He has 10 goals this year with 100 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 28 assists on the season and averages 23.9 minutes played per game. Mark Stone averages 20.3 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 19% by scoring 18 goals on 95 shots. He has 25 assists, giving him a total of 43 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Cam Atkinson has scored 39 total points this year for the Blue Jackets. He has 23 goals this season with 149 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 15%. He has a total of 16 assists on the season and averages 19.4 minutes played per game. Sergei Bobrovsky has 16 wins and 11 losses this year in goal for the Blue Jackets. He has 822 shots against him and he's surrendered 73 goals. He's made 749 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Artemi Panarin averages 19.9 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 12 goals on 98 shots. He has 29 assists, giving him a total of 41 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Senators have allowed 110 power play opportunities and have given up 28 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 75% this year. That is 28th in the NHL. They average 29 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.82% for the season. They allow 37 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%, which is ranked 25th in the league. The Senators have 34 total points this season, ranking 29th in the NHL in offense. They are 11th in the league with 123 goals while they've given up 153 goals, which is 1st overall. They have had 119 power play opportunities and scored 26 goals on those chances for a percentage of 22%. That is 11th in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Blue Jackets are 12th with 123 goals scored while they are 17th in the NHL with 116 goals allowed this year. They average 32 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.12%. They give up 31 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them in 20th place in the league. The Blue Jackets have a total of 47 points this year, which is 9th in the NHL. They have 16 power play goals on 119 opportunities for a percentage of 13%. That ranks their power play unit 30th. They've allowed 106 power play opportunities and have given up 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 79%, which is 16th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Ottawa is 31st in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 43.6%, as they've attempted 2,041 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,642 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 43.9% as they have 1,537 attempts while they have given up 1,961 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 31st in the league. The Senators start possessions in the offensive zone 46.9% of the time, which is 30th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 53.1% for the season. That is 2nd overall in the NHL. They have 1,206 face-off wins compared to 1,210 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.9%. That ranks them 17th in the league. On defense Ottawa has 796 hits and they have blocked 681 shots from the opposition, putting them 1st overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Blue Jackets are 10th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 52.1% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 47.9% for the season, which is 22nd in the NHL. They have 1,108 face-off wins compared to 1,175 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.5%. That is 21st in the league. On defense Columbus has 712 hits and they have blocked 528 shots from the opposition, which is 22nd in the league. Columbus is 14th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 50.2% as they've attempted 2,119 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,105 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 51.5% ranks 11th as they have 1,675 attempts while they have given up 1,577 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Senators/Blue Jackets NHL game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take Columbus -275

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