Pittsburgh Penguins at Carolina Hurricanes NHL Picks & Predictions 2/23/2018

Friday, February 23, 2018

PNC Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Pittsburgh Penguins travel to PNC Arena to play the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday, February 23, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Penguins at -115 and the Hurricanes at +104.

Pittsburgh has a record of 35-22-4 this season and on the road they have a record of 12-15-3-2. They are 2nd in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 195 goals and given up 180 goals for a point differential of +15. For the season they have an ATS record of 35-26-0 and an over/under record of 32-27-0. Carolina has a record of 27-23-10 including 15-10-6-1 at home this season. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 162 goals and surrendered 180 for a goal differential of -18. Their record against the spread is 27-33-0 while their over/under record is 25-33-0.

Valuable Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 35-26-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 32-27-0 against the over/under this season

Important Carolina Hurricanes Betting Trends

The Carolina Hurricanes are 27-33-0 straight up this year

The Carolina Hurricanes are 25-33-0 against the over/under this season

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

02/20/18 D Justin Schultz Illness is upgraded to probable Friday vs Carolina
02/09/18 RW Patric Hornqvist Lower Body IR (02/02)
02/09/18 RW Tom Kuhnhackl Lower Body IR (02/07)

Key Carolina Hurricanes Injuries

No key injuries to report

Player Spotlight

Matt Murray has 22 wins and 12 losses this season in net for the Penguins. He has 1,117 shots against him and he's given up 103 goals. He's made 1,014 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Phil Kessel has accumulated 66 total points this season for the Penguins. He has 24 goals this year with 206 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 12%. He has a total of 42 assists on the season and averages 18.8 minutes played per game. Sidney Crosby averages 20.8 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 19 goals on 171 shots. He has 47 assists, giving him a total of 66 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Jeff Skinner has scored 37 total points this year for the Hurricanes. He has 20 goals this season with 206 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 17 assists on the season and averages 17 minutes played per game. Cam Ward has 17 wins and 8 losses this year in goal for the Hurricanes. He has 862 shots against him and he's surrendered 77 goals. He's made 785 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Teuvo Teravainen averages 16.9 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 14 goals on 135 shots. He has 32 assists, giving him a total of 46 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Penguins have allowed 204 power play opportunities and have given up 36 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82% this year. That is 8th in the NHL. They average 34 shots per game and as a team shoot 9.38% for the season. They allow 31 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%, which is ranked 23rd in the league. The Penguins has 74 total points this season, ranking 8th in the NHL in offense. They are 6th in the league with 195 goals while they've given up 180 goals, which is 13th overall. They have had 200 power play opportunities and scored 53 goals on those chances for a percentage of 27%. That is 1st in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Hurricanes are 24th with 162 goals scored while they are 12th in the NHL with 180 goals allowed this year. They average 34 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 7.85%. They give up 29 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them in 29th place in the league. The Hurricanes have a total of 64 points this year, which is 20th in the NHL. They have 36 power play goals on 189 opportunities for a percentage of 19%. That ranks their power play unit 20th. They've allowed 143 power play opportunities and have given up 29 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%, which is 18th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Pittsburgh has a Corsi percentage of 51.4% as they've tried 3,677 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,476 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 12th in Corsi percentage. They are 8th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 52.1% as they have 2,810 shots while they've given up 2,586 attempts on defense. The Penguins start possessions in the offensive zone 51.2% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48.8% for the year. That puts them 14th and 20th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,918 face-off wins as opposed to 1,885 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.4%. That is 17th overall in the NHL. On defense Pittsburgh has 1,486 hits and they've blocked 890 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 15th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Hurricanes start possessions in the offensive zone 57.9% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 42.1% for the year. That ranks them 1st and 31st respectively in the NHL. They have 1,863 face-off wins as opposed to 1,612 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 53.6%. That is 1st in the league. On defense Carolina has 1,192 hits and they've blocked 770 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 31st in blocked shots. Carolina is ranked 1st in Corsi percentage with 55% as they've tried 3,928 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,209 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 1st in the NHL at 54.4%, as they have 2,909 shots while they've given up 2,439 attempts on defense.

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

Josh's Pick: Take Carolina +104

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