San Jose Sharks at Vegas Golden Knights NHL Picks & Predictions 4/26/2018

Thursday, April 26, 2018

T-Mobile Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The San Jose Sharks travel to T-Mobile Arena to play the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, April 26, 2018 in Game 1 of their series. The opening line for this game has the Sharks at +118 and the Golden Knights at -130.

San Jose had a record of 45-27-10 this season and on the road they had a record of 20-14-7-2. They were 3rd in the Pacific Division. They scored 252 goals and gave up 229 goals for a point differential of +23. For the season they have an ATS record of 49-37-0 and an over/under record of 38-45-0. Vegas was 51-24-7 including 29-10-2-1 at home this season. They finished 1st in the Pacific Division. They scored 272 goals and surrendered 228 for a goal differential of +44. Their record against the spread is 55-31-0 while their over/under record is 42-41-0.

Valuable San Jose Sharks Betting Trends

The San Jose Sharks are 49-37-0 straight up this year

The San Jose Sharks are 38-45-0 against the over/under this season

Important Vegas Golden Knights Betting Trends

The Vegas Golden Knights are 55-31-0 straight up this year

The Vegas Golden Knights are 42-41-0 against the over/under this season

Key San Jose Sharks Injuries

04/18/18 RW Barclay Goodrow Upper Body is out indefinitely
03/19/18 D Joakim Ryan Upper Body is out indefinitely
01/24/18 C Joe Thornton MCL IR (01/23)

Key Vegas Golden Knights Injuries

10/06/17 D Clayton Stoner Abdominal IR (10/02)
04/18/18 C Mikhail Grabovski Concussion is out indefinitely
03/02/18 D Luca Sbisa Hand is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Joe Pavelski has accumulated 66 total points this season for the Sharks. He has 22 goals this year with 224 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 44 assists on the season and averages 19.3 minutes played per game. Brent Burns averages 25.2 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 4% by scoring 12 goals on 332 shots. He has 55 assists, giving him a total of 67 points on the season. Martin Jones has 30 wins and 22 losses this season in net for the Sharks. He has 1,699 shots against him and he's given up 145 goals. He's made 1,554 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Jon Marchessault has scored 75 total points this year for the Golden Knights. He has 27 goals this season with 268 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 48 assists on the season and averages 17.5 minutes played per game. William Karlsson averages 18.7 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 23% by scoring 43 goals on 184 shots. He has 35 assists, giving him a total of 78 points on the season. Marc-Andre Fleury has 29 wins and 13 losses this year in goal for the Golden Knights. He has 1,376 shots against him and he's surrendered 100 goals. He's made 1,276 saves for a save percentage of 93%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sharks have 100 total points this season, which ranks them 11th in the NHL. They are 12th in the league in goals scored with 252 while they've given up 229 goals, ranking them 23rd overall. They have had 257 power play opportunities and have scored 53 goals on those chances for a percentage of 21%. That is 16th in the NHL. The Sharks have allowed 224 power play opportunities and have given up 34 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 85%, putting them 2nd in the league when short-handed. They average 33 shots per game and as a team shoot 9.33% for the season. They allow 30 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 15th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Golden Knights are 5th in the NHL with a total of 109 points this year. They have 53 power play goals on 248 opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That ranks them 11th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 237 power play opportunities and have given up 44 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81%. That is 10th in the NHL. As a team, the Golden Knights are 5th in the league with 272 goals scored while they've given up 228 goals, which is 24th overall. They average 33 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.13%. As a team they give up 31 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 12th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

San Jose is 13th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 50.8%, as they've attempted 5,002 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,853 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 52.2% as they have 3,798 attempts while they have given up 3,472 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 7th in the league. The Sharks start possessions in the offensive zone 52.1% of the time, which is 12th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.9% for the season. That is 22nd overall in the NHL. They have 2,558 face-off wins compared to 2,433 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.3%. That ranks them 11th in the league. On defense San Jose has 1,380 hits and they have blocked 1,381 shots from the opposition, putting them 1st overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Golden Knights are 10th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 53.1% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 46.9% for the season, which is 28th in the NHL. They have 2,439 face-off wins compared to 2,548 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.9%. That is 25th in the league. On defense Vegas has 1,767 hits and they have blocked 1,179 shots from the opposition, which is 21st in the league. Vegas is 7th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 51.6% as they've attempted 4,991 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,690 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 51.5% ranks 8th as they have 3,733 attempts while they have given up 3,511 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Sharks/Golden Knights NHL game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take San Jose +118

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