Columbus Blue Jackets at Boston Bruins Game 1 Picks 4/25/2019

Thursday, April 25, 2019

TD Garden

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Columbus Blue Jackets travel to TD Garden to play the Boston Bruins on Thursday in Game 1 of their 2nd round series. The Bruins won a Game 7 against the Maple Leafs to advance while Columbus hasn't played in over a week because they swept Tampa Bay on March 16th. The opening line for this game has the Blue Jackets at +137 and the Bruins at -151.

Columbus had a regular season record of 47-31-4 this season. They were 5th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 256 goals and given up 231 goals for a point differential of +25. For the season they have an ATS record of 51-35-0 and an over/under record of 33-47-0. Boston was 49-24-9 this season. They were 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They have scored 257 goals and surrendered 212 for a goal differential of +45. Their record against the spread is 53-36-0 while their over/under record is 38-47-0.

Valuable Columbus Blue Jackets Betting Trends

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 51-35-0 straight up this year

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 33-47-0 against the over/under this season

Important Boston Bruins Betting Trends

The Boston Bruins are 53-36-0 straight up this year

The Boston Bruins are 38-47-0 against the over/under this season

Key Columbus Blue Jackets Injuries

04/18/19 D Markus Nutivaara Undisclosed is questionable
04/18/19 D Adam McQuaid Concussion is questionable
02/21/19 D Ryan Murray Upper Body is out indefinitely

Key Boston Bruins Injuries

04/21/19 RW Chris Wagner Undisclosed is questionable Tuesday vs Toronto
04/20/19 D Kevan Miller Lower Body is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Pierre-Luc Dubois has accumulated 61 total points this season for the Blue Jackets. He has 27 goals this year with 174 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 16%. He has a total of 34 assists on the season and averages 17.7 minutes played per game. Oliver Bjorkstrand averages 12.3 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 14% by scoring 23 goals on 161 shots. He has 13 assists, giving him a total of 36 points on the season. Sergei Bobrovsky has 37 wins and 24 losses this season in net for the Blue Jackets. He has 1,756 shots against him and he's given up 153 goals. He's made 1,603 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Patrice Bergeron has scored 79 total points this year for the Bruins. He has 32 goals this season with 205 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 16%. He has a total of 47 assists on the season and averages 18.5 minutes played per game. Zdeno Chara averages 21.1 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 5% by scoring 5 goals on 99 shots. He has 9 assists, giving him a total of 14 points on the season. Tuukka Rask has 27 wins and 13 losses this year in goal for the Bruins. He has 1,245 shots against him and he's surrendered 109 goals. He's made 1,136 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Blue Jackets have 98 total points this season, which ranks them 13th in the NHL. They are 12th in the league in goals scored with 256 while they've given up 231 goals, ranking them 21st overall. They have had 221 power play opportunities and have scored 34 goals on those chances for a percentage of 15%. That is 28th in the NHL. The Blue Jackets have allowed 200 power play opportunities and have given up 30 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 85%, putting them 2nd in the league when short-handed. They average 32 shots per game and as a team shoot 9.88% for the season. They allow 29 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%. That puts them 18th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Bruins are 2nd in the NHL with a total of 107 points this year. They have 65 power play goals on 251 opportunities for a percentage of 26%. That ranks them 3rd in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 244 power play opportunities and have given up 49 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%. That is 16th in the NHL. As a team, the Bruins are 11th in the league with 257 goals scored while they've given up 212 goals, which is 28th overall. They average 33 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 9.59%. As a team they give up 29 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 7th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Columbus is 10th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 50.9%, as they've attempted 4,572 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,402 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 51.7% as they have 3,565 attempts while they have given up 3,326 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 9th in the league. The Blue Jackets start possessions in the offensive zone 52% of the time, which is 11th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 48% for the season. That is 20th overall in the NHL. They have 2,434 face-off wins compared to 2,410 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.2%. That ranks them 16th in the league. On defense Columbus has 1,741 hits and they have blocked 1,076 shots from the opposition, putting them 27th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Bruins are 7th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 53.5% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 46.5% for the season, which is 25th in the NHL. They have 2,454 face-off wins compared to 2,385 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.7%. That is 10th in the league. On defense Boston has 1,876 hits and they have blocked 1,050 shots from the opposition, which is 28th in the league. Boston is 6th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 52.6% as they've attempted 4,846 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,374 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 52.9% ranks 5th as they have 3,732 attempts while they have given up 3,324 shots on the defensive end.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Columbus +137

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