New York Islanders vs Calgary Flames Predictions, NHL Expert Picks 3/12/2020

Game: New York Islanders vs Calgary Flames

Date: Thursday, March 12, 2020

Location: Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, AB

TV: RSNW/MSG+

Odds/Point Spread: Islanders (+125) Flames (-145)

Total/Over-Under: 5.5

David Rittich and the Calgary Flames (36-27-7, 3rd in the Pacific Division) host the New York Islanders (35-23-10, 6th in the Metropolitan Division) at Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday, March 12, 2020. The Flames open this matchup at -145 while the Islanders are coming in at +125. The O/U opens at 5.5. The Islanders are covering 49.2% of the time, having gone 32-33 SU. Calgary is covering 46.9% of the time, going 30-34 straight up.

The New York Islanders head into this game holding a record of 35 victories and 23 defeats, ranking them 6th in the Metropolitan Division. During the season thus far, they have earned a total of 189 goals which has them at 12th in the conference and 23rd in the league. Their goal differential is -1, ranking them 19th in the league. The Islanders have compiled a total of 80 points, which has them at 14th in the league and 9th in the conference. In discussing shots on goal, they have compiled a total of 2,016 which has them at 15th in the conference and 30th in the league. As a unit, New York has racked up a total of 1,839 hits which means they have an average of 27 per contest. They have compiled a total of 980 blocks for the year. The man looking after the net for New York is Semyon Varlamov from Kuybyshev, USSR. He is 31 years old and has been on the ice a total of 2,517 mins protecting the net for the campaign. Varlamov is giving up 2.62 goals per contest which has him ranking 11th among East goalies and 18th among goalies in the NHL. During this season, he's allowed 110 goals. He has a save percentage of .914 which has him ranking 12th among East goalies.

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The New York Islanders will be looking to get a win in their next outing after their 5 - 4 loss against the Vancouver Canucks in their previous contest. The Islanders had a solid offensive performance in the loss. For this game, they scored on 4 of the 49 shots they tried. In addition, they had 3 power play attempts but weren't able to notch a goal in these power play chances. New York ended up with a total of 4 penalty minutes for this game. The Corsi for the Islanders was 62 and the Corsi against was 62 which earned them a Corsi percentage of 50.0%. Their Fenwick was 47 while the Fenwick against was 52, giving them a Fenwick percentage of 47.5%. They earned 25 face-off wins and lost 27 of all total face-offs. Their offensive zone starts were rated at 77.8% and they had a PDO at even strength of 100.8 in this game. In terms of their opponent's stats, the Vancouver Canucks tallied 34 shots. They finished with 6 penalty minutes and they had 2 power play opportunities.

The Flames are the team looking to add points to their total and for the year they sit with 36 wins and 27 losses. When talking about goal differential, they sit 12th in the Western Conference and 23rd in the league with -10. They currently have a total of 204 goals for this year which ranks 9th in the West. Calgary has a save % as a team of .906 which is good for 13th in the league, which means there should be some opportunities to score. They have a team shooting percentage of 9.2% putting them at 9th in the Western Conference. In goal for Calgary is David Rittich who is having a tough year by giving up 2.97 goals per contest and that places him 24th among Western Conference goalies and 46th among goaltenders in the NHL. In the 2,792 mins he's played, he's surrendered 138 goals. He has a save % of .907, which has him placed 21st among Western Conference goalies and 41st among goaltenders in the NHL.

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The Calgary Flames faced the Vegas Golden Knights in a game where the Flames took the loss by a final of 5 - 3. For this game, Calgary earned a 33.0% Corsi rating. That percentage was had by having a Corsi of 34 while their opponent earned a Corsi of 69. They had a Fenwick percentage of 35.3% by earning a Fenwick of 24 and the Golden Knights finishing with a 44 Fenwick. This Corsi percentage speaks to the kind of game that Calgary had and you could say that they didn't play great, but weren't awful either. Their PDO was 97.1 and their oZS percentage was 35.5%. The Flames scored 3 goals out of the 22 shots on goal they were seeking. They had 1 power play attempt in this one and netted 1 on that opportunity. In discussing their opponent, the Golden Knights had 1 power play attempt and used that advantage to score 1 goal. Calgary gave way to 32 shots on goal and the Golden Knights earned 2 penalty minutes.

Who will win tonight's hockey game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take New York (+125)

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