Sabres vs Predators Predictions, Picks, Tips 1/18/2020

Game: Buffalo Sabres vs Nashville Predators

Date: Saturday, January 18, 2020

Location: Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN

TV: MSGB

Odds/Point Spread: Sabres (+166) Predators (-185)

Total/Over-Under: 6

Bridgestone Arena is the site where Pekka Rinne and the Nashville Predators (21-17-7, 6th in the Central Division) will take on the Buffalo Sabres (21-19-7, 5th in the Atlantic Division) on Saturday. The moneyline on this matchup has the Sabres coming in at +166 and the Predators are at -185. The O/U opens at 6. The Sabres cover 44.7% of the time, having gone 21-26 SU. Nashville is covering 44.4% of the time, going 20-25 straight up.

The Buffalo Sabres come into the game holding a record of 21 wins and 19 losses, putting them at 5th in the Atlantic Division. So far this year, they have earned a total of 139 goals which has them ranked at 11th in the East and 18th in the NHL. Their goal differential is -9, putting them at 22nd in the NHL. The Sabres have compiled a total of 49 points, which has them ranked at 21st in the NHL and 11th in the East. When discussing shots at the opposition, they have compiled a total of 1,395 which has them ranked at 12th in the East and 25th in the NHL. As a group, Buffalo has a total of 817 hits which has them averaging 17.4 per game. They have compiled a total of 439 blocks for this season. Protecting the goal for Buffalo is Linus Ullmark from Elmhurst, Illinois. He is 26 years old and has totaled 1,792 mins in net this season. Ullmark is surrendering an average of 2.78 goals against average which has him sitting 14th in the East and 26th in the NHL. Over the course of this year, he's surrendered 83 goals. He holds a save percentage of .911 which has him sitting 13th in the East.

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The Buffalo Sabres were on the winning side of the scoreboard with a 4 - 2 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights in their last game. The Sabres had a good offensive performance and it was apparent in this victory. While out there on the ice, they earned a goal on 4 of the 26 shots they put on net. Furthermore, they had 3 power play attempts and were able to net 2 goals out of those attempts. Buffalo racked up a total of 8 penalty mins in this game. The Corsi for the Sabres sat at 34 and the Corsi against was 49 which earned them a Corsi percentage of 41.0%. Their Fenwick sat at 29 and the Fenwick against sat at 33, which tells us they had a Fenwick percentage of 46.8%. They took 24 face-off wins and were beaten on 17 of all total face-offs. Their starts in the offensive zone came in at 41.2% and they had a PDO at even strength of 104.2 for this one. With regard to the opposition's stats, the Vegas Golden Knights racked up a total of 26 shots. Their total at the end of the game was 8 minutes in the box and they earned a total of 3 power play opportunities.

The Predators are the team looking to add points to their total and for the season they have 21 victories and 17 losses. When talking about goal differential, they are sitting 6th in the conference and 15th in the NHL with +5. They currently have a total of 151 goals for this year which is good for 4th in the West. Nashville has a save percentage as a team of .891 which has them 28th in the NHL, meaning scoring chances could be plentiful if they are aggressive. They have a shooting percentage of 9.9% which is good for 6th in the conference. In net for Nashville is Pekka Rinne who is having a rough season by allowing 3.02 goals against average and that has him 25th among Western Conference goaltenders and 46th in the NHL among goaltenders. In the 1,549 mins he has played this season, he's surrendered 78 goals. His save percentage is .896, which has him ranking 29th among Western Conference goaltenders and 57th in the NHL among goaltenders.

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The Nashville Predators went up against the Edmonton Oilers in a game where the Predators took the loss by a final score of 4 - 2. For this game, Nashville had a 48.5% Corsi rating. They ended up with that by earning a Corsi of 50 and the team opposite of them having a Corsi of 53. Their Fenwick percentage was 50.0% by notching a Fenwick of 38 and the Oilers having earned a 38 Fenwick. This Corsi rating tells us the kind of game Nashville had and it could be said that this team has had better games. They had a PDO at even strength of 99.7 and they had an oZS percentage of 50.0%. The Predators netted 2 goals of the 32 shots on goal they attempted. They had 3 power play chances in this outing but didn't score a goal. In discussing their opponent, the Oilers had 4 power play chances and were able to tally 2 goals. Nashville conceded 32 shots on goal and the Oilers ended up with 6 minutes in the box.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Buffalo (+166)

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