Columbus Blue Jackets vs Pittsburgh Penguins Prediction, 4/29/2022 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Columbus Blue Jackets vs Pittsburgh Penguins

Date: Friday, April 29, 2022

Location: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: AT&T Sportsnet Pittsburgh

Odds/Point Spread: Blue Jackets (+310) Penguins (-400)

The Pittsburgh Penguins (45-25-11) welcome the Columbus Blue Jackets (36-37-7) at PPG Paints Arena on Friday. The line on this contest has the Blue Jackets at +310 and the Penguins are priced at -400. The total has been set at 6.

The Columbus Blue Jackets will look to clean up some issues after taking a 4-1 defeat to the Lightning in the last game they played. Columbus accrued 6 penalty mins for this contest. Moreover, they had 3 chances with the advantage and scored 1 goal. The Blue Jackets didn't have their best offensive outing in the loss. In the matchup, they converted 1 out of the 21 shots they put on goal.

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The Blue Jackets have had 2,810 shots taken against them and have a save percentage of .897. When playing at even strength, the Blue Jackets have allowed 241 goals while having 212 when they are on offense. Columbus Blue Jackets opponents have earned 228 power play tries (15th in hockey) and have racked up 49 goals in those attempts. For the current season, they have tallied 79 points and their points percentage is .494. Columbus has taken 2,392 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 10.5%. With regard to their scoring capabilities, the Columbus Blue Jackets have accounted for 250 goals (14th in the league) for the year and have given up 290. Columbus comes into the game with 211 power play chances and they have notched 38 goals out of those chances, garnering them a rate of 18.01%.

Patrolling the crease for the game will be Jean-Francois Berube. Berube has taken the ice for 39 contests during his NHL career. He has earned a win-loss record of 12-12-4 and he started in 28 games. The opposition has scored 108 goals versus Berube in his career and his goals against average per contest is 3.42. Berube has had 1,080 shot attempts against him and has gathered 972 total saves. His save percentage sits at .900 in his 1,892 mins guarding the cage. For his career, Berube has earned 14 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .500.

When they took the ice last, Pittsburgh faced off against the Oilers in an outing where the Penguins went home in defeat by a tally of 5-1. They had 4 opportunities on the power play in this outing but didn't put one in the back of the net. The Penguins earned 1 goal out of the 34 shots on goal they tried.

Pittsburgh has put up 2,799 shots (7th in professional hockey) and has a shot percentage of 9.43%, while allowing the opposition 2,540 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill percentage of 85.02% on their opponents 207 power play opportunities, and their save percentage is 91.4%. They have a tally of 245 chances on the power play and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 20.41%. The Penguins are sitting with 214 goals at even strength and 50 goals (15th in the league) while on the power play. They have permitted 219 goals to be scored by way of 188 goals at even strength and 31 goals while they were shorthanded. For the year, the Pittsburgh Penguins have tallied 264 goals, 101 points, as well as a points percentage of .623.

Across the rink you are likely to see Casey DeSmith defending the goal. His opposition is averaging 2.66 goals per game and he has surrendered 228 goals in total. DeSmith's quality start percentage comes out to 55.6% and he has earned 45 quality starts in his pro hockey career. He has started in 81 games and has been on the ice for 5,134 mins. DeSmith has a lifetime mark of 42-28-11 and has been in net for 95 games. He has gathered 2,464 saves out of the 2,692 shots attempted, giving him a save percentage of .915.

Who will win tonight's NHL game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh's Pick: Take Pittsburgh (-400)

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