Florida Panthers vs Columbus Blue Jackets Prediction, 4/1/2023 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Florida Panthers vs Columbus Blue Jackets

Date: Saturday, April 1, 2023

Location: Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH

TV: Bally Sports Ohio

The Columbus Blue Jackets (23-43-8) welcome the Florida Panthers (38-31-7) at Nationwide Arena on Saturday.

The Florida Panthers had a good night with a 5-2 victory against the Canadiens in their previous contest . Florida compiled 4 penalty minutes for this contest. Additionally, they had 2 power play opportunities and scored 1 goal. The Panthers had a impressive offensive output in the win. In the game, they converted 5 out of the 30 shots they looked to score on.

When playing at even strength, the Panthers have allowed the opponent to score 190 goals while scoring 206 on offense. Florida Panthers opponents have earned 268 power play opportunities (2nd in the league) and have tallied 69 goals in those chances. Concerning scoring goals, the Florida Panthers have racked up 263 goals (3rd in the league) on the season and have surrendered 259. Florida has attempted 2,787 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 9.4%. For the current campaign, they have 83 points and their points % is .546. The Panthers so far have had 2,399 shots attempted against them and have a save percentage of .892. Florida is sitting with 255 power play opportunities and they have scored 57 goals during those chances, garnering them a percentage of 22.35%.

The man protecting the net in this game is Sergei Bobrovsky. The opposition has been able to score 1,603 goals versus Bobrovsky in his pro career and his goals against average is 2.61. Bobrovsky has been in goal for 642 contests throughout his professional hockey career. His save percentage currently is at .915 for his 36,909 minutes played. He has earned a mark of 360-207-51 and he was named the starter in 626 games. Over the course of his time in hockey, Bobrovsky has accrued 359 quality starts and his percentage for quality starts is .573. Bobrovsky has seen 18,835 shots taken against him and has recorded 17,232 saves.

When they were on the ice last, Columbus faced off against the Bruins in a matchup where the Blue Jackets took a loss by a score of 2-1. The Blue Jackets notched 1 goal out of the 26 shots on goal they tried. They had 5 attempts on the power play in this matchup but weren't able to score a goal.

So far this year, the Columbus Blue Jackets are sitting with 198 goals, 54 points, in addition to a points percentage of .365. They have permitted 292 goals to be scored by of a combination of 239 goals at even strength and 53 goals while they were shorthanded. The Blue Jackets have earned 160 goals at even strength and 38 goals (27th in professional hockey) while on the power play. They have recorded 201 power play chances and they have a power play rate of 18.91%. Columbus has taken 2,197 shots (25th in professional hockey) and has a shooting percentage of 9.01%, while allowing the other team 2,604 shots. They have accumulated a penalty kill rate of 75.69% on the other teams 218 opportunities on the power play, and their save percentage comes in at 88.8%.

Across the ice you are likely to see Elvis Merzlikins in net. The opposition is averaging 3.13 goals per game and he has surrendered 428 goals overall. Merzlikins' rate of quality starts sits at 48.9% and he has qualified for 67 quality starting assignments in his professional career. He got the starting nod in 137 games and his ice time sits at 8,192 mins. Merzlikins has a career mark of 55-62-22 and has played in 150 games. He has accounted for 4,125 stops out of 4,553 shots taken, giving him a save percentage of .906.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Florida

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