Pittsburgh Penguins vs Columbus Blue Jackets Prediction, 3/30/2024 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Penguins vs Columbus Blue Jackets

Date: Saturday, March 30, 2024

Location: Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH

TV: Bally Sports Ohio

The Pittsburgh Penguins (31-30-10) are hitting the road to Nationwide Arena on Saturday where they will take on the Columbus Blue Jackets (23-37-12).

The Pittsburgh Penguins will head into their next game feeling good after earning a 4-1 victory over the Hurricanes their last time out. Pittsburgh amassed 9 minutes in the box in this contest. Moreover, they had 2 chances with extra men on the ice but weren't able to make the most of them. The Penguins had a impressive offensive outing in this victory. For the outing, they scored on 4 out of the 22 shots they put on goal.

In regard to scoring goals, the Pittsburgh Penguins have racked up 207 goals (24th in the league) on the campaign and have allowed 212. For the current season, they have racked up 72 points and their points percentage is sitting at .507. Pittsburgh has accumulated 230 power play opportunities and they have added 33 goals during those chances, garnering them a percentage of 14.35%. When playing at even strength, the Penguins let the opposition score 172 goals while getting 174 when they are on offense. Pittsburgh has tried 2,349 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 8.8%. The Penguins have seen 2,156 shots taken against them and have a save percentage of .902. Pittsburgh Penguins opponents have totaled 210 power play opportunities (20th in professional hockey) and have come away with 40 goals in those attempts.

The man protecting the goal in this game is Tristan Jarry. Jarry has been in goal for 256 contests throughout his NHL career. He has a win-loss mark of 136-84-25 and he has started in 246 games. Opponents have notched 648 goals versus Jarry in his career and his goals against rate is 2.69. Jarry has seen 7,339 shots taken against him and has accrued 6,691 total saves. His save percentage currently is .912 in his 14,433 minutes on the ice. Over the course of his career, Jarry has accumulated 149 quality starts and his quality starts rate is .606.

The last time they were on the ice, Columbus faced off against the Coyotes in a matchup where the Blue Jackets went home in defeat by a final of 6-2. They had 4 opportunities on the power play in this game and tallied 2 out of those tries. The Blue Jackets earned 2 goals out of the 27 shots on goal they pursued.

Columbus has attempted 2,175 shots (19th in pro hockey) and has accumulated a shooting percentage of 9.43%, while allowing their opponents 2,436 shots. They have accumulated a penalty kill rate of 76.47% on the other teams 204 opportunities on the power play, and their save percentage comes in at 89.2%. They have recorded 193 power play chances and they have a power play rate of 15.03%. The Blue Jackets have tallied 176 goals at even strength and 29 goals (32nd in the league) while on the power play. They have permitted 264 goals to be scored by way of 216 goals at even strength and 48 goals while they had less men on the ice. On the season, the Columbus Blue Jackets have notched a total of 205 goals, 58 points, in addition to a points percentage of .403.

On the other side of the ice you will find Daniil Tarasov in net. Opponents are averaging 3.43 goals/game and he has yielded 131 goals altogether. Tarasov's quality start rate is 51.3% and he has accumulated 20 quality starting assignments in his NHL career. He has started in 39 contests and has accumulated 2,290 minutes. Tarasov is sitting with a lifetime record of 11-23-4 and has participated in 42 games. He has gathered 1,207 stops out of 1,338 shots taken against him, which gives him a percentage of .902.

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

Josh's Pick: Take Pittsburgh

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