New York Islanders @ Washington Capitals: New York Islanders 2.29 & Over 5.5 Goals 1.83
*Note that these are two separate picks for the same game. This is NOT a parlay.*
We will take the Islanders yet again at a great price. We will also stick with the “Over” on this one. We have gone 2-0 with the Islanders this past weekend, at odds of 2.43 and 2.27. The New York Islanders are coming off of a 2-0 weekend where they beat the Boston Bruins by a score of 3-1 (a nice underdog winner for us) on Saturday, and also the Ottawa Senators on Friday by a score of 5-4 in a shootout (another underdog winner), although the Islanders out-shot the Senators 57-31 that game. There could have easily of been more goals racked up by the Isles. Both teams have played 14 games this season, the Islanders have gone 6-5-3 (3-2 Away) and the Capitals have gone 7-7-0 (4-3 Home). The Islanders offense can score over 3 goals per game, at 3.07 G/G. The Capitals are not too far behind, at 2.93 G/G. Note that on two days rest (both teams have had two days rest) the Islanders average 3.57 Goals For, and allow 3.14 Goals Against, and the Capitals score 4.00 Goals For and allow 3.67 Goals Against. Also take note to the fact that on two days rest the Islanders have gone 5-2 over/under. The Capitals are 2-1 over/under on two days rest. In their two games on the weekend, New York put 8 goals on the board. The Capitals scored 10 goals over two games (one was a 7-0 win over Philadelphia). Ovechkin may be back in the lineup tonight which could result in a few points on the board. The Islanders have two of the top eight NHL Point Leaders; Kyle Okposo has 17 points (6th) and Frans Nielsen with 16 points (8th). Sidney Crosby leads the League at 23 points. These two teams share a similar power play percentage, with the Islanders at 21.7 PP% (7th in League) and the Capitals are slightly ahead at 23.6 PP% (4th in League). The Capitals do have the advantage on the penalty kill, but they also take more penalties than the Isles. New York is 81% on the PK, and the Caps are 90.7%. The Capitals take 15.0 PIM/G and the Islanders number is lower at 9.4 PIM/G.
Calgary Flames @ Minnesota Wild : Flames 2.81
What an excellent price here on the Flames tonight. The latest victory for the Flames was on Sunday where they beat the defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks in Chicago by a score of 3-2 in overtime. The Flames are handling themselves well offensively, with 3.00 Goals per Game. The problem with the Flames is that they allow too many goals, which may change now with the entry of Reto Berra. The Flames currently allow 3.43 GA/G and MacDonald and Ramo are both under .900 SV% (MacDonald 3.17 GAA, .885 SV%; Ramo 3.49 GAA, .888 SV%). Reto Berra is probable in goal again tonight, and in his NHL debut against the Blackhawks on Sunday he stopped 42 of the 44 shots against him for a .955 SV% and the first star of the game. What a great way to break into the NHL. Clearly Berra and the Flames have plenty of momentum going into the game tonight. The Minnesota Wild have been fairly inconsistent with their play: we have seen them beat the Blackhawks 5-3, but then lose to them 5-1 two days later. They have also lost to the Florida Panthers putting up only 1 goal and losing in a shootout. The Wild don’t score as many goals as the Flames, at 2.53 G/G. The Flames may or may not win tonight, but at this price we just can’t pass it up. The Flames have shocked us all this season and now that they have Reto Berra on board we look for them to start stopping some goals from reaching their own mesh and continue to score plenty of goals of their own.
