The Predators and Senators meet each other in Ottawa with both teams coming off wins where they scored six goals. The Hurricanes look to bounce back in the second night of a home-and-home series with the Sabres after losing 4-2 in the first game.
Pointspread: Ottawa Senators (+1.5 goals at -160) vs Nashville Predators (-1.5 goals at +135)
The Predators won three of their last four games and in a pretty decisive fashion by scoring four-plus goals in all three games. During this stretch, the Predators also took on the Ottawa Senators beating them 4-1 in Bridgestone Arena. The Preds enter this game coming off a strong victory against a tough and physical Minnesota Wild team on the back of a hat trick night from Ryan Johansen.
The Predators are still in the thick of a battle for a playoff spot in the West despite them having some games in hand on some teams chasing them in the standings so points for them are precious. Juuse Saros is taking the bulk of the starts this season and it’s hard to imagine Nashville playing him less down the stretch. He sits at a 33-21-3 record with a 2.57 goals-against average (GAA) and a .920 save percentage.
His likely counterpart in Anton Forsberg also is playing very well for Ottawa since assuming the starter’s role in the crease limiting opponents to three goals or less in each of his last eight starts. The Senators don’t have a lot of firepower upfront and the Preds are allowing 2.90 goals per game this season so scoring could be hard to come by for them in this one. With the Predators’ top line of Filip Forsberg, Philip Tomasino, and Johansen combining for nine points last game, they should be able to keep the scoring coming in this game, so take the Preds on the puckline.
Pointspread: Carolina Hurricanes (-1.5 goals at -140) vs Buffalo Sabres (+1.5 goals at +115)
The Sabres were able to pull off an upset last game by beating the Metropolitan-leading Hurricanes 4-2 on home ice. Frederik Andersen was on the hook for four goals in this game despite leading the league with a 2.07 GAA. We should see Andersen get back in the crease to give him a shot at redemption, however, even if Antti Raanta is in the crease the Hurricanes’ goaltending is a non-issue.
The Hurricanes will look to snap a two-game losing streak and what better place to do it than on home ice where they are 25-6-4 this season. Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, and Teuvo Teravainen have a combined two points over their last two games played and will look to bump their slides to help their team get the win.
Carolina is allowing the fewest goals against in the league so their stingy defense and strong goaltending should propel them in this one. They haven’t lost too many games this season with only 17 regulation losses on the year and when they do lose are good candidates to bounce back next game. They should come out with a strong effort and purpose and reverse the script on the Sabres and cover the puckline while they are at it.
Odds via BetMGM and Yahoo
