Posted on
12/11/2007 6:10:16 PM
NHL Wagering Picks - Division Leaders Clash
By BetUS Staff
The Carolina Hurricanes and the Ottawa Senators will meet in a clash of Eastern Conference division leaders on Wednesday night. However, the Canes and Sens have both been giving up-and-down results to those doing NHL betting so far in December.
Carolina began December on a sour note – they lost 8-1 on the road to the Buffalo Sabres. Ray Whitney scored late in the third period to put the Hurricanes on the board in that contest, while backup goaltender John Grahame was shelled for eight goals on just 25 shots. Seven different Buffalo skaters managed to pick up a goal in that contest.
The Hurricanes bounced back with a 4-0 win over the New York Rangers the next time out (thanks to a 28-save, shutout performance from Cam Ward). However, the team has since alternated wins and losses – losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 last Thursday, beating the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 on Saturday night, and falling 5-2 to the league-leading Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. That stretch has Carolina at 16-12-3 this season.
The Senators extended their losing streak to seven games by falling back-to-back to the Rangers and Lightning to begin their December schedule. Martin Gerber allowed three goals on 12 shots against the Rangers, and Ray Emery stopped 11-of-12 shots in relief on that day. Emery then took the loss against Tampa, giving up three goals on 28 shots.
Ottawa, though, managed to get back into the win column with consecutive victories over the Florida Panthers and Dallas Stars last week. Emery was a little shaky in the Sens’ 5-4 victory over Florida last Wednesday (allowing four goals on 25 shots) but his team held on for the win. However, Emery was given the start against Dallas on Friday, and he stopped 23-of-25 Stars shots in a 4-2 road win. That put Ottawa at 18-7-3 so far.
Wednesday’s contest will be the 15th home game of the season for the Southeast-leading Canes, and they’ve managed to go 8-5-1 on their own ice. Northeast-leading Ottawa, despite their recent struggles, has the top road record in the entire East at 8-2-2.
That great road mark, though, will start to dwindle if the Sens can’t get consistent goaltending and secondary scoring. Gerber began the season red hot for Ottawa, but he’s floundered recently and given way to Emery between the pipes. Since returning from injury, however, Emery is just 4-3-2 with a 2.79 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage (Carolina starter Cam Ward is 14-8-2 with a 2.57 GAA and .915 PCT).
As well, Ottawa’s trio of Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley, and Jason Spezza has combined for 103 points this season, but no one else on the team has even reached the 20-point mark after 28 games. Carolina, on the other hand, has six skaters with 27 or more points this year (Stillman, Brind’amour, Whitney, Cullen, Williams, and Staal). The Canes, then, will be focusing their efforts mostly on shutting down Ottawa’s big guns.
The Senators will continue their road trip on Thursday, when they’ll play in Pittsburgh against Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. Ottawa then returns home to take on the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday. The Hurricanes will play host to the Calgary Flames on Friday, and then they’ll head north for a Saturday game with the Flyers in Philadelphia.
Other games around the NHL on a busy Wednesday night include the New York Islanders at Buffalo, the New York Rangers at Washington, Boston at Atlanta, Colorado at Columbus, Los Angeles at Chicago, and Vancouver at Anaheim. Check the BetUS.com hockey odds section for the latest NHL Betting lines and posted totals for these matchups.
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