Posted on
1/9/2008 5:42:10 PM
NHL Hockey Betting - Free Picks 2008
By Tim Furious
Dallas Stars (24-16-4) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (19-19-4)
Wednesday, January 9th --- United Center, Chicago --- 8:30pm EST
Opening NHL Puck Line: Dallas (5)
Dallas was able to break a four game losing streak by beating Minnesota 3-1 on Monday. The victory ended a stretch where they went 1-4 SU. The Stars are spreading the scoring around, averaging 2.84 goals per game and playing solid defense despite the lingering injury to Philippe Boucher that has kept him out of action for a significant amount of time. Goalie Marty Turco has been struggling at times,, allowing 2.59 goals against per game, but has been traditionally successful against Chicago.
Luckily for Turco, they will be facing a Chicago team that will be without one of their energetic young scorers as Jonathan Toews remains sidelined by a sprained knee. The Blackhawks have seemingly thrown out the defensive game plan and, instead, attempt to outscore opponents instead of stopping them. The game plan is not working. The Blackhawks are averaging 2.88 goals for, while letting opponents score 3.00 goals against per game.
Bet on the struggling Blackhawks to force too many penalties and find themselves in trouble as Dallas attacks Nikolai Khabibulin, who has been atrocious between the pipes for Chicago. The Hawks have lost their last five games by an average of 2.6 goals. Expect the Blackhawks to find little to no scoring against the best penalty killing team in the NHL.
NHL Free Pick: Dallas (UNDER)
Toronto Maple Leafs (16-18-8) vs. Anaheim Ducks (22-17-6)
Wednesday, January 9th --- Honda Center, Anaheim --- 10:00pm EST
Opening NHL Puck Line: Anaheim (5.5)
Anaheim has gone through a mountain of change this season, and no statistic makes that more prevalent than their penalty kill. They have allowed 47 power play goals against and the lack of discipline has led to them being the most penalized team in the NHL. Fortunately, they face the shameful Leafs, who rank 26th in the NHL betting in power play percentage with 14.3.
The Leafs have dominated the Ducks in the past, going 7-3 SU in their past 10 games. However, their last matchup with Anaheim was in 2005, and both teams are dramatically different. The Leafs have gone 1-4 SU in their last 5 games, losing by an average of 2.4 goals against during that stretch. The biggest problem has been goal tending. Vesa Toskala is still nursing a sore groin, and the Leafs don’t have any reliable backups. In related news – Andrew Raycroft is garbage.
Anaheim ranks 25th in team scoring with 2.40 goals per game, but their NHL faithful can stay hopeful of a victory against the lowly Leafs. Toronto may rank fifth in shots against, but they fail to score on many of those chances. Without Toskala in net, there is no reason to back Toronto from a betting standpoint.
NHL Free Pick: Anaheim (UNDER)
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