NHL Ice Hockey Betting – San Jose Sharks vs. Detroit Red Wings

Two Western Conference division leaders will meet in San Jose Thursday night when the Pacific Division leading Sharks (8-2-0) host the defending Stanly Cup champion Detroit Red Wings (7-1-2). Last night, the Red Wings fell to Anaheim 5-4 in overtime despite taking a 3-2 lead into the third period. Across the ice, the Sharks are coming off of a 2-1 NHL wagering win against the Penguins on Tuesday night.

Before their loss to the Ducks last evening, Detroit had won five straight games for Red Wings bettors on the moneyline. Paramount to Detroit’s success in their first 10 games is an offense that is leading the NHL in goals scored with 39 tallies thus far. Free agent signing RW Marian Hossa has paid off well for Detroit this season, with five goals and nine assists for a team high 14 points. Detroit’s offensive prowess has led to their last seven games going over the ‘total’ by the pro hockey gambling odds.

While the offense has been great, the goaltending has left much to be desired with starting goalie Chris Osgood boasting a sky high 3.38 GAA and a poor .879 save percentage. Back-up goalie Ty Conklin has been somewhat better with a 3-0-0 record, 2.92 GAA, and .903 save percentage, but has yet to take the starting job away from Osgood. The Red Wings have been exceptionally sharp away from home this season with a NHL betting record of 5-0-1.

Sharks gamblers have cashed four of their last five tickets betting on San Jose and the Sharks have yet to be an underdog all year. Defensemen Christian Ehrhoff and Dan Boyle have led the offense each contributing nine points this season while super scorer LW Patrick Marleau is tied for the team lead with five goals. Coming into this game, four of the Sharks last seven games have gone ‘over’ the ‘total’ deemed by the closing NHL wagering line.

Vezina Trophy finalist Evgeni Nabokov has struggled in his eight appearances this season despite his 6-2-0 record, 2.85 GAA, and a .877 save percentage with no shutouts. Back-up Brian Boucher has been perfect in his two appearances though, posting two shutouts en route to two easy pro hockey betting wins. The Sharks +10 goal differential is tops in the Western Conference and a true indicator of how good the Sharks really are.

NHL gamblers should know these betting trends for this game: Detroit is 35-16 in its last 51 games, San Jose is 32-13 over its last 45 games, and the ‘over’ has cashed in the last four games between these two teams.

NHL odds show that the Sharks are a -145 moneyline favorite in this game with a ‘total’ of 5.5 goals shaded towards the under at -140 odds. Hockey fans know that the best place to bet this game, and for sports betting in general, is BetUS Sportsbook. With odds on every game, it’s obvious to both the casual and professional bettor that the only place you need to wager on the NHL in 2008-09 is BetUS Sportsbook.