NHL Gambling Weekender – Ducks start weekend against Stars
Forget the slow start – the Anaheim Ducks are on a roll. After beginning the season in a funk the Ducks have heated up – paying off for those doing any NHL betting on them with eight wins (and an overtime loss) in their past nine games. Ryan Getzlaf and company will return to the ice Friday night, as they start their weekend against the Stars.
The Ducks’ latest victory came on Wednesday night against the Blues, with Getzlaf picking up two goals and an assist in the 5-2 decision. Linemate Corey Perry was also good for a goal and an assist in that contest, and the Ducks’ surge has pushed both of them into the Top 5 of league scoring; Getzlaf now has 18 points on the season, while Perry is just behind him with 17 points. Teemu Selanne has nine goals in 15 contests.
Between the pipes for Anaheim on Wednesday was backup netminder Jonas Hiller, who stopped 30 of 32 St. Louis shots. Regular keeper Jean-Sebastien Giguere blanked the Kings on Tuesday night, and look for him to be back between the pipes on Friday.
Giguere has now won six of his past seven starts. Meanwhile, Dallas starter Marty Turco is still trying to get on track this season. Turco surrendered five goals on 25 shots in a loss to the Bruins last Saturday, and before that he gave up six goals on 30 shots in an OT defeat against the Capitals. The usually-steady Turco has a 3-5-2 record with a 4.34 goals-against average and a terrible .837 save percentage in 10 starts this season.
Puck drop for the Stars/Ducks matchup in Anaheim is set for 10:00pm ET on Friday night. Dallas defenseman Sergei Zubov is expected to return from hip surgery and make his season debut on Friday; forward Jere Lehtinen (groin) could return as well.
There are three other games on the NHL’s schedule for Friday: Ottawa at Carolina, Atlanta at Buffalo, and Montreal at Columbus. The Canadiens haven’t played since last Saturday night, when they rallied back from a 4-1 deficit to knock off the Islanders 5-4.
Montreal returns to the ice on Saturday, when they play a road game against their historic rivals from Toronto. The Stars also return to the ice on Saturday; they’ll play on the road against the Sharks. Elsewhere, it’ll be Buffalo at Boston, the Rangers at Washington, Calgary at Columbus, Tampa Bay at Philadelphia, Pittsburgh at the Islanders, New Jersey at Detroit, Nashville at Colorado, Florida at Phoenix, Minnesota at Vancouver, and also St. Louis at Los Angeles on a very busy night around the league.
Sunday sees the Ducks host Florida, while San Jose plays down south in Phoenix, As well, it’ll be Atlanta at Carolina, Calgary at Chicago, and Edmonton at New Jersey as the league closes out the week. Check the NHL lines section for all of the updated odds.
