Penguins vs. Flyers NHL Spread/Handicapping
Headline: The Battle of Pennsylvania III – Flyers Host Penguins Thursday Night
One of the better rivalries in the NHL continues Thursday night on a busy evening on the NHL schedule when the Pittsburgh Penguins travel to Philadelphia to take on the inconsistent Flyers. Each team has already defeated the other once this season but only one is living up to expectation at the half-way point of the season.
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Pittsburgh Penguins (15-8-0-0) at Philadelphia Flyers (11-12-0-1)
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 7, 2013
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Broadcast: NHLN-US, ROOT, CSN-PH
Pens vs. Flyers Betting Lines from betonline.com
Pittsburgh Penguins -1½ +245 -114 Ov 6 -103
Philadelphia Flyers +1½ -290 +103 Un 6 -107
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The Philadelphia Flyers will try once again to get to the elusive .500 mark but one of the NHL’s elite is standing in their way.
The Pittsburgh Penguins weathered the storm going 2-2 when Evgeni Malkin was forced to sit with a concussion. But back in the lineup the reigning MVP made an immediate impact scoring once and recording an assist in Pittsburgh’s 4-3 win over Tampa Bay on Monday. Malkin will be happy to see the Flyers on Thursday night – he has career highs in goals (21) and assists (34) in 38 regular-season games against the Flyers, and had a goal and an assist in a 6-5 home loss to Philadelphia on Feb. 20.
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Pittsburgh continues to be one of the best offensive teams in the NHL to nobody’s surprise. They average an impressive 3.48 goals per game and they possess three lines that can and will score. Sidney Crosby, the NHL leader with 36 points, has four goals and seven assists in his last five games to lead the juggernaut Penguins.
Pittsburgh will receive another boost to the offense Thursday – Paul Martin is expected to return from injury – he had three assists against the Flyers two weeks ago.
Pittsburgh’s weakness continues to be their inability to keep the puck out of their own net. They allow an average of 2.91 goals per game. Marc-Andre Fleury has been inconsistent but should get the start Thursday. He is 11-5-0 this season with 2.44 GAA and .911 save %.[soliloquy id=”82219″]
The Philadelphia Flyers continue to disappoint. They too have had more than their share of troubles limiting their opponents’ scoring. They allow 2.96 goals per game and like the Pens, they own an inconsistent goaltender. Philadelphia has allowed four or more goals in three of its last six games — all losses — and in six of the last 10. “Not good,” goalie Ilya Bryzgalov said after his team’s 4-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Tuesday. “We’re not good.”
It is difficult to blame Philadelphia’s offense – they average an OK 2.83 goals per game. Wayne Simmonds has goals in three straight games, Jacob Voracek has been good and Claude Giroux has been typically solid. Voracek, Philadelphia’s leader with 27 points, has 12 points over his last nine games against the Penguins. The Flyers need to keep the puck out of their own goal and the rest should take care of itself.
Betting Prediction
A few trends to consider:
• Over is 6-2-1 in PIT last 9 Thu. games.
• PIT are 6-2 in their last 8 Thu. games.
• PIT are 8-3 in their last 11 games following a win.
• PHI are 16-5 in their last 21 Thu. games.
• PHI are 3-9 in their last 12 vs. Atlantic.
• Over is 6-2 in PHI last 8 overall.
• Road team is 20-9 in the last 29 meetings.
The Flyers seem to have a lack of confidence right now. Even their goaltender has spoken out about their recent play. We know we are in for a back and forth affair Thursday – games between the Pens and the Flyers always are. But the return of Malkin has acted like a shot of adrenaline for this team. I may have picked the Pens even if Malkin wasn’t available but seeing as he is going to suit up, this pick is easy.
Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins -114
