Sharks vs Canucks NHL Line & Handicapping
Struggling Western Powers Clash – Canucks Host Sharks Thursday Night
Western Conference rivals San Jose and Vancouver meet for the fourth and final time Thursday night with both teams in the midst of rough patches early in the season.
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San Jose Sharks (11-2-5) at Vancouver Canucks (11-7-2)
When: 10:00 PM ET, Thursday, November 14, 2013
Where: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia
Broadcast: CSN-CA, SNET-VAN
Sharks vs. Canucks Betting Lines
San Jose Sharks +1½ -315 -102 Ov 5 -132
Vancouver Canucks -1½ +265 -108 Un 5 +120
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The San Jose Sharks have endured a 1-1-4 streak including a 4-2 loss to the Canucks last Thursday while Vancouver has lost two straight ahead of Thursday night’s game while scoring just two combined goals in the two losses.
The San Jose Sharks once again started the season like a house on fire but like last year the team hit a rough patch that took them back to the pack in the Western Conference. Antti Niemi has been just OK and the team is letting everyone hang around far too long in games. In fact San Jose has gone extra time in five of their last six games.
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Injuries to wingers Brent Burns, Adam Burish and Raffi Torres have really hurt this team as well but the leadership has stepped up as of late – Joe Thornton has a goal and five assists over a five-game point streak, Patrick Marleau has three points in two games and Dan Boyle has three points in two games. The Sharks have a second-best +23 goal differential so far which speaks to their uber-hot start.
As mentioned the usually reliable Antti Niemi has been mired in a bit of a slump – a 0-1-1 record with a 5.33 GAA and .864 save percentage in his last two games. The Sharks will need better from him going forward for sure!
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The Vancouver Canucks got schooled in LA last week and they were beaten by a very good Anaheim team before returning home. A look at the numbers of their best players shows why.
The top line of Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin and Ryan Kesler had 14 goals and 18 assists over a 10-game stretch but on their recent road the line combined for a goal and three assists over a four-game stretch.
Daniel is pointless in three games, Chris Tavev and Alex Edler haven’t recorded a point in four and surprisingly Jason Garrison has been held off the score sheet for 10 games.
Roberto Luongo has struggled lately as well. He is 1-1-0 with a 3.91 GAA and .857 save percentage in his last two games and he was pulled against LA. Luongo is much better than he has been playing – just like Antti Niemi.
Betting Prediction:
A few trends to consider:
• Under is 13-4-4 in SJ last 21 vs. Pacific.
• Over is 6-2 in SJ last 8 vs. Western Conference.
• SJ are 8-3 in their last 11 games following a win.
• Under is 15-4-3 in VAN last 22 home games.
• Under is 6-2-1 in VAN last 9 overall.
• VAN are 14-6 in their last 20 Thu. games.
• SJ are 9-1 in the last 10 meetings.
The Vancouver Canucks are just 4-3 on home ice this season and have had their issues with the San Jose Sharks in recent meetings going just 1-9 in the last 10. These are always spirited affairs – special teams are usually the determining factor.
San Jose’s power play is 21.2% – Vancouver’s is 9.7%. That’s the difference!
Pick: San Jose Sharks -102
