Free NHL Hockey Prediction: Ducks vs Bruins NHL Odds
Looking for Anaheim Ducks vs. Boston Bruins free hockey plays & NHL odds? NHL betting sees the Ducks taking on the Bruins on Thursday December 15th at the TD Garden in Boston, MA. Cappers Picks provides complimentary expert handicapping picks on all NHL Hockey matchups all season long so stay tuned for more FREE daily NHL hockey predictions.
(15-9-5) Anaheim Ducks vs. Boston Bruins (16-12-2)
Date: Thursday December 15th
Time: 4:00 PM
Venue: TD Garden in Boston, MA
NHL Hockey Moneyline Odds: Bruins -115
NHL Hockey Puck Line Odds: OFF
NHL Betting Total: 5
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In what should be a proverbial battle of the titans, with two rugged squads from their respective conferences facing off in Boston.
Anaheim currently sits in first in the Pacific Division with 35 points (tied with Edmonton but with two games at hand) entering the showdown in Beantown.
Boston, meanwhile, is currently lodged in the 3rd spot in the Atlantic, but are tied with the Ottawa Senators for points at 34, despite having played one more game than the Sens.
Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim’s big three are leading the team in production, with Ryan Kesler and Corey Perry tied for the team lead with 25 points apiece.
Ryan Getzlaf sits at 23 points but has also played three fewer games than the two ahead of him.
What looks like the difference for the Ducks this season is their depth, with Jakob Silfverberg, Andrew Cogliano, Antoine Vermette and Rickard Rakell all chipping in double-digit points up front.
Rakell has been particularly impressive, having netted 11 goals and five assists in his 18 games played thus far, since returning from a delayed holdout as an RFA.
Silfverberg has fit in nicely in the top-six forward group this season, enjoying success on the second line alongside Kesler and chipping in 20 points of his own.
Cam Fowler leads the way on the blueline, having registered 18 points in 30 games.
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While the Ducks sit in 11th overall in goals per game allowed, at an average of 2.7, their penalty kill ranks just 22nd at an 80.6% efficiency rate.
This may be part of the reasons John Gibson’s numbers on the year don’t look so hot, currently sitting at a .908 SV% and a 2.64 GAA, which is right in line with where the team sits in goals allowed.
Boston Bruins
The Bruins have relied heavily on the defensive side of their game this year, which has worked up to now considering they sit in 2nd place in the Atlantic.
Tuukka Rask continues to be one of the best goaltenders in the world, and has played incredibly well this season so far. Rask is a large reason why the Bruins sit with the 8th best mark in the league in goals against per game, at just 2.3, and have the 3rd best penalty kill at 87.9%.
On the season, Rask owns a .932 SV% and a 1.80 GAA, and it’s important to note how much Boston relies on the Finnish star. In games where Rask didn’t play, the other Boston netminders’ own a collective SV% under .880 and a GAA north of 3.00.
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Boston’s offense is once again topped by Brad Marchand, the pest-turned-sniper has leads the team with 17 assists and 25 points.
He bests young star sniper, David Pastrnak, by one point, but Pastrnak is running away in the goal category having already netted 18 on the year.
The
Bruins will need more from Patrice Bergeron, who uncharacteristically has just eight points in 27 games played.
NHL Hockey Handicapping Trends
- The Bruins have scored more than three goals just twice in their past 13 games.
- Anaheim is 5-6-4 on the road, compared to 10-4-1 at home this season .
Free Anaheim Ducks vs Boston Bruins NHL Hockey Prediction
The Ducks have looked like a different team on the road this season, with a sub-.500 record and averaging just 2.26 goals for when the away team.
They won’t face an easy task in Boston, who have some of the best two-way forwards in the game that will look to shut down Anaheim’s snipers.
4* Free NHL Betting Pick: Under 5.5
With the Ducks home/road splits apparent and the Bruins’ having Rask man the crease, I like the under. The Bruins sit just 25th overall in goals for at 2.3 on average, and as noted the Ducks are scoring near that clip when travelling, so I expect this to be a tight-checking contest.
NHL Free Score Prediction: Anaheim 2 – Boston 3
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