Boston vs Florida NHL Pick

NHL Betting Game Trends

The Florida Panthers are going to hope to get back to winning ways on Sunday afternoon when they try to beat the NHL odds against the Boston Bruins.

The B’s actually have had a nice schedule this month, as they have only played seven games thus far in the first 23 days of the month. There are some harder times ahead and a heck of a lot more games to play in a short period of time, which is why getting these points now is important. The penalty kill has been tremendous for the Bruins this year. They are allowing goals on just 5.6 percent of all power plays against, easily the best mark in the league. Boston hasn’t always been the best offensive team on the season, especially on the power play, where the team is only converting 13.0 percent of its chances. C David Krejci, C Patrice Bergeron, and LW Brad Marchand all have between 11 and 12 points on the season, but they aren’t the only keys to winning. The Bruins also have five others with at least seven points, and on any given night, any number of players could ultimately tally.

The Panthers meanwhile, are really turning into a joke. Last year is starting to look like a distant memory, and all of a sudden, they are looking more and more like the worst team in hockey than a team that is coming off of a division title. Of course, in the Southeast Division, any three or four game winning streak could ultimately push a team towards the division crown, as this five-pack of teams is as bad as any grouping of five in the league. However, the defense has been grim all season long for Florida. A 3-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins was considered a good defensive showing for a team that has allowed 3.6 goals per game on the season and ranks in the bottom five in hockey in virtually every major defensive category. G Jacob Markstrom, making the first start of his season and just the 10th of his career, had to face 40 shots on goal against the Pens. The fact that he only allowed three on the road was probably a bit of a miracle.

The Bruins are clearly going to be the more rested team, but they are going to be asked to lay far too much chalk to get the job done in this one. Remember that Florida has three overtime losses just in the last few weeks, all of which have come at home. The time is going to come eventually to win one of these close games. This very well could be the game.

Boston Bruins @ Florida Panthers Pick: Florida Panthers