The Columbus Blue Jackets have never won a division title – or a playoff series – but that could change this year as the Jackets battle Washington for the Metropolitan Division lead. Columbus takes a trip to division rival Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night with it basically a pick’em on the NHL Odds.
Sean Couturier was a perfect 13-for-13 on faceoffs. It’s the most faceoff wins in a perfect faceoff game for any player in the NHL this season, surpassing the 10-for-10 by Sam Steel of Anaheim on October 20, and is the most in a perfect faceoff game in the league since Boston’s Patrice Bergeron went 14-for-14 vs. Tampa Bay on April 4, 2017. It’s the most faceoff wins that any Flyer has had in a perfect faceoff game since the NHL began tracking faceoffs in 1997.
James van Riemsdyk and Simmonds have been moved to the Flyers’ second line. They’ll play with second-year center Nolan Patrick. The Flyers have dropped six of their last seven games, so head coach Dave Hakstol is just attempting to get his team going in the right direction. “Me and (Simmonds) have had some good chemistry out there,” van Riemsdyk said. “Even though we do some things pretty similarly, I think there are some different elements that we both kind of have, and [can] expand our games a little bit because we don’t have to be the ones relied on to always be standing at the net.”
How to Bet Blue Jackets vs Flyers NHL Betting Odds & Game Info
Torts talks about breaking down the tape from Tuesday night’s loss and how the team will go about their business moving forward.#CBJ pic.twitter.com/fZDdzvZndp
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) 5 de diciembre de 2018
- When: Thursday, 7 PM ET
- Where: Wells Fargo Center
- TV: NHL Center Ice
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- Radio: TuneIn
- NHL Betting Odds: Flyers -106 / Blue Jackets -104 (Total 6)
Season Series
Teams have met once, on Oct. 18 in Columbus and the Jackets rolled 6-3. They scored three goals in the second period. Cam Atkinson had back-to-back goals in the second for Columbus, both set up by cross-ice passes from Artemi Panarin. Anthony Duclair, Nick Foligno, Josh Anderson, and Sonny Milano also scored for the Blue Jackets. Sergei Bobrovsky had 32 saves. Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist, and Oskar Lindblom and Sean Couturier scored for the Flyers. Backup goalie Calvin Pickard stopped 22 shots.Why Bet on Columbus?
Columbus enters off an embarrassing 9-6 home loss to Calgary on Tuesday. The Flames had five goals in the second period. Cam Atkinson netted a hat trick for Columbus to extend his point streak to 11 games, but the Blue Jackets lost their second straight. Atkinson took a feed from Artemi Panarin as he entered the zone, slapping one in behind David Rittich for his 17th goal of the season. Atkinson then wasted no time in the second period, going top shelf on Mike Smith just 49 seconds into the frame. He then capped off his night with his 19th goal of the season. Atkinson’s 11-game scoring streak is second-longest in Columbus history. Ryan Johansen had a 13-game streak from Dec. 18, 2014, to Jan. 17, 2015. Atkinson has 19 points (13 goals, six assists) during the streak and his goal total ties him for fifth in the NHL with Nathan McKinnon (Colorado Avalanche) and David Pastrnak (Boston Bruins). Sergei Bobrovsky gave up eight goals on 26 shots in Tuesday’s loss. It looked like Bobrovsky would be cruising to an easy victory, holding a 4-1 lead through the opening 21:55 of the game. That is where Sean Monahan beat the Russian goaltender, opening up the floodgates. Bobrovsky was then pulled at the 6:29 mark of the final frame when he was beaten by Johnny Gaudreau. The 30-year-old is now 10-9-0 with a 3.04 goals-against-average and a .901 save percentage. Why leave your star netminder in for such a beating? “I wanted to give him an opportunity to try to get his game back and find his way,” coach John Tortorella said. “Whether it’s the right call, whether it’s the wrong call, it was my thinking. We had … the coaches and I had discussions from the fourth goal on as far as takin’ him. I decided to see if he could work through it.” Tortorella said the game was unlike any of the more than 1,200 previous ones he’s coached. “They had 11 scoring chances and they scored nine goals,” Tortorella said. “I have never been in a game like this.” Bobrovsky will start Thursday. Anthony Duclair may return to the lineup after being a scratch the past three games. That would mean Oliver Bjorkstrand would sit.Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.56
- Shots: 32.52
- PP/PK Percentage: 17.24
- Goals: 3.41
- Shots: 31.26
- PP/PK Percentage: 23.17
Why Bet on Philadelphia?
The struggling Flyers have been off since a surprising 4-2 win at Pittsburgh on Saturday. Dale Weise scored in the first minute of the third period to lead Philly. Weise scored the Flyers’ first shorthanded goal this season, which was also the first shorthanded goal of his career. Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, and Jakub Voracek also scored for the Flyers, who won for the second time in eight games. Anthony Stolarz stopped 30 shots for his first win since Dec. 11, 2016, at Detroit. Stolarz’s night got off to an ugly start when Sidney Crosby beat him just 39 seconds into the game. The Flyers responded with a goal but Riley Sheahan put the Penguins back up one to start the second. Stolarz then shut the door. He entered the season as the Flyers’ fourth or fifth string goaltender but he has taken advantage of Philly’s poor health in goal to get another shot at the NHL. He has a 1-1-0 record with a 2.88 goals-against-average and a .912 save percentage.
Sean Couturier was a perfect 13-for-13 on faceoffs. It’s the most faceoff wins in a perfect faceoff game for any player in the NHL this season, surpassing the 10-for-10 by Sam Steel of Anaheim on October 20, and is the most in a perfect faceoff game in the league since Boston’s Patrice Bergeron went 14-for-14 vs. Tampa Bay on April 4, 2017. It’s the most faceoff wins that any Flyer has had in a perfect faceoff game since the NHL began tracking faceoffs in 1997.
James van Riemsdyk and Simmonds have been moved to the Flyers’ second line. They’ll play with second-year center Nolan Patrick. The Flyers have dropped six of their last seven games, so head coach Dave Hakstol is just attempting to get his team going in the right direction. “Me and (Simmonds) have had some good chemistry out there,” van Riemsdyk said. “Even though we do some things pretty similarly, I think there are some different elements that we both kind of have, and [can] expand our games a little bit because we don’t have to be the ones relied on to always be standing at the net.”
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.04
- Shots: 31.64
- PP/PK Percentage: 15.07
- Goals: 3.52
- Shots: 29.64
- PP/PK Percentage: 28.75
Blue Jackets vs Flyers NHL Betting Trends
- Over is 7-1-1 in the last 9 meetings in Philadelphia
- Blue Jackets are 16-5 in the last 21 meetings
- Home team is 20-7 in the last 27 meetings
- Columbus is 4-8 ATS in its last 12 games when playing Philadelphia
- Columbus is 16-5 SU in its last 21 games when playing Philadelphia
- The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Columbus’s last 10 games on the road
- Philadelphia is 4-12 ATS in its last 16 games at home
- Philadelphia is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home
- The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Philadelphia’s last 6 games at home
