Who would have guessed the Calgary Flames might be the best team in the Western Conference this season? They are right now and are heavy home NHL betting favorites Tuesday as the Carolina Hurricanes make their lone visit of the season.
Hurricanes vs Flames NHL Week 17 Spread & Pick
“I love this team. I love my teammates here. I like the direction we’re going.”https://t.co/2DsDeHVUiv
— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) 22 de enero de 2019
- When: Tuesday, 9 PM ET
- Where: Scotiabank Saddledome
- TV: NHL Center Ice
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- Radio: TuneIn
- NHL Week 17 Spread: Flames -180, Canes +170 (total 6.5)
Sharks vs Capitals NHL Odds, Preview & Prediction
Season Series
First meeting. They play again Sunday. Last season, they split. Carolina won 2-1 in Calgary. Jeff Skinner had a goal and assist. Justin Williams scored 1:09 into the third period to make it 2-0. Williams got the puck near the faceoff dot and, as Mike Smith slid across and stacked his pads, the veteran wired a shot under the crossbar. The Hurricanes were on their fifth power play of the game. Sean Monahan scored for Calgary. Scott Darling finished with 25 saves for the Canes.
Why Bet on Carolina?
The Canes come in off a 7-4 upset win in Edmonton on Sunday. Nino Niederreiter scored two goals in the win. Niederreiter opened the scoring after Sebastian Aho found him trailing into the zone, firing off a quick shot to beat Cam Talbot. Carolina’s new Swiss winger then ended Talbot’s night, this time doing great work to out-muscle an Oiler before sneaking one through Talbot’s pads, jumping out to a 3-0 lead. It’s the 26-year-old’s first two goals as a Hurricane, bringing him to 11 goals and 25 points in 48 games this season.
Aho set up three goals Sunday. The Finn has 21 goals and 54 points in 48 games to lead the Hurricanes this season. At the tender age of 21, Aho is Carolina’s best player. He has become the fourth player in franchise history to debut with the club and reach the 20-goal mark in each of his first three NHL seasons, joining Ron Francis, Sylvain Turgeon, and Kevin Dineen. He also became just the sixth Finnish-born player in NHL history to accomplish the feat with any team, joining Jari Kurri, Tomas Sandstrom, Petri Skriko, Teemu Selanne and Patrik Laine. Aho has scored the fifth-most goals in franchise history by any player prior to their 22nd birthday (he will turn 22 on 7/26).
Lucas Wallmark scored twice and added an assist. Andrei Svechnikov had a goal and two assists as the rookie had his best game to date as an NHLer. He entered with only one goal in his previous 14 games. The 18-year-old was taken second overall by the Hurricanes and has 12 goals and 22 points this season. Micheal Ferland was a late scratch for Sunday’s game against the Oilers, due to an upper-body injury.
Justin Faulk has recorded 240 points in 525 career NHL/Hurricanes games (77g, 163a), tying him with Dave Babych for the most points by a defenseman in franchise history. On 1/6 at OTT, Faulk passed Niclas Wallin for the fourth-most games played by a defenseman in franchise history.
Petr Mrazek allowed four goals on 21 shots. A fairly routine outing for Mrazek who had a 6-1 lead in the second period before Leon Draisaitl cut Carolina’s lead to four with 19 seconds left in the frame. Mrazek’s record improved to 10-10-2 with a 2.80 goals-against-average and a .895 save percentage.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 2.77
- Shots: 35.81
- PP/PK Percentage: 16.98
Defense
- Goals: 3.00
- Shots: 28.00
- PP/PK Percentage: 20.92
Why Bet on Calgary?
The Flames won their second straight on Saturday, 5-2 in Edmonton. Johnny Gaudreau scored once and added an assist to extend his point streak to 11 straight games. Gaudreau is having a career season with 29 goals and 73 points in 50 games and he has been especially hot of late with 10 goals and 23 points in the 11-game streak. The talented winger’s career high is 84 and he should smash that mark in the first or second week in February.
Oliver Kylington’s second goal of the season was the game-winner Saturday. He has two goals and four points in 25 games this season as he tries to establish himself as a solid NHL blueliner. Mikael Backlund scored once and added an assist Saturday. The center picked up his 300th career point in the contest as he has 11 goals and 27 points this season with a tremendous plus-25 in 46 games after going minus-21 last season.
Sean Monahan picked up a power-play goal in the win. Monahan also added an assist while taking a game-high seven shots on goal across his 20:16 of ice time over 24 shifts. The 24-year-old pivot from suburban Toronto is easily enjoying his most productive season, as he is up to 27 goals with 61 points and a plus-13 rating through 50 games. Mark Giordano picked up a power-play goal with two assists. He is on an absolute tear of late, posting five goals with 10 assists in 10 outings in the month of January.
David Rittich allowed just two goals on 24 shots. Rittich improved to a gaudy 18-4-4 across his 29 appearances this season. The Flames have a 0.684 points percentage on the season, putting them on pace to put up 111 points in the standings. That would be their second-best season all-time behind only the 1988-89 season in which the Flames won the Presidents’ Trophy and the Stanley Cup.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.74
- Shots: 31.94
- PP/PK Percentage: 24.14
Defense
- Goals: 2.86
- Shots: 28.66
- PP/PK Percentage: 21.52
Hurricanes vs Flames NHL Week 15 Betting Trends
- Under is 6-2-1 in the last 9 meetings in Calgary
- Road team is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings
- Carolina is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
- Carolina is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Carolina’s last 5 games
- Calgary is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games at home
- Calgary is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Calgary’s last 5 games at home
Expert NHL Betting Prediction for Hurricanes vs Flames
Carolina Hurricanes 3 – Calgary Flames 5
