Senators vs. Flyers Odds
Philadelphia, PA (AP) – Tied atop the NHL, the Philadelphia Flyers might be getting a lot better once Chris Pronger is healthy.
The six-time All-Star could return as the Flyers attempt to win four in a row for the second time this month when they host the spiraling Ottawa Senators on Thursday night.
According to NHL odds and oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL.com have made the Flyers -230 money line favorites for Thursday’s game against the Senators. Current NHL Public Betting Information shows that 87% of more than 443 bets for this game have been placed on the Flyers -230.
Philadelphia (30-11-5) is tied with Vancouver for the league lead with 65 points. However, the Flyers are ahead of Pittsburgh by just three points for first in the Eastern Conference and Atlantic Division.
Possibly getting Pronger back could go a long way toward helping them widen that gap.
Pronger has missed 13 games after breaking his right foot in a win over Montreal on Dec. 15. Philadelphia went 9-4-0 without its top defenseman and one of its key leaders.
He’s expected to be a game-time decision.
“I feel pretty good, but when you get out there and push it in game situations you never really know,” Pronger told the team’s official website. “(Doctors) said every thing’s healing up well and everything showed up well on the X-Ray.”
While Pronger’s eventual return will help solidify the Flyers defensively, they lead the NHL with 3.41 goals per game and are the only team to boast four players with at least 40 points. Danny Briere leads the team with 24 goals and 41 points, while Jeff Carter, Claude Giroux and Mike Richards all have 40.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Pronger said of watching his teammates while he was out. “You look up front and the depth that we have. If it’s not one line, it’s another line or another line.”
That depth was on display Tuesday, when defenseman Andrej Meszaros scored 1:07 into overtime in a 3-2 win over Washington after Philadelphia squandered a two-goal lead during a 40-second span of the third period. The victory also opened a 10-game stretch that includes eight at home.
The Flyers are 13-3-2 in their last 18 at Wells Fargo Center, and have won seven of eight overall this month.
They’re 7-3-1 over the 11 most recent visits from the Senators (17-23-7), and beat them 5-1 in Ottawa on Nov. 15 as Giroux and Richards accumulated three points each.
While Philadelphia is vying for sole possession of the league lead, the Senators are tied with Toronto at the bottom of the Northeast due to a 1-6-3 stretch that has seen them score 11 goals in the defeats.
Those offensive issues are becoming frustrating for coach Cory Clouston after Ottawa lost 2-1 in a shootout to Anaheim on Tuesday despite a 40-27 shots advantage.
“It was very similar to probably seven of our last nine games,” Clouston said. “We work extremely hard, we outchance a team, outwork them, and somehow we don’t outscore them. There’s not a whole lot more we can as far as effort is concerned. As far as execution is concerned, we’ve just got to find ways to score.”
Captain Daniel Alfredsson leads the Senators with 14 goals and is tied with defenseman Erik Karlsson with a team-high 27 points. Alfredsson has just one point in his last six games overall, and no goals in his last six visits to Philadelphia.
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