Blue Jackets vs. Penguins Prediction
The Columbus Blue Jackets will be looking for the upset win tonight when they travel to play the Pittsburgh Penguins. Will Columbus pull off the victory as the underdog?
Game Snapshot
51 Columbus Blue Jackets at 52 Pittsburgh Penguins
Thursday, March 7, 2019
PPG Paints Arena at 7:05PM ET
TV: NBCSN
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Public Betting Information
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, the Penguins are a -125 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Blue Jackets are a +105 underdog, while the over-under sits at 6.5 goals. As of Thursday afternoon, 73 percent of public bets are siding with host Pittsburgh. Check out our NHL Public Betting Page for the latest info.
Blue Jackets topple Devils in shootout
Columbus secured a 2-1 victory in a shootout at New Jersey Tuesday night to improve to 37-26-3 on the season. The Blue Jackets won the shootout 2-0 as Cam Atkinson and Artemi Panarin found the back of the net. Atkinson gave Columbus a 1-0 advantage 52 seconds into the game on David Savard and Markus Nutivaara. New Jersey evened it at 1-1 with three minutes left in the second period and it continued that way until the shootout. Sergei Bobrovsky made 29 saves on 30 shots in the winning effort.
Geuntzel wins it in OT
Jake Guentzel provided the game-winning goal in overtime Tuesday night as the Penguins prevailed 3-2 at home over Florida. After trailing 1-0 through 20 minutes, Pittsburgh evened the score on a Guentzel goal 16 seconds into the second period with assists going to Jared McCann and Sidney Crosby. Crosby scored his 30th goal of the season on the power play midway through the period to put the hosts ahead 2-1. Phil Kessel and Patric Hornqvist assisted on the score. The Panthers tied the score later in the second, while neither team found the back of the net in the third. Matt Murray recorded 32 saves on 34 shots in the win.
NHL Betting Trends
Columbus
The Blue Jackets are 6-1 in their last seven road games. Columbus is 21-6 in its last 27 Thursday games.
Pittsburgh
The Penguins are 4-1 in their last five versus the Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh is 6-2 in its last eight games versus the Eastern Conference.
Prediction:
I’d feel better about a Blue Jackets pick here if Bobrovsky was in goal, but it looks like they are turning to backup Joonas Korpisalo tonight. Pittsburgh beat up on Columbus a couple weeks ago on the road to the tune of 5-2 and I think the smart play is again on the hosts here. If it’s a high-scoring affair, I trust Murray and the firepower up front for the Penguins more.
NHL DAILY PREDICTION: PITTSBURGH PENGUINS -125