Saturday NHL Free Pick
(The Spread) – It’s put up or shut up time in the NHL as the regular season is winding down and two teams looking to stay within the top eight in the Western Conference are the Anaheim Ducks and the Chicago Blackhawks, who will be doing battle Saturday night.
Oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com have made Chicago a -185 favorite, while Ahaheim is a +165 underdog. The over-under has been listed at 5.5. Play begins at 8:30PM EST.
Chicago enters play with a 40-25-8 overall record and it is 23-14-0 in home contests. The defending Stanley Cup champions are 6-2-2 in its last 10 games. Anaheim comes in with a 41-28-5 record and has compiled an 18-16-3 road record.
According to the latest trends, the Ducks are 1-5 in the last six meetings in Chicago. The favorite is 15-7 in the last 22 meetings. The Ducks are 21-9-1 in the last 31 meetings. The home team is 11-3 in the last 14 meetings.
Anaheim Ducks at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30PM EST (View Matchup)
NHL Prediction: Naturally, the first inclination would to look at the heavy favorite Chicago Blackhawks as the easy choice. But betting is never that easy and Chicago has been overvalued quite a bit this season. This is a huge game in terms of playoff position for both of these squads and Anaheim will undoubtedly be putting in a top effort to steal a win here. Chicago is far less consistent than it was a season ago and have only been above adequate at home. While the Ducks are certainly not a sure thing, I love the value they get at +165 and am taking them tonight.
FRIDAY NHL FREE PICK: ANAHEIM DUCKS +165
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