NHL Betting: Ottawa Senators vs Pittsburgh Penguins

Apr 09, 2008 | By Scott Burgess | Picks Articles Archive

The high powered offense of the Pittsburgh Penguins will be out in full force tonight when they host the troubled Ottawa Senators. The Senators are 4-1 SU against the Pens this year. BetUS.com has the Pens as 200-moneyline favs over the Sens with the over/under set at 5 ½. Get your NHL Bet in now at betus.com

GAME: Ottawa Senators (43-31-3-5) at Pittsburgh Penguins (47-27-4-4)
DATE/TIME: Wednesday, April 09 - 7:05 PM EST
LINE: BetUS.com TOTAL: 5.5
Pick: Pittsburgh -200

Get your NHL Bet in now at BetUS.com

The Pens will need to count on Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. A high ankle sprain limited Crosby to 53 games this season, but he still scored 24 goals and was the team's second-leading scorer with 72 points. Malkin had a team-high 47 goals and his 106 points ranked behind only Washington's Alex Ovechkin for the league lead. They have a great goalie in Marc-Andre Fleury who has gone 10-2-1 with a 1.45 GAA since returning on March 2. He had problems with his ankle earlier in the season, but Ty Conklin filled in and went 18-8-5 with a 2.51 GAA and two shutouts in 33 games. The Pens have averaged 2.20 GAG in their last five and their power play sits ranked 4th in the league. On defense the Pens penalty kill is ranked 23rd overall and they’ve allow four goals in their last six games. They are 26-10-2-3 at home.

The Sens were one of the hottest teams at the start of the season but have since slipped into the bowls of the playoff standings. Ottawa had one the league's most potent scoring lines in Jason Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley. The trio combined for 115 goals and 148 assists while the rest of the team managed 143 goals and 293 assists. Alfredsson, second on the team with 89 points, hasn't played since suffering an upper body injury following a clean but vicious open-ice collision with Toronto's Mark Bell on April 3. Mike Fisher, who had 23 goals, injured his knee in the same game, and Murray said both players are expected to miss "weeks." The Sens have big goalie problems; Ray Emery has flopped since last year’s playoff run. He has lost six of his last ten starts for a 3.13 GAA. Martin Gerber has lost seven of his last 10 starts for a 2.72 GAA. The Sens were complaining that the Pens purposely lost their last game so they could play the struggling Sens, but that’s just playoff trash talking. The Sens are 21-16-2-2 on the road.

Recent Trends

Senators are 1-4 in their last 5 vs. Eastern Conference.
Senators are 1-4 in their last 5 overall.
Senators are 0-4 in their last 4 vs. a team with a winning record.
Senators are 0-4 in their last 4 when their opponent allows 2 goals or less in their previous game.
Penguins are 9-2 in their last 11 games as a home favorite of -151 to -200.
Penguins are 9-4 in their last 13 vs. Eastern Conference.
Penguins are 9-4 in their last 13 vs. Northeast.
Penguins are 9-4 in their last 13 overall.

The Bottom Line: The Pens are hungry to prove they are playoff ready. Get your NHL Bet in now at BetUS.com

Get your NHL Bet in now at BetUS.com

NHL Betting: Ottawa Senators vs Pittsburgh Penguins

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