Tonight most Canadians will be watching Team Canada battle Russia for World Junior Championship gold, but for those of you still interested in the NHL here are a couple of my plays for this evening.
Atlanta Thrashers @ Florida Panthers
The Thrashers head into Florida to take on the Panthers this evening. The Thrashers are coming off of an overtime win over a slumping Canadiens team, but the Thrashers have still lost 5 of their last 7 games, including a loss to the New Jersey Devils, the NHL’s worst team. The Thrashers have not been scoring like they did during their winning parts of the season and for a team that doesn’t have many stars, the scoring needs to be a team effort.
The Panthers on the other hand have won 2 straight and they are the only team in the East that is not in a playoff position with a positive goal differential (+7). Florida has earned points in each of their last 5 games and look like they could make a push for a playoff position. Expect the Panthers to come out strong at home against a Thrashers team that has not fully regained their confidence.
My Pick: Florida Panthers -110 (Sportsbook.com)
Calgary Flames @ Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks are on quite the tear and are making a case to me as favourites to win the Stanley Cup this year if they can remain healthy. Vancouver has won their last 6 games, earned at least a point in their last 13 games and have only lost in regulation once out of their last 18 games. The Canucks are just a dominate team in all areas.
The Flames, on the other hand, are a subpar team at the bottom of the Western Conference, coming off a 5-2 loss to the Rangers. I expect the Canucks to bring their A-game at home against their division rivals and dismantle the Flames in all aspects of the game.
My Pick: Vancouver Canucks (-1.5) +135 (Sportsbook.com)
Written by: Niko de Jonge
Tagged with: Atlanta Thrashers • Calgary Flames • Florida Panthers • Vancouver Canucks