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NHL
Tuesday, December 30
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Ice picks: Tuesday's best NHL bets
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Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins (-105, 6)
Stocked with several years of top draft picks, the Penguins emerged last spring, losing only two games in the Eastern Conference playoffs en route to their first appearance in the Stanley Cup finals since their back-to-back Cup titles in 1991 and 1992. They eventually lost in six games to Detroit.
But it has been Boston that has surged to the top of the East this season. The young Bruins (27-5-4) were just the eighth seed in last season's playoffs, but they're 22-2-1 since the beginning of November, outscoring opponents 101-49 over that span.
They're also 13-1-0 since Thanksgiving, including their current eight-game winning streak - matching their longest since a nine-game run in January 1983. Boston's last four wins have come on the road.
"We have to understand that we're no longer under the radar," Boston defenseman Aaron Ward said. "We're not going to sneak up on anybody."
They certainly didn't surprise the Atlanta Thrashers, who gave them all they could handle in Boston's 2-1 win on Sunday.
Not only have the Bruins scored a league-high 130 goals, but they've allowed an NHL-low 76. Their 2.11 team goals-against average easily leads the league, and goalies Manny Fernandez and Tim Thomas rank second and third in the NHL in GAA.
Facing the Penguins' offense is often a fearsome task, but that unit has been sputtering in recent games. Even though Evgeni Malkin leads the NHL with 59 points and Sidney Crosby is tied for second with 49, Pittsburgh (19-13-4) has just three goals in their last three games, losing two of them. Malkin has no goals and one assist over that span.
Pick: Under
Philadelphia Flyers at Vancouver Canucks (-125, 5.5)
The Flyers continue their six-game swing on Tuesday night in a city where they haven't lost in nearly 20 years as they face the Vancouver Canucks.
Philadelphia (19-10-7) has climbed into second in the Atlantic Division by collecting 34 points with a 15-4-4 record since Nov. 11. Only Eastern Conference-leading Boston has gained more points (39) in that span.
But the Flyers haven't been as sharp in the first two contests of their current trip, falling 5-1 in Chicago on Friday and enduring their first shutout of the season, 3-0 at Columbus on Saturday. They've been outshot by a combined 71-38 in those contests.
Though weather conditions complicated Philadelphia's travel and practice times over the weekend, coach John Stevens refused to blame those issues.
"We can't make excuses right now," said Stevens, whose team has dropped four straight road contests. "We've got to regroup, we've got to tighten up, we've got to do the little things better. That includes staying out of the penalty box early in the game."
Vancouver recorded its conference-high sixth shutout of the season on Sunday with a 3-0 win over visiting Ottawa as Curtis Sanford stopped 18 shots. Roberto Luongo has the other five shutouts.
Luongo is among five Canucks regulars sidelined by injury after winger Taylor Pyatt broke his right foot in Friday night's loss to Edmonton. Pyatt is expected to miss four weeks, while Luongo likely won't return before the All-Star break due to a groin problem.
Pick: Flyers
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Tuesday, December 30
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ice picks: Tuesday's best NHL bets
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins (-105, 6)
Stocked with several years of top draft picks, the Penguins emerged last spring, losing only two games in the Eastern Conference playoffs en route to their first appearance in the Stanley Cup finals since their back-to-back Cup titles in 1991 and 1992. They eventually lost in six games to Detroit.
But it has been Boston that has surged to the top of the East this season. The young Bruins (27-5-4) were just the eighth seed in last season's playoffs, but they're 22-2-1 since the beginning of November, outscoring opponents 101-49 over that span.
They're also 13-1-0 since Thanksgiving, including their current eight-game winning streak - matching their longest since a nine-game run in January 1983. Boston's last four wins have come on the road.
"We have to understand that we're no longer under the radar," Boston defenseman Aaron Ward said. "We're not going to sneak up on anybody."
They certainly didn't surprise the Atlanta Thrashers, who gave them all they could handle in Boston's 2-1 win on Sunday.
Not only have the Bruins scored a league-high 130 goals, but they've allowed an NHL-low 76. Their 2.11 team goals-against average easily leads the league, and goalies Manny Fernandez and Tim Thomas rank second and third in the NHL in GAA.
Facing the Penguins' offense is often a fearsome task, but that unit has been sputtering in recent games. Even though Evgeni Malkin leads the NHL with 59 points and Sidney Crosby is tied for second with 49, Pittsburgh (19-13-4) has just three goals in their last three games, losing two of them. Malkin has no goals and one assist over that span.
Pick: Under
Philadelphia Flyers at Vancouver Canucks (-125, 5.5)
The Flyers continue their six-game swing on Tuesday night in a city where they haven't lost in nearly 20 years as they face the Vancouver Canucks.
Philadelphia (19-10-7) has climbed into second in the Atlantic Division by collecting 34 points with a 15-4-4 record since Nov. 11. Only Eastern Conference-leading Boston has gained more points (39) in that span.
But the Flyers haven't been as sharp in the first two contests of their current trip, falling 5-1 in Chicago on Friday and enduring their first shutout of the season, 3-0 at Columbus on Saturday. They've been outshot by a combined 71-38 in those contests.
Though weather conditions complicated Philadelphia's travel and practice times over the weekend, coach John Stevens refused to blame those issues.
"We can't make excuses right now," said Stevens, whose team has dropped four straight road contests. "We've got to regroup, we've got to tighten up, we've got to do the little things better. That includes staying out of the penalty box early in the game."
Vancouver recorded its conference-high sixth shutout of the season on Sunday with a 3-0 win over visiting Ottawa as Curtis Sanford stopped 18 shots. Roberto Luongo has the other five shutouts.
Luongo is among five Canucks regulars sidelined by injury after winger Taylor Pyatt broke his right foot in Friday night's loss to Edmonton. Pyatt is expected to miss four weeks, while Luongo likely won't return before the All-Star break due to a groin problem.
Pick: Flyers
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