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NHL
Friday, January 7
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Ice picks: Today's best NHL bets
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Columbus Blue Jackets at Anaheim Ducks (-135, 5.5)
The Blue Jackets may be starting to throw in the towel.
The team waived veteran defenseman Mike Commodore and rookie center Kyle Wilson, placed left wing Ethan Moreau on the injured list and recalled left wing Matt Calvert. Commodore, a healthy scratch in seven of his last eight games, has just two goals and four assists and is minus-8 in 20 games.
This is the latest move for a team that is two points out of the playoffs, and minus-15 in goal differential, the second-worst mark in the Western Conference. The team is in a huge tailspin, going 6-11-3 the past six weeks. Can the team turn it around? Well, with a suddenly thin roster, the team has plenty of holes to fill.
The Blue Jackets are 24th in goals scored per game (2.5) and 23rd per game in goals allowed (2.9)
"Any time you see someone with pure talent, regardless of what sport or what line of work it is, and they don't use it to the best of their abilities, it's just a disappointment," Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel said.
Look for more disappointment to follow.
Pick: Anaheim.
Edmonton Oilers at Vancouver Canucks (-267, 5.5)
There is no team hotter in the league than the Vancouver Canucks.
The team is 9-0-1 in its past 10 games, winning six of those games by at least two goals. During that streak, the team also has seen the under go 6-4. There isn’t much the team isn’t good at. Vancouver is second in the league in offense – 3.4 goals per game – and fifth in defense – allowing just 2.4 goals per game.
Even the team’s special teams rank among the best in the league, as the team’s man-advantage unit is ranked second, clipping along at 24.5 percent, while the team’s PK is equally potent, killing off 85.3 percent of opponent’s chances, the sixth-best unit in the league.
"That's the way it goes sometimes when you are feeling good about yourself as a team," Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo said. "When things aren't going well you don't seem to be getting the bounces and when things are going well you seem to find ways to win and right now that is what we are doing. We scored some big goals at opportune times and put the game away."
And the Oilers have been an absolute mess recently against the Canucks. In their past eight games against Vancouver, the team is just 1-7.
Pick: Vancouver.
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Friday, January 7
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ice picks: Today's best NHL bets
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Columbus Blue Jackets at Anaheim Ducks (-135, 5.5)
The Blue Jackets may be starting to throw in the towel.
The team waived veteran defenseman Mike Commodore and rookie center Kyle Wilson, placed left wing Ethan Moreau on the injured list and recalled left wing Matt Calvert. Commodore, a healthy scratch in seven of his last eight games, has just two goals and four assists and is minus-8 in 20 games.
This is the latest move for a team that is two points out of the playoffs, and minus-15 in goal differential, the second-worst mark in the Western Conference. The team is in a huge tailspin, going 6-11-3 the past six weeks. Can the team turn it around? Well, with a suddenly thin roster, the team has plenty of holes to fill.
The Blue Jackets are 24th in goals scored per game (2.5) and 23rd per game in goals allowed (2.9)
"Any time you see someone with pure talent, regardless of what sport or what line of work it is, and they don't use it to the best of their abilities, it's just a disappointment," Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel said.
Look for more disappointment to follow.
Pick: Anaheim.
Edmonton Oilers at Vancouver Canucks (-267, 5.5)
There is no team hotter in the league than the Vancouver Canucks.
The team is 9-0-1 in its past 10 games, winning six of those games by at least two goals. During that streak, the team also has seen the under go 6-4. There isn’t much the team isn’t good at. Vancouver is second in the league in offense – 3.4 goals per game – and fifth in defense – allowing just 2.4 goals per game.
Even the team’s special teams rank among the best in the league, as the team’s man-advantage unit is ranked second, clipping along at 24.5 percent, while the team’s PK is equally potent, killing off 85.3 percent of opponent’s chances, the sixth-best unit in the league.
"That's the way it goes sometimes when you are feeling good about yourself as a team," Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo said. "When things aren't going well you don't seem to be getting the bounces and when things are going well you seem to find ways to win and right now that is what we are doing. We scored some big goals at opportune times and put the game away."
And the Oilers have been an absolute mess recently against the Canucks. In their past eight games against Vancouver, the team is just 1-7.
Pick: Vancouver.
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