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NHL Betting Picks: Blue Jackets vs. Predators | Feb. 18
Both of these teams are in desperate need of a win streak to turn their season around. The Blue Jackets enter this game with a .500 record over their last 12 games. It has been a story of one-step forward, two-steps back for Columbus this season. While they’ve taken some steps to improve their offense their defense and goaltending have regressed. Columbus is giving up the eighth-most scoring chances per game and the sixth-most goals per game. They average a healthy 3.71 goals per game since the arrival of Patrik Laine seven games ago, though, so if they can just keep a couple more pucks out of their net on a long-term basis, they have a shot at turning things around. Today’s goalie, Elvis Merzlikins, hasn’t been able to recapture his 2020 magic and enters this game with just a .906 save percentage and 2 goals allowed on 9 shots in a relief appearance. He has been the better of the two Columbus goalies, though, so I guess his getting the call is a good sign if you’re on the Blue Jackets here.
On the other side, Nashville’s lack of creativity on offense is starting to catch up with them. They enter this game third-to-last in scoring at just 2.1 goals per game and have a -4 record in their last five games. The Predators are coming in off a five-game rest as well after cancellations in Dallas due to the extreme weather. They are still without one of their top-two centers in Ryan Johansen and are one of the thinnest teams in the league down the middle. Filip Forsberg is the only bright spot on offense, as the winger has 14-points in 15 games and is averaging 4.7 shots on goal per game. The Columbus penalty-kill is fourth-worst in the league, so Forsberg and Roman Josi are in a spot here to potentially give the Predators an edge on special teams. They’ll likely need some power-play success here too given the injuries and depth issues up front.
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Best Bet: Blue Jackets Moneyline (-120, William Hill)
As mentioned above, Nashville’s path to winning this game is likely to take advantage of the Blue Jackets weaker penalty kill. However, if Columbus shuts down that avenue, then I’m not sure where the scoring is going to come from for Nashville. They’re suffering through a miserable season and have two goalies who have struggled to gain any traction, with Pekka Rinne getting the hook in his last start after allowing three goals on 24 shots. There are also some trends to consider here as the Predators are 1-7 in their last eight road games, making the home Blue Jackets look pretty attractive with just small juice attached.
The Blue Jackets have definitely improved from a competitive standpoint since getting Laine, as they’re 3-3-1 in seven games with him and only one of their regulation losses was by more than a goal (to the elite Hurricanes). The value here seems to be on the team who looks closer to turning things around for me and that’s Columbus who make for a solid moneyline target at these odds and can even be considered for a puckline, which the Awesemo OddsShopper Tool has going around +205 or better at multiple books.
Bonus: Wild at Ducks Under 5.5 Goals (-125, FanDuel)
The Wild got shut out in their first game back from a lengthy break, and as I mentioned in the writeup for that game, offenses that have been coming off COVID-19 breaks have been slow to get going. I don’t mind staying on the Wild for another under here, even paying a little juice to do so. Anaheim’s one of, if not the worst offensive team in the league, scoring just 1.9 goals per game. Ten of their 14 games have hit the under thus far, and Minnesota’s offense is lagging and features the worst power play in the league. Stay on the under here.
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