NHL Hockey Betting: Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins
These teams are in third place in their respective divisions but the Pittsburgh Penguins are substantially better. The Boston Bruins are in third place in the Atlantic Division with 52 points, one ahead of fourth place Toronto and two back of second place Ottawa. The Pittsburgh Penguins are in third place in the Metropolitan Division and are but have 63 points putting them three points behind the teams tied for the best record in hockey, Columbus and Washington. Pittsburgh also has the best home record in the NHL with a 19-2-2 mark and that’s what the Boston Bruins will have to contend with today.
Boston is 3-5-2 in their last ten games and enter Sunday’s contest on a three game losing streak. The Penguins, meanwhile, have won three straight and have a 7-3-0 record in their last ten games. Pittsburgh has really taken care of business against opponents with losing records–against foes with a record under .500 they are 15-6 this season. Boston has a better record on the road than at home. At the TD Garden they are 10-12-0 but on the road they are 13-8-6.
As usual, Tuukka Rask is expected to get the start for the Bruins and he has carried the team on his back for much of this season. Rask has a 22-11-4 record with a 2.08 goals against average and a 0.920 save percentage along with 5 shutouts. He’ll be opposed by Marc-Andre Fleury who has a 13-7-4 record with a 3.23 goals against average and a 0.904 save percentage. Fleury answered the call when Matt Moore was injured and now that last year’s rookie phenom is back the Penguins are rewarding him with a lot of playing time. The question still remains, however, if he’ll still be in Pittsburgh next season as the conventional wisdom suggests that they need to move one of their two netminders.
Just no interest in the erratic Bruins and particularly with the way that Pittsburgh has played at home this season. Interestingly, Boston has held the edge in head to head play in recent years with a 5-2-0 record over the last three seasons including a 3-1 record on the Penguins’ home ice. Pittsburgh did win the only meeting of this season, a 4-3 victory at home on 12/14/16.
BET PITTSBURGH PENGUINS -160 OVER BOSTON BRUINS
