In their first head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Detroit Red Wings and the Edmonton Oilers clash at Rogers Place for an East-West matchup. Fox Sports Detroit will showcase the action, which gets underway at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 5.
Detroit Red Wings vs. Edmonton Oilers Odds
Detroit (+175) is entering this one as the underdog to Edmonton (-210). The Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals and initially opened at -115 for the under and -105 for the over. That line has since flipped however, and it now sits at -115 for the over, -105 for the under.
Though the team is 6-8 straight up (SU) this season, Detroit has actually lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Seven of its outings have gone over the total, while another seven have gone under and none have pushed. This 2017-18 Red Wings team is 4-5 SU on the road.
Detroit has scored on 15.2 percent of its power play opportunities thus far. That mark hasn’t moved a lot from last year, when it was ranked 27th in the NHL by converting on 15.1 percent of its extra-man advantages. Its penalty kill has gotten stronger year-over-year, as the team has gone from successfully defending 80.9 percent of all opponent power plays (ranked 19th overall last season) to 82.5 percent this year.
Detroit, as a collective unit, has been penalized 4.7 times per game during the 2017-18 season, a number that’s jumped some from the 3.7 penalties per game given up last year. After serving an average of 8.8 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has been forced to kill penalties for 10.1 minutes per matchup this year.
Boasting a .927 save percentage and 30.1 saves per game, Jimmy Howard (5-6) has been the top option in goal for Detroit this year. If head coach Jeff Blashill decides to rest him, however, the team may turn to Petr Mrazek (1-3-1), who has a .901 save percentage and 3.24 goals against average this year.
Dylan Larkin and Mike Green will both be relied on to produce for the visiting Red Wings. Larkin has 13 points on two goals and 11 assists, and has recorded two or more points three times. Green has one goal and 11 assists to his nameand has registered at least one point in six games.
On the other bench, Edmonton is 4-8 straight up (SU) and has lost 7.0 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Six of its games have gone over the total, while another six have gone under and none have pushed. It’s 3-5 SU as the home team so far this year.
Edmonton has converted on just 15.4 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that places it in the bottom 10 overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 31st overall, and it’s successfully killed off 68.3 percent of all opponent power plays.
Edmonton players have been sent to the penalty box 4.3 times per game this season, a number that’s up a bit from the 3.8 penalties per game given up last year. After serving an average of 9.6 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team has had to stave off opponent power plays for 10.7 minutes per matchup this season.
Cam Talbot (26.7 saves per game) has been the primary selection in goal for Edmonton. Talbot has four wins, seven losses, and one overtime loss to his credit and has maintained a poor .905 save percentage and 3.09 goals against average this year.
The home team offense will be led by Connor McDavid (five goals, 11 assists).
Detroit Red Wings vs. Edmonton Oilers Betting Predictions
Predictions: SU Winner – Red Wings, O/U – Over
Betting Trends:
- After winning all nine of its shootouts last year, Detroit is off to a 2-0 start in shootouts this season. Edmonton went 4-5 in shootouts last year and has yet to participate in one this time around.
- The total has gone over in three of Edmonton’s last five games.
- Detroit has managed 31.8 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Edmonton is averaging 41.0 shots per game over its last five at home.
