Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat, and the Chicago Blackhawks will do battle against Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, and the Boston Bruins at TD Garden in an Original Six matchup. The first puck will drop at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, December 5, and you can watch it live on New England Sports Network.
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Boston Bruins Odds
The Bruins (-245) are favored over the Blackhawks (+205), and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals (-115 over, -105 under).
Boston is 20-8 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 8.4 units this year. That winning percentage, ranked first in the league in this young season, is an improvement over the 49-33 record from the 2018-19 season campaign. Among its 28 games this season, 13 have gone over the total, while another 13 have gone under and just two have pushed. This year, the team’s 12-4 SU at home.
The Bruins come into the matchup with the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as they’ve converted on 30.9 percent of their extra-man chances this season. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked seventh overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 85.1 percent of all penalties.
With a .933 save percentage and 28.5 saves per game, Tuukka Rask (13 wins, four losses, and two OT losses) has been the top goalkeeper for the Bruins this year. If the Bruins choose to give him the evening off, however, head coach Bruce Cassidy could turn to Jaroslav Halak (7-4-4 record, .934 save percentage, 2.14 goals against average).
Chicago has lost 5.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far and is currently 10-17 straight up (SU). Through 27 regular season outings, 16 of its games have gone under the total, while 10 have gone over and just one has pushed. As a road team so far, the Blackhawks are 3-8 SU.
The Blackhawks have converted on just 13.3 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a figure that places them in the bottom- overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 20th overall and it’s successfully killed off 79.8 percent of all opponent power plays.
Robin Lehner (31.7 saves per game) has been the primary option in the net for Chicago. Lehner has five wins, nine losses, and four OT losses to his credit, while registering a .929 save percentage and 2.69 goals against average this year.
Chicago Blackhawks at Boston Bruins Betting Picks
NHL Pick: SU Winner – Bruins, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- Five of Boston’s last ten games have been decided by two or more goals, and the team is 5-0 overall in those games.
- The Blackhawks are 4-9 SU in games where they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Bruins are 8-3 SU when they serve more minutes than the opposition.
- Boston is 0-4 in games decided by a shootout this season while Chicago is 0-3 in shootouts.
- The under has hit in four of Boston’s last five outings.
- Chicago has averaged 7.0 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 10.8 giveaways per game (ranked 19th).
- Boston has averaged 7.2 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 10.7 giveaways per game (ranked 17th overall).
- This game features two of the more aggressive defenses in the league. Chicago skaters have accounted for the league’s sixth-most hits per game (26.1) while the Bruins have registered the seventh-most (24.1).
