Two squads on winning streaks, the Florida Panthers and the Winnipeg Jets face off at Bell MTS Place for an East-versus-West tilt. The Sports Network will air the game, which gets going at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, February 18.
Florida Panthers at Winnipeg Jets Odds
Winnipeg (-185) is currently the favorite over Florida (+160) and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-110 for the over, -110 for the under).
The Jets are 34-24 straight up (SU) and have netted moneyline bettors 7.0 units this season. That winning percentage, ranked fifth in the NHL in this young season, is a welcome improvement over the 40-42 record from last years regular season campaign. Through 58 regular season outings, 29 of the teams games have gone over the total, while 27 have gone under and just two have pushed. The teams 22-7 SU at home this season.
Winnipeg currently has the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as it’s found the net on 23.8 percent of their extra-man chances this season. On the other hand, its penalty kill is rated third overall, and it’s successfully killed off 83.3 percent of all penalties.
As a collective unit, Winnipeg has been penalized 3.9 times per game overall this season, 4.2 per game over its past five outings total, and 4.2 per game over its last five at home. The teams had to kill penalties for 8.8 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, in total.
Sporting a .923 save percentage and 27.5 saves per game, Connor Hellebuyck (30-18-8) has been the top goalkeeper for the Jets this year. If head coach Paul Maurice chooses to give him the evening off, however, the Jets could turn to Steve Mason (3-8-8 record, .897 save percentage, 3.52 goals against average).
Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele will each lead the offensive attack for the Jets. Wheeler (64 points) has produced 16 goals and 48 assists and has recorded multiple points 17 times this year. Scheifele has 17 goals and 28 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 24 games.
Florida is 26-29 straight up (SU) and has lost 3.8 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 55 regular season outings, 29 of its games have gone over the total, while 25 have gone under and none have pushed. As the away team so far, Florida is 13-17 SU.
Florida has converted on 19.2 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 21st overall and it’s successfully killed off 79.7 percent of all penalties.
Florida’s skaters have been penalized 4.5 times per game this season, and 5.9 per game over their last ten games. The teams been forced to kill penalties a whopping 20.8 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
James Reimer (.909 save percentage and 3.10 goals against average) has been the main option in goal for Florida. Reimer is averaging 27.9 saves per game and has 15 wins, 19 losses, and five OT losses to his credit.
For the visiting Panthers, the offense will be coordinated by Aleksander Barkov (19 goals, 34 assists) and Vincent Trocheck (22 goals, 31 assists).
Florida Panthers at Winnipeg Jets Free Picks
Free Pick: SU Winner – Panthers, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- The total has gone over in four of Winnipeg’s last five games.
- Penalties and power plays may be critical tonight. The Panthers are 8-14 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 11-16 when they’re in the box for fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Jets are 16-8 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 21-15 when they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Winnipeg is 2-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Florida is 2-3 in shootouts.
- Winnipeg has created 7.8 takeaways per game over its last five home games, an improvement over its season average of 6.9 takeaways per game (ranked 19th in the league).
- Florida has scored 3.0 goals per game overall this year, but has upped it to 5.7 per match up over the teams three-game winning streak.
- Florida is ranked sixth in the NHL this season with 8.7 takeaways per game. That figure has trended higher, as the team has forced 9.4 takeaways over its last 10 games and 11.4 takeaways over its last five.
