Two clubs that many consider to be the two weakest in the NHL, the Ottawa Senators and the Arizona Coyotes take the ice at Gila River Arena for a cross-continent matchup. The matchup gets underway at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 3, and you are able to see the game live on Sportsnet ONE.
Ottawa Senators at Arizona Coyotes Odds
Arizona comes into the contest as the favorite with a moneyline of -135. The line for Ottawa sits at +115, and the Over/Under (O/U) has been set at 6 goals (-110 for the over, -110 for the under).
Ottawa is 22-41 straight up (SU) and has lost 20.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. 33 of its contests have gone over the total, while 29 have gone under and none have pushed. This 2017-18 Senators team is 8-23 SU on the road.
Ottawa has converted on just 16.6 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that’s ranked 26th in the NHL. Its penalty kill is ranked 30th in the league, and it’s successfully killed off only 75.1 percent of all penalties.
For the team as a whole, Ottawa has been penalized 3.6 times per game this season, and 2.8 per game over its last five road outings. The team has had to kill penalties just 6.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Sporting a .900 save percentage and 27.4 saves per game, Craig Anderson (19-28-5) has been the primary option in goal for Ottawa this year. Anderson did just play last night, however, so the team could opt to rest him and turn to Mike Condon instead (5-18-5 record, .900 save percentage, 3.30 goals against average).
Mark Stone and Erik Karlsson will both lead the offensive attack for the visiting Senators. Stone has 59 points on 20 goals and 39 assists, and has recorded two or more points 19 times. Karlsson has six goals and 41 assists to his creditand has logged at least one point in 28 games.
Arizona is 19-44 straight up (SU) and has lost 19.0 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 63 regular season matches, 33 of its games have gone under the total, while 29 have gone over and just one has pushed. The team is 11-22 SU at home this year.
Arizona has converted on just 16.6 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 22nd overall, and it’s successfully killed off 79.3 percent of all opponent power plays.
Arizona players have been whistled for penalties only 3.3 times per game in total this season, and 4.3 per game over their last ten match ups. The team has been forced to defend opponent power plays 10.2 minutes per game over their last five home outings.
Antti Raanta (26.9 saves per game) has been the top choice in goal for Arizona. Raanta has 15 wins, 23 losses, and six OT losses and has maintained a .923 save percentage and 2.47 goals against average this year.
Clayton Keller (17 goals, 28 assists) will lead the offensive counter for the Coyotes.
Ottawa Senators vs. Arizona Coyotes Free Picks
Prediction: SU Winner – Coyotes, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- The total has gone under in three of Arizona’s last five outings.
- Power plays and penalty kills may play a key role tonight. The Senators are 9-20 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 15-26 when they’re in the box for fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Coyotes are 7-19 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 13-33 in games where total penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- Ottawa is 2-6 in games decided by a shootout this season while Arizona is 1-5 in shootouts.
- Arizona is ranked 31st in the NHL this season with 5.1 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down recently, however, as the team has forced 3.8 takeaways over its last 10 games and 3.8 takeaways over its last five.
- Ottawa is ranked 21st overall with 7.0 takeaways per game. That figure has trended upward lately, as the team has managed 8.2 takeaways over its last 10 games and 8.6 takeaways over its last five.
