In their zeroth of one head-to-head meetings this season, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks face off at the United Center for an East-West tilt. The puck drops at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, November 1, and it’s being shown live on NBC Sports Network.
Philadelphia Flyers at Chicago Blackhawks Odds
Chicago enters the game as the heavy favorite with a -140 moneyline. The line for Philadelphia sits at +120 and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -120 for the over and +100 for the under.
Philadelphia is 6-6 straight up (SU) and has earned -0.9 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 12 regular season contests, seven of its games have gone over the total, while four have gone under and just one has pushed. The Flyers are 3-3 SU on the road in 2017-18.
The Flyers have scored on 23.3 percent of their power play opportunities thus far. That’s a good step forward from last season, when they were ranked 12th in the NHL by converting on 19.5 percent of their extra-man advantages. Their penalty kill has held firm since last year, as they’ve gone from successfully defending 79.8 percent of all opponent power plays (ranked 22nd overall last season) to 79.5 percent this year.
The Flyers, as a collective unit, have been penalized 4.2 times per game this season, a number that’s pretty close to last years 4.0 penalties per game. After serving an average of 10.3 penalty minutes per game a season ago the teams been forced to kill penalties for 10.8 minutes per matchup this year.
Boasting a .884 save percentage and 24.9 saves per game, Brian Elliott (5-3-1) has been the primary option in goal for Philadelphia this year. If Philadelphia decides to rest him, however, the team may roll with Michal Neuvirth (1-3), who has a .925 save percentage and 2.30 goals against average this year.
Jakub Voracek and Sean Couturier will both lead the way for the visiting Flyers. Voracek has 16 points via two goals and 14 assists, and has recorded two or more points six times. Couturier has nine goals and six assists to his name (and has registered at least one point in seven games).
Over on the other bench, Chicago is 5-7 straight up (SU) and has lost 3.6 units for moneyline bettors this year. Seven of its outings have gone over the total, while four have gone under and just one has pushed. Thus far, the team is 3-3 SU as the home team.
The Blackhawks have converted on just 13.0 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a figure that places them in the bottom 5 overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 16th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 80.8 percent of all penalties.
Blackhawks players have been penalized 4.9 times per game this season. Last year, that number was at 3.1, the second-lowest mark in the league. After serving an average of 7.1 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has been forced to kill penalties for a taxing 10.5 minutes per outing this year.
Corey Crawford has stopped 28.6 shots per game as the primary option in goal for the Blackhawks. Crawford has five wins and five losses and has recorded a .935 save percentage and a solid 2.12 goals against average this year.
The home team offense will be led by Patrick Kane (five goals, seven assists).
Philadelphia Flyers at Chicago Blackhawks Free Picks
Predictions: SU Winner – Blackhawks, O/U – Over
Betting Notes:
- The Blackhawks are 2-1 SU in games where they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Flyers are 3-2 SU when they serve more minutes than the opposition.
- The total has gone over in three of Philadelphia’s last five games.
- Chicago has averaged 3.2 goals per game this season, but is averaging 2.0 goals per contest over its three-game losing skid.
