NHL Hockey Betting: Anaheim Ducks at Winnipeg Jets

No matter what situation you’re currently in just remember it could always be worse. You could be in the same situation *and* be a Winnipeg Jets fan. The Jets were a playoff team a year ago and hopes were high for a repeat this season. It’s not going to happen. You’ll often hear hockey players and coaches talk about that they want their team to be ‘playing meaningful games in March’. They don’t mean in the way that Winnipeg is playing ‘meaningful games’ as they’re playing to avoid last place in the entire NHL.

Winnipeg is now in sole possession of last place in the Western Conference (though they could have company soon if the Vancouver Canucks continue their 3-7-0 L10 form). Edmonton is starting to realize how much talent they have–they’ve won two straight and six of ten. So the Jets have the ‘inside track’ on finishing last in the West. And now they’re just two points ahead of the Eastern Conference’s worst team, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Though if Winnipeg is ‘motivated’ by a desire to not finish with the worst record in the league they’re not playing like it–they were completely non competitive in a 4-0 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night and are now 3-6-1 in their last 10 games. Since showing a little life and beating Colorado and Vancouver in back to back games they’ve been outscored 8-1 in their last two (Chicago, at Calgary).

The Anaheim Ducks still have a shot to win the Pacific Division but there’s only one problem–they need the Los Angeles Kings to lose and they haven’t done much of that lately. The Kings have won four straight and are 7-2-1 in their last ten. The Ducks beat Boston 4-0 on Friday and have a 6-3-1 record in their last ten games. They’re the opposite of Winnipeg–they got off to a horrible start (1-9-1) but instead of playing out the string they dug down and started competing. They’re a ‘grown man’ team and Winnipeg isn’t.

For this reason alone, it’s not surprising that the Ducks have dominated the Jets (and before that the Thrashers) in head to head play. Anaheim has won 10 of 11 head to head meetings over the last three seasons including a perfect 5-0 on Winnipeg’s home ice. In fact, they’re 9-3 on the Jets/Thrashers’ home ice since 1996 and 17-8 overall in that timeframe. The Ducks play their next six against Canadian teams–at Winnipeg, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Edmonton before hosting Calgary on March 30. Sadly for Canadian fans they should tear through them like a buzzsaw.

BET ANAHEIM DUCKS -160 OVER WINNIPEG JETS