NHL Hockey Betting: Nashville Predators at Calgary Flames

NHL hockey betting tonight as a disappointing NHL season for Canadian teams starts to wind down. Canada has only one team with a realistic shot at the playoffs–the Ottawa Senators–and even that will be an uphill battle. There are certainly better things ahead with Connor McDavid in Edmonton and Mike Babcock in charge of the Toronto Maple Leafs rebuild but that’s little consolation for what has occurred this season. The bottom four teams in the NHL are Canadian teams as are five of the bottom six.

Of all of the underachieving Canadian teams the Calgary Flames might be the biggest disappointment. The Flames were a playoff team last year and were expected to challenge for the Pacific Division title this year. Instead they’ve been awful. The biggest problem has been defense and goaltending. The Flames have been among the worst goals per game teams in the league for most of this season. Currently they’re the second worst in the league in this category, allowing 3.11 goals per game. That’s a fraction better than the Arizona Coyotes and the Flames are one of only four teams in the league that allow more than three goals per game. Calgary is 2-6-2 in their last 10 games though they are a hair over .500 at home (17-14-2).

Tonight they face their worst possible matchup. The Nashville Predators are pretty much everything the Calgary Flames aren’t. The Preds have one of the best goaltenders in hockey in Pekka Rinne and he’s returning to his usual form after a slow start to the season. Their defense is nasty and Nashville always ranks near the top of the NHL for ‘fewest shots allowed’. Currently, the Predators are #2 in the NHL giving up 27.2 shots per game. They have a top ten offense scoring 2.72 goals per game and Filip Forsberg has been on an absolutely torrid run of late.

The Predators will start backup Carter Hutton tonight but he’s no slouch either and would be starting on most teams. Hutton is 7-2-2 on the year with a 2.16 goals against average and a 0.922 save percentage. He’ll face Calgary’s Joni Ortio who is 1-6-3 with a 3.04 goals against average and a 0.897 save percentage. All Smashville tonight.

BET NASHVILLE PREDATORS -135 OVER CALGARY FLAMES