NHL matchups, odds to watch: December 14
Lightning-Oilers, Capitals-Flyers, Hurricanes-Red Wings highlight 8-game slate
NHL.com identifies key gameday matchups and players to watch throughout the 2023-24 season.
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1. Tampa Bay Lightning at Edmonton Oilers (9 p.m. ET; SN1, SNE, BSSUN)
TBL moneyline: +140
EDM moneyline: -170
This matchup features two of the top five power plays in the NHL; Tampa Bay ranks third (29.0 percent), and Edmonton is fourth (28.1). The Oilers have won eight straight games with seven of the wins coming in regulation and six coming by multiple goals. The Lightning had a 6-4 home win against the Oilers on Nov. 18; Tampa Bay forward Nikita Kucherov (two goals, one assist) and defenseman Mikhail Sergachev (one goal, two assists) each had a three-point game against Edmonton. The Oilers are 9-4-1 at home, while the Lightning are 5-9-2 on the road.
Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard has a 12-game point streak (18 points in span) and is up to third among NHL defensemen in points (30 in 26 games) behind Quinn Hughes (39 in 29) of the Vancouver Canucks and Cale Makar (37 in 27) of the Colorado Avalanche. Lightning center Anthony Cirelli is tied with Kucherov for Tampa Bay’s goal lead since Dec. 1 (four in six games).
2. Washington Capitals at Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET; MNMT, NBCSP, TVAS)
Over 5.5 total goals: -120
Under 5.5 total goals: +100
The Capitals have won consecutive games, outscoring the New York Rangers on Saturday and Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday by a combined 8-2 margin, and have scored four goals in three straight games. The Flyers are coming off a 3-2 overtime loss at the Nashville Predators on Tuesday but previously had won four straight games, scoring four or more goals in three of the wins. The Flyers rank 22nd in goals per game (2.96) and the Capitals are 30th (2.48).
Capitals forward Tom Wilson has their second-most goals (nine) and shots on goal (73) this season and has combined for 38 shots on goal over his past 10 games. Flyers rookie Tyson Foerster leads NHL rookies in points per game (1.00; seven in seven games) since Nov. 28 playing mostly on the top line with Travis Konecny and Sean Couturier.
3. Carolina Hurricanes at Detroit Red Wings (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+)
CAR puckline (-1.5 goals): +145
DET puckline (+1.5 goals): -175
The Hurricanes bounced back from a four-game losing streak with a 4-1 road win against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. Forward Andrei Svechnikov (upper body) remains out indefinitely, but Carolina went to the Eastern Conference Final last season in his absence. Six of the Hurricanes' seven wins since Nov. 11 have come by multiple goals.
Detroit is without top center Dylan Larkin (upper body) but defeated the St. Louis Blues 6-4 on Tuesday and ranks second in the NHL in goals per game (3.79). Red Wings forward Patrick Kane has two points (one goal, one assist) and 14 shots on goal over his first four games of the season since signing a one-year contract with them Nov. 28. Carolina leads the NHL in shots on goal per game (34.0) but has the worst team save percentage (.871) in the League.
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