Hurricanes vs Penguins Prediction

pickdawgz.com

21 December 2023

The Carolina Hurricanes will play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Carolina has lost two of their last three games, while Pittsburgh has won three of their last four. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Hurricanes vs Penguins prediction.

Hurricanes Preview

The Carolina Hurricanes are 17-12-3 this year after they defeated Vegas by a score of 6-3 in their last game. Carolina was tied at one after the first period, but they scored the next five goals to pull away for the win. The Hurricanes out shot Vegas by a total of 39-33 and went 3-3 on the power play in the game. Carolina lost to Washington by a score of 2-1 in a shootout and Nashville by a score of 6-5 in overtime in the two games prior to Vegas. The Hurricanes are scoring 3.28 goals per game and they are allowing 3.19 goals against per game, while going 23.9% on the power play and 81.4% on the penalty kill. Sebastian Aho has led the Hurricanes with 12 goals, 18 assists, and 93 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Carolina is Pyotr Kochetkov, who is 7-6-2 this year with a 2.65 goals against average and a .895 save percentage.

Penguins Preview

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 14-13-3 this season after they defeated Minnesota by a score of 4-3 in their last game. Pittsburgh led 3-0 in the first period, but Minnesota tied the game at three in the third period, before Crosby scored to give the Penguins the win. The Penguins out shot Minnesota by a total of 30-27 and went 2-5 on the power play in the game. Pittsburgh lost to Toronto by a score of 7-0 in the game prior to Minnesota, but defeated Montreal and Arizona before that. The Penguins are scoring 2.87 goals per game and they are allowing 2.77 goals against per game, while going 14.4% on the power play and 81.6% on the penalty kill. Jake Guentzel has led the Penguins with 14 goals, 20 assists, and 102 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Pittsburgh is Tristan Jarry, who is 9-11-2 this season with a 2.61 goals against average and a .913 save percentage.

Pittsburgh Penguins Team Facts

The Penguins have lost each of their last six night games at PPG Paints Arena following a home win.
The Penguins have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last six games against Eastern Conference opponents.
The Penguins have lost the first period in each of their last five games following a home win.
The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 3' market has hit in each of the Penguins' last 13 games at PPG Paints Arena against opponents on a losing streak.

Carolina Hurricanes Team Facts

The Hurricanes have won eight of their last nine games against the Penguins.
The Hurricanes have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last eight Thursday games.
The Hurricanes have won the third period in four of their last five games as favorites against Metropolitan Division opponents.
The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 2' market has hit in each of the Hurricanes' last six games.

Pittsburgh Penguins Player Prop Facts

Jake Guentzel has scored at least one goal in each of the Penguins' last four games at PPG Paints Arena.
Kris Letang has recorded a point in each of his last four appearances against the Hurricanes.
Kris Letang has recorded an assist in each of his last four appearances against the Hurricanes.
Sidney Crosby has the most multi-goal games for the Penguins this season (4).

Carolina Hurricanes Player Prop Facts

Brent Burns has recorded at least one point in seven of his last eight appearances at PPG Paints Arena.
Sebastian Aho has recorded at least one assist in four of his last five appearances against the Penguins.
Jaccob Slavin has recorded two assists against the Penguins this season - equal-most against any opponent.

Matchup/League Facts

The Pittsburgh Penguins rank 5th in the league for shots per game this season (33.2).
The Pittsburgh Penguins rank T28th in the league in penalty minutes this season (250).
The Carolina Hurricanes rank 32nd in the league in short handed goals allowed this season (7).
The Carolina Hurricanes rank 2nd in the league for shots per game this season (34.0).

Hurricanes vs Penguins Betting Prediction

Pittsburgh comes into this game after winning three of their last four games, but they are only 7-6-1 on home ice this year. The Penguins are only scoring 2.87 goals per game, but they have scored four goals in three of their last four games. Carolina has lost two of their last three games, but both losses were in overtime/shootout. The Hurricanes are 8-10-0 on the road this season, but they have won two road games in a row. This is a pretty even matchup, but I am going to give the edge to Pittsburgh at home. The Penguins offense has shown some life recently and I think they will continue that here. Take Pittsburgh to get the win.