The Florida Panthers will play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Florida has won two games in a row, while Pittsburgh has lost four of their last five games. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Panthers vs Penguins prediction.
Panthers Preview
The Florida Panthers are 29-14-4 this year after they defeated the Coyotes by a score of 6-2 in their last game. Florida scored the first six goals in this game, but they lost the shutout in the third period. The Panthers out shot Arizona by a total of 42-33 and went 1-4 on the power play in the game. Florida defeated the Predators by a score of 4-1 in the game prior to Arizona, but lost to Minnesota, Detroit, Anaheim, and New Jersey before that. The Panthers are scoring 3.23 goals per game and they are allowing 2.60 goals against per game, while going 22.3% on the power play and 82.4% on the penalty kill. Sam Reinhart has led Florida with 35 goals, 25 assists, and 128 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Florida is Sergei Bobrovsky, who is 22-10-2 this year with a 2.53 goals against average and a .909 save percentage.
Florida Panthers Team Facts
- The Panthers have won nine of their last 10 games following a win.
- The road team has covered the puck line in 10 of the Panthers’ last 11 games.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Panthers’ last seven games.
- The road team has won the third period in five of the Panthers’ last six games.
Penguins Preview
The Pittsburgh Penguins are 21-17-6 this season after they lost to Arizona by a score of 5-2 in their last game. Pittsburgh tied the game at two in the second period, but they allowed the last three goals in the game for the loss. The Penguins out shot Arizona by a total of 27-26 and went 0-3 on the power play in the game. Pittsburgh lost to Vegas by a score of 3-2 in the game prior to Arizona, but did beat Seattle by a score of 3-0 before that. The Penguins are scoring 2.98 goals per game and they are allowing 2.73 goals against per game, while going 13.3% on the power play and 82.8% on the penalty kill. Sidney Crosby has led Pittsburgh 27 goals, 21 assists, and 161 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Pittsburgh is Tristan Jarry, who is 12-14-4 this year with a 2.56 goals against average and a .913 save percentage.
Pittsburgh Penguins Team Facts
- The Penguins have won each of their last five games as home underdogs.
- The Penguins have covered the puck line in each of their last six games as underdogs.
- The Penguins have won the first period in five of their last six games as home underdogs.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Penguins’ last 11 Friday at PPG Paints Arena.
Panthers vs Penguins Betting Prediction
Pittsburgh comes into this game not playing their best hockey recently, but they will be at home for this matchup. The Penguins are 11-8-2 at home, while Florida is 15-7-2 on the road. The Panthers were able to snap their losing streak a couple of games ago and they have out scored their last two opponents by a total of 10-3. Both teams have been very sharp in the defensive end of the ice and I think we are going to see a low scoring game here. Take the under in this matchup.