Pittsburgh Penguins vs Philadelphia Flyers Prediction 4/18/26 NHL Picks Today

The Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins meet Saturday in NHL action from the PPG Paints Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins prediction.

Philadelphia Flyers Recap

The Philadelphia Flyers come into the postseason with a 43-27-12 record in the regular season.

Flyers Make Surprising Return To Postseason

Travis Konecny leads the Flyers in scoring with 68 points coming on a team-high 27 goals and 41 assists while Trevor Zegras has 67 points with 26 goals and 41 assists. Sean Couturier has 36 points with 12 goals and 24 assists while Christian Dvorak has 51 points with 18 goals and 33 assists. Owen Tippett has 51 points with 28 goals and 23 assists and Noah Cates has 47 points with 18 goals and 29 assists. Dan Vladar has gone 29-14-7 with a 2.42 GAA and a .906 save percentage in goal for Philadelphia while Samuel Ersson is 14-11-5 with a 3.12 GAA and an .870 save percentage this season. Aleksei Kolosov’s also gone 0-2 with a 4.00 GAA and an .830 save percentage as well this season.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recap

The Pittsburgh Penguins come into the playoffs after finishing with a 41-25-16 record in the regular season.

Penguins Looking To Defend Home Ice

Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh in scoring with 74 points including 29 goals and 45 assists while Evgeni Malkin has 61 points with 19 goals and 42 assists. Anthony Mantha has 64 points with 33 goals and 31 assists. Erik Karlsson has 51 assists while Bryan Rust has 65 points with 29 goals and 36 assists. Arturs Silovs has gone 19-12-8 with a 3.07 GAA and an .888 save percentage in goal for the Penguins so far this season while Stuart Skinner is 12-9-5 with a 2.91 GAA and an .888 save percentage this year. Sergei Murashov is 1-1-2 with a 2.56 GAA and an .897 save percentage in goal for Pittsburgh this season.

Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends: April 18, 2026

Why the Pittsburgh Penguins will win

• The Flyers have lost each of their last nine games at PPG Paints Arena following a win.
• The favorites have won each of the Penguins’ last nine games at PPG Paints Arena.
• The favorites have covered the puck line in each of the Penguins’ last eight games.
• The Flyers have failed to cover the puck line in three of their last four games against opponents on a losing streak.
• The favorites have won the third period in each of the Penguins’ last four games.

Why the Philadelphia Flyers will win

• The Flyers have won 11 of their last 13 games as road underdogs.
• The Penguins have lost six of their last seven home games against opponents on a winning streak.
• The Flyers have covered the puck line in seven of their last eight games as underdogs against Metropolitan Division opponents.
• The Penguins have failed to cover the puck line in 12 of their last 13 Saturday home games.
• The Penguins have lost the second period in each of their last six home games against Eastern Conference opponents when trailing after the first period.

Total Goals Facts

• Fourteen of the Penguins’ last 15 night games have gone OVER the total goals line.
• Nine of the Flyers’ last 10 road games against the Penguins following a win have gone OVER the total goals line.
• Each of the last seven Saturday games at PPG Paints Arena have gone OVER the total goals line.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Flyers’ last 14 night games.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Penguins’ last eight night games.

Pittsburgh Penguins Player Prop Facts

• Rickard Rakell has scored at least one goal in each of the Penguins’ last four games as home favorites.
• Evgeni Malkin has recorded at least one assist in each of his last 12 home appearances against the Flyers.
• Sidney Crosby has scored four goals against the Flyers this season – equal-most against any opponent.

Philadelphia Flyers Player Prop Facts

• Matvei Michkov has scored a goal in each of the Flyers’ last three games.
• Porter Martone has recorded an assist in each of the Flyers’ last five games against Eastern Conference opponents.
• Trevor Zegras ranks 1st in the league for shootout goals (7) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Pittsburgh Penguins rank 3rd in the league for goals per game this season (3.54).
• The Pittsburgh Penguins rank 6th in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (81.43%).
• The Philadelphia Flyers rank 32nd in the league in power play percentage this season (15.74%).
• The Philadelphia Flyers have recorded the equal-longest road winning streak (8 games) in the NHL this season.

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins Prediction

I’m on the Flyers in this one. Philly were road warriors to close out the season and I still have significant concerns about Pittsburgh’s goaltending. I think this could be a big game for the series as a whole so give me the Flyers to steal home ice in game one.