The Detroit Red Wings have lost four straight, but no need to worry. The Edmonton Oilers are the best cure for any team’s losing streak.
The
Oilers, who are the worst team in the Western Conference, are likely to fail in
Detroit on Friday night
The Edmonton
Oilers Can Win Because…:
The Detroit Red Wings are reeling right now. The Red Wings, who once had
an eye on finishing first in the Western Conference, now have the Chicago
Blackhawks squarely in their rearview mirror in the Central Division.
Nothing is going right for Detroit right now as they have
lost four straight and scored exactly one goal in three of those four contests.
Edmonton has lost two straight but both of their
opponents were top-three teams in the Eastern Conference. On the whole, they
have still won seven of their last 12 games.
There aren’t many stats that favor Edmonton in this
contest but the fact that they are lose and have nothing on the line might work
in their favor. They aren’t expected to accomplish anything on Friday night at
Joe Louis Arena but sometimes that type of loose attitude leads to wins.
The Detroit Red
Wings Can Win Because…:
The Edmonton Oilers penalty kill is brutal.
When a team is struggling offensively, they look to the
power play to get a kick-start. The Red Wings should be able to do exactly that
on Friday night.
They’ve struggled recently with just seven goals in their
last four games but their power play has provided three of those goals and
should offer even more against Edmonton. The Oilers penalty kill ranks 29th
in the NHL at 76.7% and has given up three power play goal in their last two
games.
Compounding the defensive problems for the Oilers could
be netminder Nikolai Khabibulin – if he’s in net. He has a GAA of 4.46 against
the Red Wings this season.
The Oilers have lost their three leading scorers of the
past week and it has showed. They have scored just one goal in their last two
outings and in Wednesday’s contest, managed just five shots in the third
period. Considering Detroit has averaged more than 36 shots per game the three
times they have faced Edmonton this season, this could get ugly unless one of
the Oilers netminders stands on his head.
The NHL odds boards obviously favor the Red wings in this game, but do NHL bettors just want to stick with the money line? I feel that this match offers more than just one way to extend your winnings with this evenings NHL Free Picks.
Outlook & NHL
Betting Prediction:
This is a tough spot for Edmonton. It’s their third game
in four nights – all on the road – and they just aren’t scoring goals right
now. If there was any hope of Detroit looking past this matchup, the fact that
they have lost four straight will ensure that they bring their most focused effort.
The Oilers are 1-9 after playing 3 consecutive road games
and 8-23 after allowing four goals or more in the previous contest. Detroit is
17-9 when facing a team with a losing record this season.
If you don’t mind a mouthful of chalk, lay the moneyline
but the puckline is the shrewder investment in this contest.
Pick: Red Wings -1.5