NHL Tuesday best bets: Can Oilers rebound vs. Predators?
We started the week off with a mixed bag. The Red Wings took care of the Blue Jackets with relative ease to get things going. Unfortunately, the Flames couldn't convert a massive shot advantage (40-23) into a victory against the Capitals.
We'll take the split and move forward with a pair of plays for Tuesday night's juicy card.
Oilers (-140) @ Predators (+120)
The Oilers are getting a lot of negative press following an 0-2 start to the season, but it's by no means time to press the panic button.
They've controlled better than 54% of the expected goal share at five-on-five, which is a top-10 mark. The problem is they've scored on only 2.36% of their shots while getting an overall .760 save percentage at the other end. Yes, you're reading those numbers correctly.
Edmonton may not be overflowing with quality depth forwards, but the top of its lineup is as good as anybody's. A team with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Co. won't continue finishing at such a poor rate.
The Oilers are also due for some positive regression in goal. I don't love their tandem by any means, but the Sharks ranked dead last in five-on-five save percentage last season with a number (.893) that's worlds ahead of Edmonton's current mark. The Oilers will start getting more saves sooner rather than later.
The Predators have been surprisingly good thus far - they've really controlled the run of play against opponents - but I'm still not sold on them due to a lack of high-end talent. They have a lot of "good" pieces. They don't have many great ones.
I think this is a spot where the Oilers' big guns rise to the occasion and take over a game. Look for them to grind out their first win of the year.
Bet: Oilers (-145)
Hurricanes (-320) @ Sharks (+260)
The Sharks are as bad as advertised. They were blown out by the Golden Knights in their season opener and followed that up by allowing 52 shots, and more than five expected goals, against the Avalanche.
While that's a difficult pair of teams to start your season against, I think their putrid defensive numbers have more to do with their talent level - or lack thereof - than simply facing good competition.
As expected, the Sharks are asking an awful lot of their goaltenders. Mackenzie Blackwood made a great first impression last time out, nearly stealing a game against the Avalanche. He's an extremely high-variance goaltender, though.
His highs are very high. Unfortunately, they are few and far between. That's how Blackwood managed to post sub .900 save percentages while playing behind an up-and-coming Devils squad that's posted strong defensive metrics over the past couple of seasons.
I don't think Blackwood will come close to replicating the performance we saw against the Avalanche. If that's the case, the Sharks will be in a world of trouble against the Hurricanes.
They're one of the sport's most dominant five-on-five teams. They spend the vast majority of their time on the front foot, hammering pucks at the net from anywhere and everywhere in the offensive zone.
Coming off an underwhelming showing against a bad Ducks team, Carolina will no doubt be ready to go and come out with a much better effort in San Jose.
Look for the Hurricanes to dominate the Sharks, and for Blackwood to come back to earth, en route to a multi-goal victory.
Bet: Hurricanes -1.5 (-125)
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.