Sports Betting Overview
The sports fans in Pittsburgh were watching the Superbowl betting with some interest, but there would have been more interest if the Steelers had made it to the big game. The Atlanta Thrashers were not a playoff team, but many people felt that the Thrashers were only a few players away from being a playoff contender. When Atlanta moved to Winnipeg, many of those parts were picked up and the fans in Winnipeg feel that they have a good team. While there is a good team in Winnipeg, it is suffering from bouts of inconsistency. There are nights when the Winnipeg goaltending looks great and nights when the goaltending lets the team down. There are nights when Winnipeg can score and nights where the team is limited in its abilities to get the job done. If the Jets want to make the playoffs, they will need to become more consistent.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have suffered through just about every kind of adversity a team can go through. The team captain, Sidney Crosby, has been in and out of the lineup with an upper body injury. It was thought to be concussion-related, but Crosby recently announced that it is a spine issue that can be treated. Sportsbook reviews of the rest of the team’s performance shows that the Penguins have a lot of talent besides Crosby and they are using that talent to stay in the heat of the Eastern Conference playoff race. The strange part is that the Penguins are very adept at scoring goals, even though the team is missing its best goal scorer.
Winnipeg Jets
This analysis can start by pointing out that the Jets are 9-16-4 on the road. That is the third-lowest road win total in the Eastern Conference and is the main reason why the Jets are struggling to gain a playoff spot. The price per head sportsbook experts point to Winnipeg’s low goal totals as another reason why the Jets cannot seem to win. The Jets have one of the lowest goals-for totals in the league and the team’s scoring is especially shaky on the road. That is not something that Jets’ fans want to hear as the team prepares to play the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Penguins are 15-7-2 at home and are tied for third with the highest goal scoring total in the conference. Where the Penguins seem to run into issues from time to time is in goal. Marc-Andre Fleury is 4-1-0 in his last five games, but he has given up bad goals that have cost the Penguins games this season. The Penguins play a very physical style and that sometimes gets the opposition to respond in kind. When the action gets rough in front of the Pittsburgh net, Fleury will sometimes go off his game. We will see if the Jets can cause enough commotion in front of Fleury to put some pucks in the net.
The Bottom Line
In order to move up the NHL standings and get in line for a playoff spot, the Jets need to win games like this one against the Penguins. Depending on which Winnipeg team shows up, this game could be very close. But if Pittsburgh starts throwing its weight around and the Jets cannot respond, then this could be a long night for Winnipeg.
Gambling Advisor blog Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins
