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The Pittsburgh Penguins (17-17-5) takes on the Florida Panthers (23-14-2) Friday. Puck drop from Amerant Bank Arena is set for 7 p.m. ET (NHL Network). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NHL odds around the Penguins vs. Panthers odds and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
Season series: Penguins lead 1-0 with a 5-4 road win on Dec. 3
The Pens have traded wins and losses over the last 6 games. The latest was a 4-2 loss at the Detroit Red Wings on New Year’s Eve. LW Drew O’Connor had the only 2 goals, which gave him 5 on the year. C Sidney Crosby had a decent month with 16 points, but he had just 2 goals in December. The Penguins are 5-4-1 over the last 10 games.
The Panthers have lost 3 of 4 with the latest being a 3-1 defeat to the Carolina Hurricanes Thursday. C Anton Lundell put the only tally in the back of the net for his 9th of the year. LW Matthew Tkachuk is on a 4-game point drought and 6-game goal drought. The Cats are 5-5-0 in their last 10.
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Penguins at Panthers odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of NHL odds. Lines last updated at 12:35 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Penguins +175 (bet $100 to win $175) | Panthers -210 (bet $210 to win $100)
- Puck line (PL)/Against the spread (ATS): Penguins +1.5 (-150) | Panthers -1.5 (+125)
- Over/Under (O/U): 6 (O: +100 | U: -120)
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Penguins at Panthers projected goalies
Tristan Jarry (8-6-2, 3.58 GAA, .885 SV%) vs. Spencer Knight (6-5-1, 2.88 GAA, .887 SV%, 1 SO)
Jarry allowed 5 goals to the New York Islanders Saturday in a 6-3 loss. He made 29 saves, but he has routinely allowed 3+ goals. He made 9 starts in December, and he allowed 3+ in 6 of them with the other 3 being 2-goal efforts. He was between the pipes in the Dec. 3 OT winner against Florida, stopping 37 of 41.
With Sergei Bobrovsky going Thursday night, the backup Knight is slated to start. He allowed 4 goals in a 4-0 defeat to the Montreal Canadiens Saturday. In 5 December starts, he allowed 19 goals for an .846 SV%. He was between the pipes against Pittsburgh, allowing 5 goals on 16 shots Dec. 3.
Penguins at Panthers picks and predictions
Prediction
Penguins 5, Panthers 4
Moneyline
This might be against the grain here, but I’m taking the PENGUINS +175. They beat Florida already, Florida is on a back-to-back, Florida is using its backup tendy, and I expect a high-scoring affair in which anything can happen. If you take all of those into account and offer me +175, I’ll take my chances.
Puck line/Against the spread
Skip this part. I don’t see any props I particularly like, and even then, it would be an anytime goal risk. We’re taking the risk and hopefully reaping the rewards with the ML, and I’m confident in the total.
PASS.
Over/Under
The Pens are 6-4 O/U in their last 10 games, but that Over has cashed in 3 of the last 4 outings. Florida is 3-6-1 O/U with the Over only cashing once in 6 games. Now, they only scored more than 1 goal once in the last 4 games. They’ve scored 3+ in 6 straight against Pittsburgh.
This OVER 6 (+100) is cashing.
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