Penguins Host Ducks
Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have been short on goals of late.
The Pittsburgh Penguins host the Anaheim Ducks Monday night with both teams looking to shrug off a recent spell of poor form.
The puck is scheduled to drop at 7:30 p.m. ET in this interconference battle at Consol Energy Center in uptown Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh (12-8-0, 24pts) fell 4-1 to the New Jersey Devils Saturday, conceding two goals to JaromÃr Jágr, who won a pair of Stanley Cups with the team in the early 90s. The defeat marked the fourth loss in five games for the Penguins.
All four of those losses have seen the team score one solitary goal, evidence of an offensive problem that few would associate with the Penguins, a team known for its offense. Part of that problem lies with Evgeni Malkin, whose last goal came on October 17. The 2012 Hart Memorial Trophy winner has registered 15 assists to rank in the league’s top 10.
Malkin’s running buddy Sidney Crosby has scored just once in his last 11 games, although his 25 points on the season ranks him second behind only Alexander Steen of the St. Louis Blues. The Penguins will need both Malkin and Crosby to return to form if the Penguins are to push ahead of a tight pack at the top of the Eastern Conference standings.
Like Pittsburgh, Anaheim (15-5-2, 32pts) has found the going a little rougher of late. Monday night’s game will be the final game in a four-game East Coast swing, a jaunt that has seen the team go without a win.
After losses to the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning earlier in the week, the Ducks lost a Friday night shootout to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. Goalie Viktor Fasth was recalled before the game, with Frederick Anderson being sent down to AHL Norfolk. Fasth allowed two goals on 23 shots in his first start since October 16.
Three of Anaheim’s last four losses have come by a solitary goal. Despite these recent losses, the team still sits tied with the Chicago Blackhawks at the top of the Western Conference on 32 points, something else the team can use as motivation. A win or overtime/shootout loss will return the Ducks to the top of the standings.
Monday’s showdown will be intriguing for all manner of reasons, not least because it could be a potential Stanley Cup preview. Pittsburgh is currently the bookies’ favorite to lift Lord Stanley’s Cup, with odds of 13/2. Anaheim currently sits in sixth place with odds of 14/1 to win it all. The Ducks have already surprised many, having opened the season ranked 15th out of 30 teams.
Anaheim Ducks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins odds for 11/18/2013
With both teams struggling in recent games, bookmakers have selected Pittsburgh (-163) as the moneyline favorite over Anaheim (+148).
The Penguins have not beaten the Ducks since the 2009-10 campaign, although that statistic is somewhat misleading. The two sides did not meet in last year’s lockout-shortened season and in the two seasons prior to that, the sides met just once a year. All of that equates to two straight wins for the Ducks. Prior to that, the Penguins had won four straight against the Ducks. The all-time head-to-head series currently stands at 12-10-2-0 in favor of Pittsburgh.
Anaheim (-225) is favored to cover the point spread (+1.5) while Pittsburgh (+195) is expected to win by one-goal.
The over/under opened at 5 but has been bumped up to 5.5 with most sportsbooks. Both Anaheim (10-11-1) and Pittsburgh (7-11-2) have favored the under this season.
All odds supplied by Bovada.
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