Anaheim Ducks vs. Calgary Flames NHL betting preview
Time: 10:05 PM
Venue: Scotiabank Saddledome
Sportsbook odds for fans who bet on hockey:
Ducks +1½ (-290) 5 (-115) +110
Flames -1½ (+245) 5 (-105) -130
Anaheim defeated Calgary 3-2 on Saturday to take a 2-0 lead in their Stanley Cup playoffs first round series. Ryan Getzlaf scored the game-winning goal – and his second of the series – at 15:14 of the third period. Getzlaf has 31 points (six goals and 25 assists) in the last 20 games overall. “We played good,” Ducks forward Rickard Rakell said. Actually, you played well, but let’s chalk that one up to your Swedishness. On the other hand, Flames defenseman Dougie Hamilton said that “we can’t quit. We haven’t quit all season.” Dougie, would you say you’re too legit to quit?
Anaheim
Recent form: The Ducks have won their last six straight games, dating back to the last four of the regular season. In addition to that, Anaheim has beat Calgary in the last five encounters between the two teams. The Ducks have not lost in regulation in their last 16 games since March 10th, going 11-0-3 in that period.
News: Defenseman Sami Vatanen sustained an upper-body injury in Game 1 and was scratched in Game 2 despite warming up. Korbinian Holzer made his postseason debut in Vatanen’s stead. Head coach Randy Carlyle said Vatanen will be reassessed during today’s morning skate and pregame warm-up. The Ducks had already lost Cam Fowler to a lower-body injury, so that still-wet-behind-the-ear defensemen such as Brandon Montour, Shea Theodore, and Josh Manson have been thrust into the spotlight.
Trends for fans who bet on hockey: Anaheim has covered the spread in six of their last seven road games and nine of their last 12 against Calgary. The NHL betting total has gone over in eight of the Ducks’ last 10 games on the road against the Flames.
Calgary
Recent form: The bad news is that the Flames have lost 29 consecutive home games to the Ducks – 22 regular season and seven playoffs games. The good news is that series switches from the Honda Center to the Scotiabank Saddledome tonight. Calgary has won 10 of the last 13 home games but only one of the last six when hosting Anaheim. So maybe the news is not that good after all.
News: According to head coach Glen Gulutzan, the sky is not falling around the Flames. Which means that, contrary to what you may hear from Kiss, Heaven is in fact not on fire. “We went into Anaheim trying to plant a seed that we can win and can win this series. We haven’t got the result, but what we’ve done is we’ve planted the seed that these games are going to be close and contested and tough,” Gulutzan said.
Trends for fans who bet on hockey: The Flames have covered in four of their last six home games, but only in three of the last 12 overall against the Ducks and one of the last five when hosting Anaheim. The NHL betting total has gone over in four of Calgary’s last five home games.