Hockey betting doesn’t get much better than on Saturday as the San Jose Sharks host the defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins. These are two of the top teams in the league this season and two teams that are very popular with those that bet on hockey.
Hockey has this game as the third of a four-game road trip for the Pittsburgh Penguins while it is the first of a three-game homestand for San Jose. The Penguins have had almost no success recently against the Sharks in hockey betting. They have lost 8 of the last 10 in hockey against San Jose. Since 2000, the Sharks have won all six home games in hockey betting against the Penguins. With these two offenses you would think there would be a lot of goals scored. That has not been the case though as the last five meetings going back to 2006 have gone under the hockey betting total.
Pittsburgh has played very well this hockey betting season, especially on the road. They have been without Evgeni Malkin who was leading the league in scoring so that is something to remember as you bet on hockey. Sidney Crosby has picked up the points lead for the Penguins since Malkin is out. The goaltending has been solid for Pittsburgh with Marc-Andre Fleury leading the way. The Penguins have been in the Top 5 in the league as hockey statistics indicate.
San Jose is also off to a strong start in hockey betting. They have been very good at home in hockey betting and decent on the road. The Sharks are almost always favored and that is the case in this hockey betting matchup as well. Patrick Marleau has been leading the team in scoring while Joe Thornton has been the playmaker as usual. San Jose has been in the Top 10 on offense this season as bet on hockey stats indicate. The Sharks have also been very good on defense led by goaltender Evgeni Nabokov. San Jose ranks in the Top 10 in goals scored and in fewest goals allowed and that is a recipe for success in bet on hockey action.
This is really a great early season matchup between two of the best teams in the league. San Jose is at home and that could be the edge between two evenly matched teams.