Free NHL Picks for Tuesday: Chicago vs. San Jose
Added on Dec 22, 2009 by Jack Thurman in
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Last year, the Chicago Blackhawks were known as a swift skating, slick playmaking team but this season they’ve become a tenacious defensive team. The boast the best scoring defense in the NHL (2.00 goals against per game) and give up the fewest shots on goal per game (24.4). Tonight they’ll take on a San Jose team that is also solid defensively with the 7th best scoring defense in the NHL.
San Jose Sharks at Chicago Blackhawks
December 22nd 5:05 PM Pacific
Not surprisingly, both teams have played a lot of games ‘under’ the total. Chicago has gone ‘under’ in 22 of 34 games this season, while San Jose has played beneath the total in 18 of their 35 games. On the road, San Jose has gone ‘over’ in 10 of their 19 games, while the Blackhawks are ‘under’ in 12 of 19 at home. Chicago has gone ‘under’ the total in five of their last seven games, while Chicago has gone ‘under’ in 7 of 8. The Sharks played at Dallas last night, winning 4-2.
Lost amid both teams’ defensive prowess is the fact that they’re good on the offensive end as well. The Sharks are ranked #3 in the NHL in scoring offense with 3.20 goals per game, while the Hawks are 7th at just under 3 goals per game (2.91). Both teams can play a close checking defensive game, as well as a wide open shootout. So which style will manifest itself here?
Many inexperienced handicappers get caught up in O/U records and streaks and forget the importance of team vs. team matchups. In this series, the Hawks and Sharks have more often than not played high scoring games. 5 of the last 7 meetings including 3 of the last 4 at Chicago have gone ‘over’ the total. San Jose and Chicago have already played twice this season, with the two games producing totals of 7 and 9 goals. We look for more of the same here and will play the ‘over’ at a good value price.
Sports Betting Pick for this game: Chicago/San Jose Over 5′ +110
