The New York Rangers saw their hot streak come to an end in a 6-3 loss to the Dallas Stars on Monday night.
In the grand scheme of things, losing to a fellow Stanley Cup contender on the road after a 10-0-1 stretch is no big deal, and the Blueshirts will get a chance to make that performance but a footnote with a win in Pittsburgh on Wednesday night.
The Rangers are a -115 road favorite against the Pens on Thanksgiving Eve.
Rangers vs. Penguins prediction
(7 p.m. ET. MSG)
Whatever Peter Laviolette has brought to the Rangers has certainly been working.
The Blueshirts are committed in the defensive zone and are one of the best teams in the NHL in preventing shot attempts and shots on goal this season.
The side-effect of that is that the Rangers don’t generate a ton of chances going the other way at 5-on-5, but that’s not a big deal when you have a lethal power play and clinical playmakers.
The Rangers are always comfortable betting on themselves to come out ahead in games that are 50/50 at 5-on-5.
In terms of their results, the Penguins have been a roller coaster this season.
Pittsburgh got off to a 3-6-0 start, but quickly got back in the mix with a five-game winning streak before losing two of its last three to get to 9-8-0 on the campaign.
Pittsburgh’s 5-on-5 play has generally been decent and their star players (specifically Sidney Crosby) have been terrific, but there are still issues with the way this team defends.
It’s not that the Penguins have been terrible defensively — five of their nine wins are shutouts — but that they are inconsistent and do have issues defending in transition, which is not a good recipe against a team that thrives on counterattacking.
Betting on the NHL?
There are some arguments to be made that the rate and method the Rangers have been winning games isn’t sustainable over the course of an 82-game season, but their defensive structure should give them a decent platform to win this game.
Pittsburgh’s offense is its strength right now and the Blueshirts have every chance of slowing down the Penguins and then punishing them in transition enough to get out of PPG Paints Arena with two points.
The Bet: Rangers -115 ML (BetMGM Sportsbook)
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