Washington Capitals icon Alex Ovechkin keeps making history, passing Ray Bourque for the all-time mark in shots taken, and on Friday he passed Gordie Howe for second in all-time goals in the NHL with 802, as he had a pair of goals on Friday night against the Winnipeg Jets. His 802nd goal went into an empty net with one minute left in the third period. This was Ovechkin’s 22nd of the season. The all-time goal scorer is Wayne Gretzky, who put up 894 goals in 1,487 career games. Ovechkin is one of three players to score at least 20 goals in 18 consecutive seasons. Is hockey part of your NHL betting? Then don’t miss these two primo picks.
NHL News: Top Betting Picks for the Week
→ Tuesday, December 27
Dallas Stars (-1.5) at Nashville Predators (O/U 6) (8:00 pm ET)
The Stars (20-9-6) come in on the momentum of a 4-2 win over Montreal that saw the Stars trailing, 1-0, after one period, and the Stars are now winners of four in their last six. On the season, the Stars average 3.54 goals per game, and against the Canadiens, they got two goals from Roope Hintz and a goal apiece from Joel Kiviranta and Wyatt Johnston. On defense, the Stars permit 2.77 goals per game, and one reason has been Jake Oettinger, who is 14-5-3, with a .919 save percentage and a 2.45 GAA.
The Predators (14-16-5) have won six of their last ten against Dallas and have won two of three, although they lost their last game to the Colorado Avalanche. The Preds average 2.47 goals per game, and their defense has struggled (2.88 goals permitted per game). Juuse Saros faces a lot of shots in net, but he still has a .914 save percentage to go with his 2.81 GAA. Against Colorado, he faced 46 shots, and while he stopped 43, that is still a barrage. Dallas to win and cover; take the under.
Minnesota Wild (-1.5) at Winnipeg Jets (O/U 6) (8:00 pm ET)
The Jets (21-12-1) have a two-game losing streak as they prepare to welcome the Wild. The Jets lost to Washington, 4-1, getting to watch Alex Ovechkin’s historic night. That gave them two losses in a row on the road, but at home, they have a two-game winning streak. The Jets score 3.26 goals per game, even though Kevin Stenlund was the only one to light the lamp against the Capitals. On defense, they permit 2.59 goals per game. Netminder David Rittich stopped 23 of 26 shots against Washington, which is not far from his .906 save percentage on the season. His GAA (2.61) is a bit large for the team’s liking.
The Wild (19-12-2) had a six-game winning streak come to an end, as they lost to San Jose, 5-2, in their last game. The Wild score 3.12 goals per game, but they only managed one each from Mats Zuccarello and Joe Eriksson Ek. On the season, the Wild permit 2.85 goals per game, and while Filip Gustavsson has a .916 save percentage on the season, he only had a .833 mark in the loss to the Sharks. He has a 7-5-1 record and a 2.44 GAA on the season. Jets to cover.
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