The second half of the NHL season is now underway, and the playoff races have really started to heat up in both conferences. On Friday night, the Carolina Hurricanes are set to visit the Arizona Coyotes in what should be an interesting battle.
Carolina is coming into this game with 65 points on the year, and that has allowed them to move up to second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Hurricanes have gone just 2-2 since the All Star Break, but they are looking to get back on track.
Arizona got off to a decent start to the season, but they are coming into this game on a long losing streak. The Coyotes are now sitting in seventh place in the Central Division, and they should look towards regrouping and rebuilding for the future.
The Carolina Hurricanes are coming into this game as the moneyline betting favorites at -180 over the Arizona Coyotes.
Hurricanes Rolling on Offense
The Carolina Hurricanes are coming into this game scoring 3.31 goals per game, and they can put pucks in the back of the net in a hurry. Carolina has also scored on the power play 27.5 percent of the time, and they are great with the man advantage.
Sebastian Aho is leading the team with 19 goals and 38 assists this season, and he is going to be a major factor in this game. While Carolina wants to win games on offense, they are also allowing just 2.9 goals per game.
The Hurricanes have killed off 84 percent of their own penalties this season, and that has allowed them to slow down some of their opponents.
Coyotes Can’t Get Stops
The Arizona Coyotes are allowing over 3.1 goals per game this season, and that’s something that will have to be corrected. Arizona has killed off 80 percent of their penalties, but they have struggled at even strength this season.
Clayton Keller is having a big season for the Coyotes, as he leads the team with 21 goals and 28 assists. Arizona has shown that they can score goals at times, but they just can’t win games because they allow too many goals.
Hurricanes Blow Past the Coyotes
This is an interesting matchup as the only NHL game on the schedule, but it’s also one that likely won’t be very close in the final score. Arizona just hasn’t been able to get back on track after the All Star Break, and they have some serious flaws ahead of this matchup.
Carolina is one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference yet again, and this is simply a game that they are going to have to win. The Hurricanes should be able to score enough goals to set the tone in this game, and they will also slow down Arizona.
Bet the Carolina Hurricanes at -180 on the moneyline in this game, but don’t be surprised if the final score shows a deficit of at least two goals.
