New York Islanders at Calgary Flames Betting Preview/Prop Pick

The Super Bowl is the biggest betting focus this weekend, but there are some NHL games on Saturday night before the big game kicks off. The Calgary Flames host the New York Islanders in one of the games on Saturday, and this should be an interesting matchup.

New York comes into this game with 40 points on the year, and that has them in sixth place in the Metropolitan Division. The Islanders have gone just 2-3 in the last five games, and they continue to struggle with consistency. 

Calgary has been a big surprise this season as they come into Saturday night with 56 points on the year. The Flames are in second place in the Pacific Division and look like a threat to go deep in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

The Calgary Flames are the moneyline betting favorites at -170.

Islanders Love to Play Slow

Most teams in the NHL are now focused on offense and scoring goals, but that isn’t the case with the Islanders. New York is holding opponents to just 2.63 goals per game, but they are also scoring 2.4 goals themselves. 

Goaltender Ilya Sorokin has been solid all year for the Islanders as he has gone 14-9-5 on the year. New York has done a great job on the penalty kill all season long, and they will have to slow down a good offense in this one.

Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson have done a majority of the scoring for the Islanders, but they need some help. Barzal has a team-high 18 assists on the year, and Nelson has scored 15 total goals to lead the way. 

Calgary Can Really Score

The Flames have not had any trouble scoring goals this season as they are averaging 3.3 goals per game. Calgary has also been a solid defensive team as they are holding opponents to just 2.4 goals against on average.

Johnny Gaudreau leads the way for the Flames with 37 assists and 56 total points on the year. The Flames have a number of players that have emerged as real scoring threats, and that will be a huge part of this matchup.

Goaltender Jacob Markstrom has set the tone for Calgary on the defensive end of the ice as he is giving up just 2.13 goals per game. The Flames can win this game without scoring, but they have a huge advantage on the offensive end of the ice. 

Flames Take Care of Business

The Flames come into this game having won five straight, and they are playing their best hockey of the season. New York has been up and down all season long, and that could spell some trouble in this game. 

Calgary wants to speed up the tempo on Saturday night, and that is exactly what happens. The Islanders are a worthy opponent, but they just don’t have enough offense to really be a threat.

Take the Calgary Flames -170 and the UNDER versus the New York Islanders in this NHL matchup on Saturday night.

Prop Pick

NY Islanders (+165) UNDER 1.5 Goals

The Islanders are averaging 2.4 goals per game on offense, which ranks No. 29 in the league. The Flames are allowing 2.4 goals per game on defense, which ranks No. 2.  Scores have gone UNDER in 11 of New York’s last 15 games overall.

With Dunkel predicting a Calgary win by the score of 4-0, take the Islanders (+165) to finish UNDER their Vegas team total of 1.5 goals against the Flames.

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