Edmonton Oilers vs Carolina Hurricanes Predictions, Odds, Picks

• The Edmonton Oilers are 6-4 over their last ten games.
• The  Carolina Hurricanes are on a four-game winning streak.
• The Hurricanes beat the Oilers 3-1 in their first matchup this season.

Edmonton Oilers vs Carolina Hurricanes Odds

Odds taken from DraftKings Sportsbook.

Edmonton Oilers vs Carolina Hurricanes Predictions and Picks

The Edmonton Oilers will face the Carolina Hurricanes in a cross-conference battle for the second time this season. The Hurricanes beat the Oilers 3-1 when they played in December. The Oilers are sitting in the second Wild-Card spot in the Western Conference and, the Hurricanes are the best team in the NHL and very comfortably in the first-place spot in the Eastern Conference. The Oilers are trying to cement their Playoff position and need this win more than the Hurricanes.

The Edmonton Oilers have gone under the radar this season. They were having a mediocre season up until the NHL postponement but have gone on a couple of winning streaks since the NHL returned. They have some momentum going into this game since they beat the Florida Panthers in their last game. The Oilers do not have the best goaltenders, but they have a pair of electric scorers in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. McDavid is tied for the most points in the NHL with 75; not only is he a gifted scorer, but he can pass and has 47 assists. Draisaitl has the third-most points in the NHL with 74. 36 of those 74 points have come from goals. He may be the most efficient scorer in the league, as over 20% of his shots result in a goal. McDavid and Draisaitl are truly a dominant duo and very hard to stop.

The Carolina Hurricanes could be the best regular-season team for the second year in a row. They finished the 2020-21 shortened 56-game season with 80 points and are on pace to break 80 points even sooner this year. Much of their success is due to goaltender Frederik Andersen. Andersen was named to the All-Star team this year, gives up just over two goals per game, and leads the league with 28 wins. The Hurricanes will be without defenseman Tony DeAngelo, Brendan Smith, and Jake Gardiner, so they may give up one or two more goals than usual this game. However, they are a much better team than the Oilers and playing at home, so they will squeak out the victory.

Pick:

Carolina Hurricanes beat Edmonton Oilers 4-3. Edmonton Oilers cover, Over 6.5 goals.

Why Might the Edmonton Oilers Win?

The Oilers are the underdog but are facing a Hurricanes team missing a few key defensemen. Since that is the case, the Oilers need to overwhelm the Hurricanes with shots and look for second-chance shots.

The Oilers will be able to take better shots this game since the Hurricanes are missing some defensemen. They need to take full advantage of that and let it rip. Anytime an Oiler feels like he has a good shot, he should let it go. If they shoot enough, the puck will go in the net.

The Oilers should put one or two guys by the net on offense so they can get rebounds. Often, goaltenders do not see rebounds, which gives the offense a good chance to score. This may be the only way they score, so it is imperative they attack the net.

Why Might the Carolina Hurricanes Win?

The Carolina Hurricanes are the better team, but they could still lose this game. The Hurricanes need to avoid penalties and slow down Leon Draisaitl in order to pull out a victory.

The Oilers have the second-best power-play unit in the league and convert on over 27% over their power-plays. Since the Oilers are so strong with a man advantage, the Hurricanes have to avoid giving one. If the Hurricanes play smart hockey and avoid penalties, they will make it very hard for the Oilers to score.

I have talked a lot about how talented of a scorer Leon Draisaitl is. I am not going to talk about his stats again (you can look above or below this section for his stats), but I will say this. The Hurricanes cannot let Draisaitl hold the puck or he will score. If the Hurricanes keep the puck out of his hands, they will limit the Oilers’ scoring.

Oilers Key Player: (C) Leon Draisaitl

There is not much bad to say about Leon Draisaitl. The German center has a knack for putting the puck in the net and makes the right pass when he needs to.

Draisaitl leads his team with 36 goals and is second on his team with 38 assists. He is an incredibly dangerous scorer and quite possibly the most talented scorer in the league.

Draisaitl is the Oilers key player because of his efficiency. He scores a lot, but he does not shoot an excessive amount of times. He converts 20.2% of his shots and is responsible for almost 21% of the Oilers total goals.

Hurricanes Key Player:  (RW) Andrei Svechnikov

Winger Andrei Svechnikov is quietly putting together a strong season; Svechnikov has 22 goals, 26 assists, and a +/- of 11.

Svechnikov is the Hurricanes key player because he is efficient. He is on the ice for a little over 17 minutes per game, but still manages to average one point per game.

Svechnikov has had a quiet last couple of games. He only has one point in the Hurricanes’ last three games, so he is due to have a big game against the Oilers. I would not be surprised if he puts one in the back of the net in this matchup.

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