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Columbus Blue Jackets vs Pittsburgh Penguins: Can the Penguins keep their playoff hopes alive?
The Columbus Blue Jackets are visiting the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Thursday.
The Blue Jackets are locked to the bottom
The Columbus Blue Jackets are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 23-37-12 record. They have lost the last five games and are coming off a 6-2 loss to the Arizona Coyotes. The Blue Jackets are 25th in the league, scoring 2.85 goals per game, and are ranked second to last, allowing 3.67. Johnny Gaudreau leads the team with 54 points so far this season.
The Penguins are coming off a promising win
The Pittsburgh Penguins are 13th in the Eastern Conference with a 31-30-10 record. After losing three consecutive games, they won 4-1 against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Penguins are 15th in the league, allowing 2.99 goals per game, and are ranked 25th, scoring 2.92. Sidney Crosby is still running the show in Pittsburgh, leading the team with 76 points so far in the season.
Betting Trends
Pittsburgh has won 10 of the last 11 games against Columbus and has won the last ten home games against them. The Penguins are 4-11 SU in the last 15 games overall and 6-3 SU in the last 9 home games. The Blue Jackets are 0-5 SU in their last five games overall and 0-6 SU in the last six road games.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Penguins are in a state of emergency trying to save the season, and they absolutely have to win this game in order to stay in the playoff race. Things did not look promising at all for the Penguins after losing three straight games, but their performance and a three-goal win against the Hurricanes in the last game proved that they have not given up yet. That is not the case for Columbus, as they are already focused on rebuilding and will most likely move nowhere from the bottom of the conference. Pittsburgh will go all-in on this game, and that will make things work, so we go with the Penguins on this one.
