Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA

Philadelphia Flyers vs Boston Bruins: An Eastern Conference classic

The Boston Bruins are hosting the Philadelphia Flyers today at TD Garden.

The Flyers are off to a terrible start

The Philadelphia Flyers are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 2-6-1 record, including 1-3-1 on the road. They ended a six-game losing streak with a 7-5 win over the Minnesota Wild but then lost 4-3 to the Montreal Candiens in the last one. The Flyers are 24th in the league scoring 2.89 goals per game and are at the bottom allowing 4.44 goals per game. Travis Konecny leads the team with 10 points so far in the season.

How good are the Bruins this year?

The Boston Bruins are 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 4-4-1 record, including 3-2-0 at home. They are coming off a 4-3 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs that ended their three-game losing streak. The Bruins are 19th in the league averaging 3 goals per game and are ranked 24th allowing 3.56. David Pastrnak leads the team with 8 points so far in the season.

Betting Trends

The Bruins are 2-4 SU in their last 6 games overall, 7-1 SU in their last 8 home games against the Flyers and 14-6 SU in their last 20 games played in October. Boston has played over the total goal line in 6 of their last 9 games overall, 4 of their last 5 home games and 4 of their last 5 games against teams from the Eastern Conference. The Flyers are 1-7 SU in their last 8 games overall, 1-7 SU in their last 8 games against the Bruins, 2-12 SU in their last 14 games on the road and 1-4 SU in their last 5 visits to Boston. Philadelphia has played over the total goal line in 6 of their last 8 games overall and 8 of their last 12 games played in October.

Prediction and Conclusion

The Boston Bruins have a difficult start to the season, and their recognizably strong defense is not even close to the level we used to see in recent years. Still, the most disappointing team in the East is Philadelphia, who has been at rock bottom since the start of the season. The Bruins were on a seven-game winning streak in the head-to-head matchups before the Flyers won the last meeting. Both teams need to step up and regain their confidence, but the Bruins are the ones actually capable of doing that. This will be an easy game for the Bruins, and we go with them to cover the -1.5-goal spread.