Original-Six rivals Chicago and Detroit face off for the eighth time this season on Saturday night, in the second half of a two-game series. The Blackhawks are winning the season series 5-2 heading into the game, but the Red Wings had a convincing 4-1 win on Thursday.
- Date/Time: April 17, 7:00 p.m. ET
- Arena: Little Sportsbook Arena
- TV Coverage: FSDT
- Sportsbook Odds: Blackhawks -150 | O/U 6.5 (Line History)
- Blackhawks vs Red Wings (Matchup Report)
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The game opened with the Blackhawks favored at -150 and the line has fallen slightly into the -138 to -150 range depending on the book. The total opened at 6.5 and has fallen a full goal to 5.5 across the board with the OVER the slight favorite at most sportsbooks.
Chicago News & Notes
After a great start to the season, the Blackhawks have fallen back to the pack and find themselves outside the playoffs in the Central Division. Following a hot start from a rookie goaltender that buoyed the team into the playoff picture, it became clear that the team simply does not have the top-end talent needed to keep it truly competitive. The Hawks are essentially a two-man team as only two players have 30 or more points and only three have 20 or more points.
Patrick Kane has been in the MVP conversation for much of the season as his 54 points in 44 games put him tied for third in league scoring. Only Connor McDavid has more assists than Kane’s 40. Alex DeBrincat is the other half of the duo as his 42 points in 40 games rank him 20th in league scoring.
The Blackhawks are also dealing with a host of injuries as they are currently without forwards Andrew Shaw, Zack Smith and Alex Nylander plus defensemen Adam Boqvist and Calvin de Haan.
Detroit News & Notes
It has been a difficult season for the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings. The team sold off a few pieces at the trade deadline, further depleting an already weak roster – including trading their leading goal scorer. In maybe the biggest deal of the day, the Wings dealt Anthony Mantha to Washington for Jakub Vrana and Richard Panik.
Mantha was one of only two players on the team with more than 10 goals (he had 11) and one of only three players on the team with more than 20 points (he had 21). Dylan Larkin now leads the team with eight goals and 22 points.
On the season, only three teams have fewer even strength goals than the Red Wings and only two teams have fewer expected goals. The Wings also have the fifth-fewest high danger scoring chances in the league. It doesn’t get much better on the defensive end for the Wings as they rank in the bottom 10 in most key defensive metrics.
Betting Pick: Blackhawks -148
The Blackhawks were outplayed in Thursday’s loss as the Wings had more chances, high danger chances, shots and goals at even strength. It wasn’t a good game for Chicago. But we’re betting it doesn’t happen twice in a row against such a poor Detroit team.
- The OVER is 4-1 in Chicago's last 5 games.
- Chicago is 9-3 in its last 12 games against Detroit.
- The UNDER is 10-5 in Detroit's last 15 games.
