by Chuck Sommers
Monday, Feb 27, 2023
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Rogers Place, Edmonton, AB
Where to watch: TVAS, SNE, SNO, SNW, NESN, NHLN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Bruins -140, Oilers +120
FanDuel: Bruins -146, Oilers +122
BetMGM: Bruins -135, Oilers +115
Caesars: Bruins -141, Oilers +118
Season record
Bruins: 45-8-5
Oilers: 32-20-8
The All-Star break is over, the second half of the NHL season can officially begin, and we're bound for what should be a very exciting second half of the hockey season. Basketball and hockey are about to rule the roost in the sports betting world once the Super Bowl is done with, and we should all be very excited for what's to come. When the trade deadline hits and players switch teams, you know things are about to get hectic over these final 30 games or so. One way you can stay tuned with the action is following what our champion handicappers are doing in the world of the NHL. Look at ASA, Inc., reeling in a $6,750 profit off a 17-9-0 run. Al McMordie is also doing well on the ice with a 13-5-0 run and a net profit of $6,050. Scott Rickenbach has also been hanging strong with a lot of betting action, in what's been an unusual year, with a 24-18-0 run and reeling in $5,950. You know this action is going to be great now that games are back and a busy second half if on the horizon. All you need to do is head to our BEST BETS page at bigal.com to find out all of what we're trying to tell you. Make sure you're locked in at bigal.com and go to our Best Bets page to find out what our champion handicappers have to say in the world of the NHL!
Bruins - Oilers preview, prediction and analysis
The Boston Bruins will be playing the Edmonton Oilers on Monday, February 27 in Edmonton.
The Boston Bruins won against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, February 25 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver with a score of 3-1. The Boston Bruins currently rank 1st in the Atlantic Division.
Linus Ullmark also made 26 saves to reach 30 wins (30-4-1) for the first time in his eight NHL seasons.
"He's just doing it all this year," forward Brad Marchand said of Ullmark. "It doesn't happen often and just tops off an incredible season for him."
Marchand and Hampus Lindholm also scored for the Bruins (45-8-5), who have won at least six consecutive games four different times this season.
Lindholm put Boston ahead 1-0 at 17:08 of the first period with a one-timer from the point through traffic on a power play.
Marchand made it 2-0 with 25 seconds left in the period. He cut to the middle around defenseman Kyle Burroughs before shooting back across the grain past Silov's glove as the goalie moved right.
"I just got a little bit of open ice and it looked like there was a little bit of room in the middle," Marchand said. "When I cut, he kind of lost speed and just tried to get a shot on net, tried to get it under the defenseman's stick because he kind of reached, and in that situation, it always has an opportunity to go in."
Brock Boeser cut it to 2-1 at 7:24 of the third period, 10 seconds after Marchand hit the post at the other end. He shoveled a backhand past Ullmark from just above the crease after Conor Garland passed it out from below the goal line.
"Vancouver played well and they caused us some problems," Boston coach Jim Montgomery said. "We usually protect the front of our net really well. We didn't do that in the second and third. Linus had to be good."
Defenseman Dmitri Orlov and forward Garnet Hathaway made their Bruins debuts after joining the team in Vancouver late on Friday following a trade from the Washington Capitals on Thursday.
Orlov was minus-1 in 20:04 of ice time playing on his off side on the third defense pair with Derek Forbort, and Hathaway had two hits in 11:40 of ice time on the fourth line.
"Really good," Montgomery said. "Really impressed with Hathaway's details and penalty killing and seems like he understands our D-zone coverage already, and Orlov made some special plays, special passes on breakouts, in neutral zone and in the offensive zone."
Goalie Linus Ullmark scored into an empty net with 48 seconds left, and the Boston Bruins won their sixth straight game.
Ullmark knocked down a dump-in near the left post, squared up and launched the puck up and over everyone, having it land flat just above the hash marks before sliding into the center of the net.
"As soon as I shot I see three guys jumping towards me, and I had no idea where it was," Ullmark said. "I didn't hear anything. I didn't see anything, and then you become a little bit more aware of what's happening, that the guys are starting to look up ice and then I see it going towards the net, and the rest is history."
Ullmark is the 13th goalie to score a goal in the NHL in the regular season, and the eighth to do so by shooting the puck into the net. He is the first since Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators did it on Jan. 9, 2020, at the Chicago Blackhawks.
"That's pretty cool. The guys that have scored a goal in this League are terrific goaltenders," Ullmark said. "It's hard to describe what I'm feeling right now. I have to kind of digest it all. I'm just so bloody happy."
The Boston Bruins have won seven of their last 10 games.
The Edmonton Oilers lost against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, February 25 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio with a score of 6-5. The Edmonton Oilers currently rank 3rd in the Pacific Division.
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who had two goals and two assists, leads the NHL in goals (48), assists (65) and points (113).
Edmonton fell behind 4-0 before scoring four goals in an 8:02 span in the second period to tie it. Columbus then scored twice in the third peirod to retake the lead before holding on for the win.
"It was an embarrassing start and then it's an embarrassing finish. Not quite good enough," McDavid said. "They skated well. They are a fast team. They work hard and did a lot of good things early on. We did a good job taking over the game the last 30 minutes. We came up short."
Leon Draisaitl extended his goal streak to seven games for the Oilers (32-20-8), who had a five-game point streak end (2-0-3). Jack Campbell allowed four goals on 14 shots before being replaced by Stuart Skinner, who made 10 saves.
"I know we mounted a comeback and we had some people that had some good efforts, but not enough. Too many passengers today for us," Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said. "And in the end, not detailed enough, and we were made to pay. We beat ourselves today in a lot of ways. … All credit to Columbus for playing hard. Certainly, we're respectful of that, but I believe we beat ourselves today."
Columbus scored four goals before Warren Foegele cut it to 4-1 at 6:40.
"We've got to show up on time," Foegele said. "I didn't think enough of us did that. As a group, we just got to we've got to show up for a full 60. We kind of left [Campbell] out to dry there."
Draisaitl scored during a 5-on-3 power play to make it 4-2 at 9:42. He has seven goals during his streak.
McDavid scored short-handed to pull the Oilers to within 4-3 at 12:51 before tying it 4-4 at 14:42 with a slap shot from the top of the right circle.
"Connor played very hard and tried to do things to spur the team on, but again, it's the National Hockey League, you need all 20 people in the lineup to find ways to contribute to the win," Woodcroft said.
Jack Roslovic put Columbus back in front 5-4 at 9:01 of the third period, scoring on a long rebound for his first goal in 14 games. He then made it 6-4 at 14:56. Zach Hyman got the Oilers within 6-5 at 17:04.
Korpisalo finished with 22 saves in the third period.
The Edmonton Oilers have won four of their last 10 games.
Prediction
What the Oilers did in Columbus was a damn-near-fireable offense. Now you have to ask the Bruins to take it easy on you in your barn? No thanks. Bruins 5, Oilers 3
The Boston Bruins won against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, February 25 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver with a score of 3-1. The Boston Bruins currently rank 1st in the Atlantic Division.
Linus Ullmark also made 26 saves to reach 30 wins (30-4-1) for the first time in his eight NHL seasons.
"He's just doing it all this year," forward Brad Marchand said of Ullmark. "It doesn't happen often and just tops off an incredible season for him."
Marchand and Hampus Lindholm also scored for the Bruins (45-8-5), who have won at least six consecutive games four different times this season.
Lindholm put Boston ahead 1-0 at 17:08 of the first period with a one-timer from the point through traffic on a power play.
Marchand made it 2-0 with 25 seconds left in the period. He cut to the middle around defenseman Kyle Burroughs before shooting back across the grain past Silov's glove as the goalie moved right.
"I just got a little bit of open ice and it looked like there was a little bit of room in the middle," Marchand said. "When I cut, he kind of lost speed and just tried to get a shot on net, tried to get it under the defenseman's stick because he kind of reached, and in that situation, it always has an opportunity to go in."
Brock Boeser cut it to 2-1 at 7:24 of the third period, 10 seconds after Marchand hit the post at the other end. He shoveled a backhand past Ullmark from just above the crease after Conor Garland passed it out from below the goal line.
"Vancouver played well and they caused us some problems," Boston coach Jim Montgomery said. "We usually protect the front of our net really well. We didn't do that in the second and third. Linus had to be good."
Defenseman Dmitri Orlov and forward Garnet Hathaway made their Bruins debuts after joining the team in Vancouver late on Friday following a trade from the Washington Capitals on Thursday.
Orlov was minus-1 in 20:04 of ice time playing on his off side on the third defense pair with Derek Forbort, and Hathaway had two hits in 11:40 of ice time on the fourth line.
"Really good," Montgomery said. "Really impressed with Hathaway's details and penalty killing and seems like he understands our D-zone coverage already, and Orlov made some special plays, special passes on breakouts, in neutral zone and in the offensive zone."
Goalie Linus Ullmark scored into an empty net with 48 seconds left, and the Boston Bruins won their sixth straight game.
Ullmark knocked down a dump-in near the left post, squared up and launched the puck up and over everyone, having it land flat just above the hash marks before sliding into the center of the net.
"As soon as I shot I see three guys jumping towards me, and I had no idea where it was," Ullmark said. "I didn't hear anything. I didn't see anything, and then you become a little bit more aware of what's happening, that the guys are starting to look up ice and then I see it going towards the net, and the rest is history."
Ullmark is the 13th goalie to score a goal in the NHL in the regular season, and the eighth to do so by shooting the puck into the net. He is the first since Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators did it on Jan. 9, 2020, at the Chicago Blackhawks.
"That's pretty cool. The guys that have scored a goal in this League are terrific goaltenders," Ullmark said. "It's hard to describe what I'm feeling right now. I have to kind of digest it all. I'm just so bloody happy."
The Boston Bruins have won seven of their last 10 games.
The Edmonton Oilers lost against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, February 25 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio with a score of 6-5. The Edmonton Oilers currently rank 3rd in the Pacific Division.
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who had two goals and two assists, leads the NHL in goals (48), assists (65) and points (113).
Edmonton fell behind 4-0 before scoring four goals in an 8:02 span in the second period to tie it. Columbus then scored twice in the third peirod to retake the lead before holding on for the win.
"It was an embarrassing start and then it's an embarrassing finish. Not quite good enough," McDavid said. "They skated well. They are a fast team. They work hard and did a lot of good things early on. We did a good job taking over the game the last 30 minutes. We came up short."
Leon Draisaitl extended his goal streak to seven games for the Oilers (32-20-8), who had a five-game point streak end (2-0-3). Jack Campbell allowed four goals on 14 shots before being replaced by Stuart Skinner, who made 10 saves.
"I know we mounted a comeback and we had some people that had some good efforts, but not enough. Too many passengers today for us," Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said. "And in the end, not detailed enough, and we were made to pay. We beat ourselves today in a lot of ways. … All credit to Columbus for playing hard. Certainly, we're respectful of that, but I believe we beat ourselves today."
Columbus scored four goals before Warren Foegele cut it to 4-1 at 6:40.
"We've got to show up on time," Foegele said. "I didn't think enough of us did that. As a group, we just got to we've got to show up for a full 60. We kind of left [Campbell] out to dry there."
Draisaitl scored during a 5-on-3 power play to make it 4-2 at 9:42. He has seven goals during his streak.
McDavid scored short-handed to pull the Oilers to within 4-3 at 12:51 before tying it 4-4 at 14:42 with a slap shot from the top of the right circle.
"Connor played very hard and tried to do things to spur the team on, but again, it's the National Hockey League, you need all 20 people in the lineup to find ways to contribute to the win," Woodcroft said.
Jack Roslovic put Columbus back in front 5-4 at 9:01 of the third period, scoring on a long rebound for his first goal in 14 games. He then made it 6-4 at 14:56. Zach Hyman got the Oilers within 6-5 at 17:04.
Korpisalo finished with 22 saves in the third period.
The Edmonton Oilers have won four of their last 10 games.
Prediction
What the Oilers did in Columbus was a damn-near-fireable offense. Now you have to ask the Bruins to take it easy on you in your barn? No thanks. Bruins 5, Oilers 3
Betting trends
Bruins are 27-5 after a win this season.
Bruins are 34-27 off a road win the last 3 seasons.
Bruins are 24-9 after a win by 2 goals or more this season.
Oilers are 19-23 after an over this season.
Oilers are 12-13 after a non-conference game this season.
Projected lines
Bruins:
Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- Jake DeBrusk
Pavel Zacha - David Krejci -- David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall -- Charlie Coyle -- Nick Foligno
A.J. Greer -- Trent Frederic - Garnet Hathaway
Dmitry Orlov -- Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Linus Ullmark
Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- Jake DeBrusk
Pavel Zacha - David Krejci -- David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall -- Charlie Coyle -- Nick Foligno
A.J. Greer -- Trent Frederic - Garnet Hathaway
Dmitry Orlov -- Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Linus Ullmark
Oilers:
Leon Draisaitl -- Connor McDavid -- Derek Ryan
Zach Hyman -- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Kailer Yamamoto
Warren Foegele -- Ryan McLeod -- Jesse Puljujarvi
Klim Kostin -- Devin Shore -- Mattias Janmark
Darnell Nurse -- Cody Ceci
Brett Kulak -- Tyson Barrie
Philip Broberg -- Evan Bouchard
Stuart Skinner
Leon Draisaitl -- Connor McDavid -- Derek Ryan
Zach Hyman -- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Kailer Yamamoto
Warren Foegele -- Ryan McLeod -- Jesse Puljujarvi
Klim Kostin -- Devin Shore -- Mattias Janmark
Darnell Nurse -- Cody Ceci
Brett Kulak -- Tyson Barrie
Philip Broberg -- Evan Bouchard
Stuart Skinner
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
