by Chuck Sommers
Monday, Feb 27, 2023
Time: 10 p.m. ET
Venue: Honda Center, Anaheim, CA
Where to watch: BSSC, NBCSCH
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Ducks -140, Blackhawks +120
FanDuel: Ducks -134, Blackhawks +112
BetMGM: Ducks -140, Blackhawks +115
Caesars: Ducks -135, Blackhawks +115
Season record
Blackhawks: 21-32-5
Ducks: 19-34-7
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!
Blackhawks - Ducks preview, prediction and analysis
The Chicago Blackhawks will be playing the Anaheim Ducks on Monday, February 27 in Anaheim, California.
The Chicago Blackhawks won against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday, February 25 at SAP Center in San Jose, California with a score of 4-3 resulting from a shootout. The Chicago Blackhawks currently rank 8th in the Central Division.
Petr Mrazek made 45 saves for the Chicago Blackhawks.
"It was a good team effort to win, especially on the road," Mrazek said. "There have been a lot of good players, good leadership in the locker room all year long. So, we're going to keep doing that."
David Gust scored in his NHL debut for the Blackhawks (21-32-5), who healthy scratched forwards Patrick Kane and Sam Lafferty due to roster management. Chicago played with 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
"We got it done somehow," Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. "Sometimes it's just not conventional, not necessarily ugly, but it was a little bit sloppy at some times. But it's a road game. Guys scraped it out. Guys were banged up and we got the win."
Gust gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead at 2:14 of the first period, tapping in a centering pass from Colin Blackwell from behind the net. The forward, who turned 29 on Tuesday, agreed to a two-year contract and was called up from Rockford of the American Hockey League on Thursday.
"Can't write it up any better," said Gust, who is from Orland Park, Illinois. "Good first game. It's good to get that out of the way."
Nick Bonino tied it 1-1 at 4:17, scoring on the rebound of a shot by Jacob MacDonald.
Brett Seney responded for the Blackhawks to make it 2-1 at 5:12. He scored glove side from the left face-off circle for his first goal since Feb. 9. 2019, when he played for the New Jersey Devils.
Evgeny Svechnikov tied it 2-2 at 10:52 after receiving a centering pass from Sturm from behind the net.
Max Domi gave the Blackhawks a 3-2 lead 16 seconds into the third period when he skated down the left wing and scored from the face-off circle on a partial breakaway. However, Karlsson did tie it 3-3 at 17:49 with a slap shot through traffic from the left point during a 6-on-5. He ranks first among NHL defensemen with 19 goals this season.
Chicago won their fifth straight game in a shootout.
The Chicago Blackhawks have won six of their last 10 games.
The Anaheim Ducks won against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday, February 25 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina with a score of 3-2. The Anaheim Ducks currently rank 8th in the Pacific Division.
John Gibson made 51 saves for the Anaheim Ducks. It is the third time in his past six games that Gibson has made at least 50 saves.
"Hard-fought game. I'm pretty tired," Gibson said. "Pretty good trip overall with five points (2-1-1), but we just have to keep going. Overall, nice to get the win."
John Klingberg, Jakob Silfverberg and Troy Terry scored for the Ducks (19-34-7), who have won two in a row. Trevor Zegras and Ryan Strome each had two assists.
"John gives us everything he has each and every night. (He's a) highly competitive kid," Anaheim coach Dallas Eakins said. "I think he showed tonight what kind of impact he can have on a game. That's a top-three team in the League, if not the top team in the League. We were able to hang in there by a thread.
"You know what you're coming into (against Carolina) as a team. We're at the other end of the spectrum, trying to build something similar years from now. We knew, and John knew himself, that he was going to be tested."
Klingberg gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead at 16:18 of the second period with a one-timer from the right face-off circle blocker side on Andersen.
Silfverberg made it 2-0 at 4:06 of the third period when he was left all alone in the low slot and finished a pass from Strome from behind the net. Jesperi Kotkaniemi answered 13 seconds later to cut the lead to 2-1, chasing down a lofted pass from Jaccob Slavin and snapping a shot blocker side on Gibson on a breakaway.
Terry responded for Anaheim to push it to 3-1 at 12:01. He warded off Brett Pesce as he cut across the slot, turned in the left circle and scored short side on Andersen. Terry has scored in consecutive games since returning from an upper-body injury that caused him to miss seven games.
"I'm just trying to judge myself on if I'm an impact player or not, and I felt like tonight I was," Terry said. "I cut into the middle, I was on the backhand, so I tried to get some separation and spin around and shoot it. Even after I spun, I had an idea where the net was, and I was just trying to put it in the upper part."
Jesper Fast cut it to 3-2 at 13:35 when he redirected Pesce's one-timer from the right point.
Some of Gibson's best saves came in the third period, when Carolina outshot Anaheim 18-3. Andrei Svechnikov had a clean look from just below the left face-off circle with 1:44 remaining, but Gibson got across the crease to make a right-pad save at the left post.
"It's hard not to talk about our goalie, first and foremost. He's one of, if not the best, goalie in the world. You saw that tonight," Terry said. "It's natural they're going to outshoot you. We tried our best to limit in-the-slot shots. It was a game that we had to dig in, even when the shot board said otherwise."
The Anaheim Ducks have won three of their last 10 games.
Prediction
Something I didn't think I'd say at some point this season: The Blackhawks will win their sixth in a row. What a time. Blackhawks 4, Ducks 3
The Chicago Blackhawks won against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday, February 25 at SAP Center in San Jose, California with a score of 4-3 resulting from a shootout. The Chicago Blackhawks currently rank 8th in the Central Division.
Petr Mrazek made 45 saves for the Chicago Blackhawks.
"It was a good team effort to win, especially on the road," Mrazek said. "There have been a lot of good players, good leadership in the locker room all year long. So, we're going to keep doing that."
David Gust scored in his NHL debut for the Blackhawks (21-32-5), who healthy scratched forwards Patrick Kane and Sam Lafferty due to roster management. Chicago played with 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
"We got it done somehow," Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. "Sometimes it's just not conventional, not necessarily ugly, but it was a little bit sloppy at some times. But it's a road game. Guys scraped it out. Guys were banged up and we got the win."
Gust gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead at 2:14 of the first period, tapping in a centering pass from Colin Blackwell from behind the net. The forward, who turned 29 on Tuesday, agreed to a two-year contract and was called up from Rockford of the American Hockey League on Thursday.
"Can't write it up any better," said Gust, who is from Orland Park, Illinois. "Good first game. It's good to get that out of the way."
Nick Bonino tied it 1-1 at 4:17, scoring on the rebound of a shot by Jacob MacDonald.
Brett Seney responded for the Blackhawks to make it 2-1 at 5:12. He scored glove side from the left face-off circle for his first goal since Feb. 9. 2019, when he played for the New Jersey Devils.
Evgeny Svechnikov tied it 2-2 at 10:52 after receiving a centering pass from Sturm from behind the net.
Max Domi gave the Blackhawks a 3-2 lead 16 seconds into the third period when he skated down the left wing and scored from the face-off circle on a partial breakaway. However, Karlsson did tie it 3-3 at 17:49 with a slap shot through traffic from the left point during a 6-on-5. He ranks first among NHL defensemen with 19 goals this season.
Chicago won their fifth straight game in a shootout.
The Chicago Blackhawks have won six of their last 10 games.
The Anaheim Ducks won against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday, February 25 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina with a score of 3-2. The Anaheim Ducks currently rank 8th in the Pacific Division.
John Gibson made 51 saves for the Anaheim Ducks. It is the third time in his past six games that Gibson has made at least 50 saves.
"Hard-fought game. I'm pretty tired," Gibson said. "Pretty good trip overall with five points (2-1-1), but we just have to keep going. Overall, nice to get the win."
John Klingberg, Jakob Silfverberg and Troy Terry scored for the Ducks (19-34-7), who have won two in a row. Trevor Zegras and Ryan Strome each had two assists.
"John gives us everything he has each and every night. (He's a) highly competitive kid," Anaheim coach Dallas Eakins said. "I think he showed tonight what kind of impact he can have on a game. That's a top-three team in the League, if not the top team in the League. We were able to hang in there by a thread.
"You know what you're coming into (against Carolina) as a team. We're at the other end of the spectrum, trying to build something similar years from now. We knew, and John knew himself, that he was going to be tested."
Klingberg gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead at 16:18 of the second period with a one-timer from the right face-off circle blocker side on Andersen.
Silfverberg made it 2-0 at 4:06 of the third period when he was left all alone in the low slot and finished a pass from Strome from behind the net. Jesperi Kotkaniemi answered 13 seconds later to cut the lead to 2-1, chasing down a lofted pass from Jaccob Slavin and snapping a shot blocker side on Gibson on a breakaway.
Terry responded for Anaheim to push it to 3-1 at 12:01. He warded off Brett Pesce as he cut across the slot, turned in the left circle and scored short side on Andersen. Terry has scored in consecutive games since returning from an upper-body injury that caused him to miss seven games.
"I'm just trying to judge myself on if I'm an impact player or not, and I felt like tonight I was," Terry said. "I cut into the middle, I was on the backhand, so I tried to get some separation and spin around and shoot it. Even after I spun, I had an idea where the net was, and I was just trying to put it in the upper part."
Jesper Fast cut it to 3-2 at 13:35 when he redirected Pesce's one-timer from the right point.
Some of Gibson's best saves came in the third period, when Carolina outshot Anaheim 18-3. Andrei Svechnikov had a clean look from just below the left face-off circle with 1:44 remaining, but Gibson got across the crease to make a right-pad save at the left post.
"It's hard not to talk about our goalie, first and foremost. He's one of, if not the best, goalie in the world. You saw that tonight," Terry said. "It's natural they're going to outshoot you. We tried our best to limit in-the-slot shots. It was a game that we had to dig in, even when the shot board said otherwise."
The Anaheim Ducks have won three of their last 10 games.
Prediction
Something I didn't think I'd say at some point this season: The Blackhawks will win their sixth in a row. What a time. Blackhawks 4, Ducks 3
Betting trends
Blackhawks are 13-10 in the second half of the season.
Blackhawks are 1-11 revenging a loss by 1 goal this season.
Blackhawks are 11-8 after scoring 4 goals or more last game.
Ducks are 10-32 after winning 2 of 3 the last 3 seasons.
Projected lines
Blackhawks:
Philipp Kurashev -- Max Domi -- Andreas Athanasiou
Tyler Johnson -- Cole Guttman -- Taylor Raddysh
Colin Blackwell -- Jason Dickinson -- Dave Gust
Boris Katchouk -- Brett Seney
Jake McCabe -- Seth Jones
Jack Johnson -- Connor Murphy
Isaak Phillips -- Caleb Jones
Ian Mitchell
Petr Mrazek
Philipp Kurashev -- Max Domi -- Andreas Athanasiou
Tyler Johnson -- Cole Guttman -- Taylor Raddysh
Colin Blackwell -- Jason Dickinson -- Dave Gust
Boris Katchouk -- Brett Seney
Jake McCabe -- Seth Jones
Jack Johnson -- Connor Murphy
Isaak Phillips -- Caleb Jones
Ian Mitchell
Petr Mrazek
Ducks:
Trevor Zegras -- Ryan Strome -- Troy Terry
Max Jones -- Mason McTavish -- Jakob Silfverberg
Frank Vatrano -- Isac Lundestrom -- Brett Leason
Max Comtois -- Derek Grant -- Sam Carrick
Cam Fowler -- Dmitry Kulikov
Colton White -- Nathan Beaulieu
Simon Benoit -- Kevin Shattenkirk
John Gibson
Trevor Zegras -- Ryan Strome -- Troy Terry
Max Jones -- Mason McTavish -- Jakob Silfverberg
Frank Vatrano -- Isac Lundestrom -- Brett Leason
Max Comtois -- Derek Grant -- Sam Carrick
Cam Fowler -- Dmitry Kulikov
Colton White -- Nathan Beaulieu
Simon Benoit -- Kevin Shattenkirk
John Gibson
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert hockey picks today. And if you enjoyed this Chicago Blackhawks - Anaheim Ducks prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NHL projections and previews.
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.
