Face-off: 1900 ET, 12/03/2022
Arena: Canadian Tire Centre
Ottawa will have their tails up after two straight wins but we’ve also been impressed by Chicago of late and feel this is a tricky test for the Senators.
The Blackhawks invariably find the top sides too hot to handle but have been faring well against teams around them in the overall table of late.
Punters can get 1.91 for an away win on the money line and that gets the nod in our Ottawa Senators vs Chicago Blackhawks predictions.
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Ottawa Senators Odds
Ottawa ended a five-match losing run by winning 4-1 at St Louis on Tuesday and then edged out Seattle 4-3 in overtime here a couple of days later.
The Senators blew a 3-0 lead in the third period against the Kraken but Josh Norris then spared their blushes with his second goal of the game.
Brady Tkachuk, who netted for the 20th time this season, said: “It wasn’t pretty, but we’re just going to learn from those little things that we kind of strayed away from.”
Head coach DJ Smith focused on the positives and commented: “Our big guys were big guys and Brady and Norris came to play.
“I mean, that’s a great shot there at the end. When your best players are your best players, you win on a lot of nights.”
Ottawa are now 72-41 down in terms of final-period goals, though, so that late collapse was far from out of the ordinary.
Chicago’s games also often open up in the last 20 minutes, when they are 60-73.
Looking at the NHL odds, let’s take a punt on 6.5 for the Blackhawks to win P3 and both teams to score in that section.
Chicago Blackhawks Odds
Chicago are coming off a heart-breaking 4-3 defeat at Boston, where they conceded the deciding goal with just 18 seconds left on the clock.
Brandon Hagel scored twice, while Alex DeBrincat had a goal and an assist, but David Pastrnak’s double did the damage for the Bruins.
DeBrincat, who has netted in five straight matches, said: “I thought we played pretty well the whole game, played for each other, but it just didn’t work out in the end.
“Their power play was good and we kind of blew a couple chances on the power play.”
Patrick Kane continued his hot streak with an assist to make it 12 points in five outings, having bagged six in Tuesday’s 8-3 win against Anaheim.
Kane is now tied for second on the Blackhawks’ all-time points list with 1,153 and coach Derek King declared: “He’s a special player and a special person.
“With him being this hot right now, it’s a good thing. We just need him to continue to stay hot.”
Chicago had beaten the Ducks, Edmonton and New Jersey in their previous six games, so spirits will still be high.
They hammered Ottawa at home earlier this term and 12.5 for a 4-3 Blackhawks win at Canadian Tire Centre completes our NHL predictions.
Additional stats
Last result:
OTTAWA 4-3 Seattle (OT)
Boston 4-3 CHICAGO
Season head-to-head: Chicago 5-1 Ottawa
