NHL Odds, Preview, Prediction: Flyers vs. Ducks (January 2)

Flyers vs. Ducks Odds

It’s a battle between two of the league’s worst teams as the Philadelphia Flyers take on the Anaheim Ducks. Philadelphia is feeling hot right now, having won back-to-back games. Additionally, the Flyers are 4-4-2 in their past 10 games.

It's hard to find teams worse than the Ducks right now. What’s even harder to believe is that out of the 10 wins they have this season, only three are in regulation. It’s truly astounding how poor this team is, so watching it play a team at its level will be interesting.

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Philadelphia Flyers

Whenever John Tortorella coaches a team, it’s always an entertaining unit from afar. Even though the standings don’t exactly favor the Flyers, there’s some decent talent here. Travis Konecny is producing over a point per game this season and Kevin Hayes isn’t far behind. Defensively, this team isn’t great, but defenseman Tony DeAngelo is their third leading scorer. The Flyers are also reaping the benefits of last year's Claude Giroux trade as Owen Tippett has emerged as a top scorer.

The charts shows Philadelphia is pretty poor on even strength. The Flyers are in the bottom five for expected goals with a 43.16 xGF% and generate 7.7 high danger chances per game. Their powerplay is also among the league’s worst, scoring only score 15.6% of the time.

Tortorella coached teams are usually pretty good defensively, but this year is fairly different. The Flyers allow a seventh worst 2.88 xGA/60 and a 74.6% success rate on the penalty kill.

Carter Hart was recently cleared from concussion protocol and it’s looking like he'll play in this matchup. It’s been a rough go all year, but Hart has been a bright spot. After having such a poor season last year, he’s back to his old self, playing to a +12.8 goals saved above expected (GSAx) and a .911 SV%.

Anaheim Ducks

I’m very surprised at how poorly the Ducks have played this year. With a core of Troy Terry, Trevor Zegras and Mason McTavish, I didn’t expect such a regression from last year. And yet, here we are. The Anaheim Ducks have the second-worst record in the league and most of their players have underachieved.

It’s been a miserable year offensively for the Ducks, and the numbers show it. They own the worst even-strength attack with a 38.62 xGF%. Additionally, the power play is among the worst, scoring just 16% of the time.

Not only has it been bad on the offensive end, but it's just as bad defensively. They’re probably far and away the worst in the league, allowing 3.46 xGA/60 and a poor penalty kill with a 70% success rate.

It’s unfortunate to see how much John Gibson is struggling this year. The team in front of him is not good, but when Gibson is on, he’s a top-10 netminder. The numbers however, aren’t in his favor. He’s playing to a -5.6 GSAx and has a lowly .898 save percentage. There is also a chance Anthony Stolarz plays as he’s just coming off Injured Reserve. Stolarz isn’t much better, playing to a -2.9 GSAx and an .886 SV%.

Flyers vs. Ducks Pick

Betting on games featuring bottom-tier teams is always fun, and I think I lean toward Philadelphia in this bout.

I’ve never been lower on a team than I am with the Ducks. The fact they only have three regulation wins is jarring, and not something I’d like to be backing.

Neither of these teams is very good and the deficiencies offset each other. When betting games like this, you need to go with the lesser of two evils, and that’s the Flyers.

I at least appreciate the fact that they put forth some effort whereas the Ducks are lifeless. I’m backing Philadelphia as it enters the new year with a three-game win streak.

Pick: Flyers Moneyline

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