The Anaheim Ducks face the visiting Detroit Red Wings as favorites on the NHL odds. While Anaheim is clearly the better team, the latest news, stats, and injury reports put them in a precarious spot.
The Ducks will need to edge the Red Wings without two of their best players while Detroit looks to continue overachieving.
Wounded Ducks Must Press On
Even with their new-found success, the Ducks are not making believers of anyone. They are still a distant fourth per the outright NHL odds despite sitting in second place in the Pacific Division. Anaheim halted a four-game skid with a 4-1 win over Philadelphia to improve to 7-4 as a favorite.
The stats do support betting online on Anaheim to sustain this success. The team is below average on 5v5 and is trending in the bottom third of the league in corsi and scoring chance metrics. But this can be alleviated by its strong special teams play and by clutch netminding.
The Ducks are the only team whose power play and penalty kill are in the top five. The team is +13 on special teams goals while John Gibson and Anthony Stolarz have combined to save 12.2 goals above expectations. There is no fluke here.
Red Wings Staying Afloat
Detroit is also enjoying some mild success but it feels underwhelming compared to the one-season turnaround from the Ducks. But the Red Wings are somehow above .500 in point percentage despite a goal differential of -18.
Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss (when at home) have been half of the team’s success. It gets ugly, however, looking at this team’s stats. The Red Wings have poor special teams play, are in the red in corsi and scoring chance metrics, and have a negative rating based on Hockey Reference’s simple rating system (SRS).
WHAT A PLAY BY LUCAS RAYMOND! 🚨
Backhand pass through his own legs to Dylan Larkin, who flies down the ice and snipes it home! #LGRW pic.twitter.com/FldBgfZ9cN
— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) January 5, 2022
The Red Wings are (mostly) healthy and have an edge in high-danger scoring chance metrics. Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond are also two of the brightest stars and will be a trendy reason why Detroit is worth a bet on the online sportsbook
Red Wings vs Ducks Head to Head
| Detroit | Stat | Anaheim |
| 5-4-1 | Record | 5-4-1 |
| 4-6-0 | Over/Under | 4-6-0 |
| 2.50 | Average Score | 2.60 |
| 3.57% | Power Play % | 10.71% |
| 89.29% | Penalty Kill % | 96.43% |
Red Wings vs Ducks Game Information
- Date: Thursday
- Time: 10 p.m. ET
- Location: Honda Center
- Detroit Red Wings vs Anaheim Ducks Live Stream: NHL Live
Red Wings vs Ducks Betting Lines
| Detroit | Anaheim | |
| +120 | Moneyline | -140 |
| +1½ (-200) | Puck Line | -1½ (+170) |
| 5½ (Evo) | Total | 5½ (-120u) |
Red Wings vs Ducks Prediction
This would have been a nice battle between young and upcoming teams, but Anaheim’s Trevor Zegras will miss the game due to COVID. Notorious for his viral assist, Zegras has also been a catalyst for the Ducks’ offense and leads them in expected plus/minus (+7.4) and offensive zone start percent.
Without Zegras (and captain Ryan Getzlaf), the Ducks should still be able to play well. Anaheim will still have a significant advantage on special teams considering how atrocious Detroit is on the road: a 4-10-1 record while allowing the most goals (4.2) per game.
Pick: Anaheim Ducks -140
Eleven of Detroit’s 15 road games have gone over mainly because this team gets lit up. Detroit has an 87.7 save percentage on the road. The Ducks may not be the most potent offense, but they score the fifth-most goals at home and their power play will feast as this one goes over.
