Philadelphia Flyers vs Nashville Predators: the Predators to earn 2 points in Pennsylvania

Philadelphia has beaten Nashville in only one of their last five face-offs. Will Mike Yeo's team be able to improve their stats now? Our prediction: the Predators will be closer to success again!

Philadelphia is having another terrible regular season. Having had very decent results and steady progress for several years, the team suddenly fell into a severe crisis, and they can't get out of it the second year in a row. The Flyers are in such a hopeless situation that they've won just five of their last 29 matches and lost 24 times. Of course, with such poor results, it would be naive to expect them to make the playoffs, but something has gone wrong. Right now, the Pennsylvanians are sitting 14th in the Eastern Conference standings.

Nashville began to gradually slow down in recent years, turning into a typical NHL middling that never managed to turn into a Stanley Cup contender, but a lot has changed in the current regular season. The Predators are in great shape right now, with decent results and it's a pleasure to watch them play. Yes, they had a bad stretch in February where they suffered six losses in eight matches, but they quickly overcame a bit of a slump. In their last six games, John Hynes' players have five wins, losing only once to St. Louis, 4-7. All of this allows Nashville to sit fifth in the Western Conference standings.

Within the regular NHL championships, the teams have held 28 face-to-face matches.The Flyers have 13 wins, the Predators stronger in 12 games, three games a draw. The Pennsylvanians also have an advantage in terms of goal difference (76-65). The last time the rivals met was in the 2018/19 season, when first Philadelphia players celebrated the 2-1 victory and then it was Nashville who was stronger, 4-0.

Philadelphia is the weakest team in the NHL at the moment. Even Montreal and Arizona began to cling to points at the end of the regular season, and the Flyers continue to suffer one defeat after another. Of course, Nashville should take advantage of this, picking up a comfortable two points in Pennsylvania. Even in the old days, when the Flyers didn't look that desperate, the Predators won four of their last five head-to-head encounters and now they have to win. Thus, we suggest you bet on Nashville's win with the odds about 1.90.

The teams' confrontation has been very modest in terms of performance lately. In the previous three face-offs, the opponents have only managed eight pucks (2.67 average per game), which is paltry by NHL standards. You should not expect a goal extravaganza in the upcoming match either, as the Predators need to take two points with minimum effort in Pennsylvania. Based on this, the optimal option to bet on seems Total Under (5.5) at odds close to 2.20.

Ryan Johansen is one of the most stable players in Nashville. The Canadian forward does not overextend himself, but he works hard in every game, which is why he continues to appear in the first line for the Predators. In the current regular season, the 29-year-old hockey player has scored 44 points (15 goals + 29 assists) in 57 games played, which is a very solid figure. It is true that he has still a long way to beat his personal record, as in the 2018/19 season he scored 64 points. However, now he is in good shape, so it is worth looking betting on his Total Over (0.5) with odds of about 3.75.