Free NHL Picks Today: Anaheim Ducks vs Pittsburgh Penguins 2/10/23

The Anaheim Ducks (17-29-6) host the Pittsburgh Penguins (25-16-9) at Honda Center on Friday. Pittsburgh is playing their first of four games on the road coming off a 2-1 overtime win over the Avalanche on Tuesday. The Penguins committed four penalties in the game, though they held Colorado without a power play goal.

Kris Letang and Bryan Rust each scored once for the Penguins. Evgeni Malkin had two assists to lead the team in scoring. Casey DeSmith saved an impressive 41 of 42 shots (.976%) in the win.

Anaheim beat the Blackhawks 3-2 (OT) on Tuesday. Brett Leason, Jayson Megna, and Frank Vatrano each scored once for the Ducks. Anthony Stolarz was impressive in the win, making 27 saves (.931%).

HEAD TO HEAD

The Penguins won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 4-3 (OT) victory in January, their third straight win against Anaheim. Rickard Rakell led Pittsburgh with three points (0G 3A). Trevor Zegras (1G 1A) and Troy Terry (0G 2A) each had two points to lead Anaheim. DeSmith got the win despite saving only 26 of 29 shots (.896%).

FACING OFF

Pittsburgh is averaging 3.24 goals per game for the season, 12th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Ducks team that is allowing 3.98 goals a game (32nd). Meanwhile, Anaheim has found the net 2.44 times a game on average, 32nd in the league, and the Penguins are allowing opponents to score 3.06 goals per game (16th).

Power play opportunities ought to be plentiful for the Penguins, as the Ducks have been penalized 4.58 times a game, fourth-most in the NHL, for an average of 11.65 minutes (fourth-highest). The visitors are averaging 3.64 penalties (22nd) and 7.92 penalty minutes a game (26th).

The Ducks’ 15.13% power play percentage is the worst in the league, while the Penguins rank 14th with a conversion rate of 22.54%. Anaheim has been equally poor at penalty killing, as the home team owns the league’s fifth-lowest PK% at 73.48%. Pittsburgh’s 81.60% ranks eighth in the NHL.

TOP PERFORMERS:

With 61 points this season, Sidney Crosby is the top skater for the Penguins. He has 24 goals and 37 assists in 50 games. In the net, Tristan Jarry (16-5-5) is Pittsburgh’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.65 GAA and a .921% save percentage.

Zegras and Terry lead the Ducks in scoring with 43 and 42 points, respectively. Zegras has 18 goals and 25 assists in 52 games, while Terry has 13 goals and 29 assists. Stolarz (4-6-0) has the best goals against average for Anaheim at 3.88.

He has a save percentage of .895%. John Gibson (10-20-5) has played the most games in net for the Ducks this season. He has a 3.89 GAA and a .900% save percentage.