(YTD 18-12 +8.89 units)

Flames/Ducks:

The Calgary Flames will resume hockey after a nice three full days off from games, but they have to do so in an arena that has not been the kindest to them. 

Although this year is a different story, the Flames, last year, only managed to break the eternity of a losing streak at the Honda Center. That 2-0 win was all they could gather though, as they went on to lose their next visit, and 2 of their next 3 meetings against Anaheim. 

Despite Anaheim’s woes and Calgary’s triumph so far this season, beating the Ducks has never been an easy task for the Flames. 

This year however, the Flames looked to new philosophies with probably the most notorious puck control coach in hockey Bill Peters. While this puck possession style is eye candy for CORSI and advance stat enthusiasts, it is not necessarily a determinant of an advantage. Peters coached the Carolina Hurricanes last season, who finished at the top in CORSI, but still missed the playoffs by a decent margin. While I am not saying this is going to be the same result with Calgary, the fact is that oddsmakers place high emphasis in the domination numbers in factoring who they favor. To add to that, the Ducks (who have relied heavily on goaltending in the early going) will be going with the back up Goalie Ryan Miller. Factoring records and streaks as well, Anaheim has lost 8 of their last 9 games while the Flames have won 4 straight. All in all, my point is that we have an extremely inflated line in favor of Calgary with all of these factors on the table, especially with Anaheim in a game two of a back to back situation.

Here is where Anaheim has the edge.

The Ducks did play last night in the normally spirited battle of Los Angeles, and succumbed 4-1 to a rejuvenated Kings team that is experimenting with a new coach. However, Anaheim will be in better gel of the two, considering that the Flames have not played since saturday and are sitting on house money with their win streak. 

Another edge that the Ducks have is coaching. Randy Carlyle has never been a puck possession coach, but his gritty style has often found ways to succeed against puck possession teams. The proof is in the pudding, as Carlyle has won four straight against Peters head to head, and 5 of the last 6. 

With the seemingly disadvantage that the Flames have in the pond, combined with the puck possession numbers being irrelevant to Carlyle and his squad, I expect the Ducks to battle for the win tonight. 

Ducks moneyline +125  2*