In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

Additional Model Predictions ⬇️

NCAAB Model Predictions- Click Here

There were no model predictions yesterday, February 16, 2024.

13 NHL games are scheduled to take place today. Our model’s predictions for all 13 matchups can be found below.

Philadelphia Flyers @ New Jersey Devils

Model Predicts- Devils ML, UNDER 6.5, Flyers +1.5

The Philadelphia Flyers will make the short journey to MetLife Stadium on Saturday to take on the New Jersey Devils in the NHL’s Stadium Series.

Philadelphia enters today’s battle with a 29-19-7 record, good enough to put the Flyers in third place in the Metropolitan division. Meanwhile, New Jersey sits in fourth in the same division with a 27-22-4 record.

Our model expects the Devils to get the better of its division rival tonight, but we are more concerned with the total here. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Philadelphia Flyers

• Coming off loss to Maple Leafs in last game

  • Lost 4-3 in overtime

  • First loss since All-Star break ended

• One of best defenses in NHL

  • Rank 7th in xGA/60 in 5-on-5 situations

  • Allow third-fewest shots on goal per game (27.9) and are second-best penalty kill

• Expected goalie- Samuel Ersson

  • .908 Save % in 5-on-5 situations. Ranks 34th in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx) with +2.3

New Jersey Devils

• Coming off loss to Kings on Thursday

  • Lost 2-1. Had 27 shots on goal to Kings’ 29

• Defense has been stellar since All-Star break

  • Own 1.55 GA/60 in 5-on-5 in last six games

  • Have held opponents to 1.50 goals per game in last four matchups

• Expected goalie- Nico Daws

  • .919 Save % in 5-on-5. Ranks 33rd in GSAx (+2.4)

What’s the Play?

Our model doesn’t see much of an edge on the Devils here, but it does see some value on the under.

Philadelphia has been one of the best defensive teams all season long, whether it is at full strength or while down a man. The Flyers did let the Maple Leafs score four goals just a few days ago, but that was the first time in five games that Philadelphia’s opponent surpassed three goals in a game. New Jersey is also finding its footing defensively, which could enable the Devils to make a late push up the Metropolitan standings.

The last time we saw these two play was a 3-2 overtime victory for the Flyers, a game where both teams had just 26 shots on goal. We expect a similar type of matchup to occur tonight.

The Play: Under 6.5 (-125)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Dallas Stars- 34-14-6 overall this season, 17-8-2 as the home team

• Tampa Bay Lightning- 30-20-5 overall this season, 3-0 in last three games

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Florida Panthers- Under is 33-19-2 this season with average total of 5.72

• Vancouver Canucks- Over is 31-21-3 this season with average total of 6.27

Puck Line Trends ➕➖

• Philadelphia Flyers- Puck line is 33-22 this season

🤕 Rangers lose Wheeler for rest of regular season. New York Rangers' veteran player Blake Wheeler will miss the remainder of the regular season due to a leg injury, as reported by The Athletic's Peter Baugh. While there's a slim possibility of Wheeler returning for the playoffs, it hinges on the Rangers' performance. The 37-year-old was injured during a game against the Montreal Canadiens and will be placed on long-term injured reserve, having signed with the Rangers on a one-year deal after his contract with the Winnipeg Jets was bought out.

💪 Hurricanes beat Coyotes in lone Friday night game. Jordan Martinook scored just 16 seconds into the game, and Pyotr Kochetkov made 30 saves as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Arizona Coyotes 5-1 on Friday. The Hurricanes scored two goals in the first five minutes and maintained their momentum throughout the game, winning for the sixth time in eight games. Jalen Chatfield, Seth Jarvis, Teuvo Teravainen, and Michael Bunting also scored for the Hurricanes, while Dylan Guenther scored the lone goal for the Coyotes, who have lost eight consecutive games and have slipped toward the bottom of the Central Division.

Today’s trivia requires you to dig into multiple pockets of your brain, testing your knowledge of recent events as well as those that happened decades ago.

See how many of the below questions you can get correct. Answers are provided at the end of the newsletter.

Question #1- Who did the Philadelphia 76ers select with the No.1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft?

Question #2- Who did the Green Bay Packers defeat in Super Bowl XLV to be crowned champions of the 2010-11 season?

Question #3- Prior to his current stint with the Los Angeles Angels, Anthony Rendon played for what NL East team?

Anyone know what has happened on February 17th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On February 17th…

1952- Montreal Canadiens star Elmer Lach records one assist in a 3-2 loss to the New York Rangers. The assist gave Lach 354 for his career, which at the time set a new NHL record. Lach would end his career with 408 assists and 215 goals.

1963- NBA legend Michael Jordan is born in Brooklyn, New York. Jordan joined the basketball scene as a student at Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, North Carolina, where he would become a star before taking his talents to the University of North Carolina. He would get drafted to the NBA shortly after in 1984, where he would go on to win six NBA titles.

2019- The NBA All-Star Game is held in the Spectrum Centre in Charlotte, North Carolina. Team LeBron faced off against Team Antetokounmpo in the game, with Team LeBron winning by a score of 178-164. Kevin Durant, who scored 31 points in the game, was named MVP.

1. Ben Simmons

2. Pittsburgh Steelers

3. Washington Nationals