In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

Additional Model Predictions ⬇️

NBA Model Predictions- Click Here

There were plenty of model predictions to go around yesterday across the NBA, with our model focusing in on one of those predictions in our Featured Matchup. That prediction went 1-0 overall, and you can see how the rest of the model’s performed below.

Money Line Predictions: 5-1

Over/Under Predictions: 4-2

Spread Predictions: 4-2

Featured Matchup: 1-0

14 NHL games are scheduled to take place today. Our model’s predictions for all 14 matchups can be found below.

Buffalo Sabres @ Detroit Red Wings

Model Predicts- Red Wings ML, UNDER 6.5, Sabres +1.5

The Buffalo Sabres will begin a five-game road trip on Saturday, with the first stop coming in Detroit, Michigan to take on the Red Wings.

Buffalo enters tonights matchup just a few points outside of the playoff picture, which is largely in part because of the Sabres three-game win streak dating back to last Saturday. Detroit is also on the cusp of playoff position, but is trending in the wrong direction after losing the last seven games.

Buffalo has been the better time by a significant margin over the last week, but our model still predicts the Red Wings to pick up a win on their home ice. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Buffalo Sabres

• Enter tonight on three-game win streak

  • Wins over Oilers, Red Wings, and Islanders

  • Outscoring opponents 14-5 in that stretch

• Outperforming expectations during win streak

  • Defense- Own 1.27 GA/60 in 5-on-5 situations, but xGA/60 in same situations sits at 2.39

  • Offense- GF/60 in 5-on-5 sits at 4.22, xGF/60 sits at 2.71

• Expected goalie- Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

  • .921 Save % in 5-on-5 situations. Ranks 12th in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx) with +11.4

Detroit Red Wings

• Enter tonight on seven-game losing streak

  • Losing streak began on February 29th

  • Includes 7-3 loss to Sabres on Tuesday

• Defense is getting crushed, but should see massive improvements soon

  • Own 4.74 GA/60 in 5-on-5, but xGA/60 sits much lower at 2.77

• Expected goalie- James Reimer

  • .896 Save % in 5-on-5. Ranks 44th in GSAx (+0.5)

What’s the Play?

It’s understandable to have little to no confidence in this Red Wings team, but we agree with our model that this is a good spot to bet Detroit.

Six of Detroit’s last seven losses have come with Alex Lyon in net, who has been reliable for most of the season. However, he has surrendered 24 goals on the last 166 shot attempts he has faced (.855 Save %), and has been a huge reason for the spike in Detroit’s defensive numbers. We think those numbers are inflated due to Lyon’s poor showing, and having Reimer in net could be what brings them back down to Earth.

Additionally, Buffalo is outperforming on both ends of the ice during its win streak, showing that regression is on the horizon on both ends of the ice. We expect Detroit to take advantage of that this afternoon and get back in the win column.

The Play: Red Wings ML (-110)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Detroit Red Wings- 33-27-6 overall this season, 18-11-5 as the home team

• Minnesota Wild- 33-27-7 overall this season, 3-0 in last three games

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Buffalo Sabres- Under is 39-26-2 this season with average total of 5.94

• Calgary Flames- Over is 38-26-2 this season, highest win percentage in NHL this season

Puck Line Trends ➕➖

• Montreal Canadiens- Puck line is 43-23 this season

• Philadelphia Flyers- Puck line is 39-28 this season

💪 Brossoit records shutout in win over Ducks. Tyler Toffoli scored his first two goals for Winnipeg, while Laurent Brossoit earned his second shutout of the season with 21 saves in a 6-0 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. The win, fueled by Dylan DeMelo's goal and an assist, along with goals from Kyle Connor, Nate Schmidt, and Mason Appleton, propelled the Jets into a tie for first place in the Central Division with Dallas and Colorado. Brossoit, with his fifth consecutive win, has not allowed a goal in 141 minutes and 40 seconds, further solidifying Winnipeg's position in the standings.

🤕 Jarnkrok out with hand injury. Toronto Maple Leafs' coach Sheldon Keefe revealed that Calle Jarnkrok is dealing with a hand injury and will be out for an undetermined period. The injury occurred during a hard crash into the boards in the second period of Thursday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers, where Jarnkrok was filling in on the first line for the injured Mitch Marner. This is Jarnkrok's second hand injury of the season, having missed 13 games previously, and he has a remaining two years on his contract with a $2.1 million cap hit.

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- Three NFL teams have had a perfect regular season- The 1934 and 1942 Chicago Bear, the 1972 Dolphins, and what other team?

Question #2- Al Horford and Joakim Noah were college basketball teammates at what SEC school?

Question #3- The Boston Red Sox defeated what team in the 2013 World Series?

Anyone know what has happened on March 16th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On March 16th…

1985- Two-time Cy Young award winner Denny McLain is sentenced to 25 years in prison. McLain was sent to prison over embezzlement and drug trafficking charges, which stemmed from his involvement in book making activities. However, McLain’s conviction would later be reversed.

1989- American basketball player Blake Griffin is born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Griffin would later go on to be a star within his home state, attending the University of Oklahoma to play college basketball. He would be selected with No.1 overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers, and has been named a six-time All-Star and five-time All-NBA in his career.

2022- Joe Buck and Troy Aikman join ESPN to be commentators for Monday Night Football. The move was one of the largest in broadcasting history, as Buck and Aikman spent the prior 20 seasons with FOX. Both agreed to a five-year contract with ESPN, with both earning at least $60 million in that time.

1. 2007 Patriots

2. University of Florida

3. St. Louis Cardinals