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 NHL, 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: 3-0

Over/Under Predictions: 2-1

Puck Line Predictions: 1-2

Featured Matchup: 1-0

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

Washington Capitals @ Florida Panthers

Model Predicts- Panthers ML, UNDER 6, Capitals +1.5

The Washington Capitals will begin a short two-game road trip on Thursday night, with the first stop coming in the state of Florida to take on the Panthers.

Washington enters tonight’s battle on a brutal losing skid, dropping five consecutive games to various opponents. The Capitals now own a 22-19-7 record for the season, while Florida’s record sits at 31-15-4 following a loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.

Washington’s rough patch is a concern moving forward, but our model thinks the Caps can keep things close tonight in what is predicted to be a low-scoring affair. Let’s dive into why that is.

Washington Capitals

• Enter tonight on a five-game losing streak

  • Losses to Blues, Wild, Avalanche, Stars, and Canadiens

  • -13 goal differential in that five-game span

• Offense has been nonexistent during recent losses

  • Own 2.01 xGF/60 in 5-on-5 situations in last 5 games- 30th in NHL

  • Generating just 10.36 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes (HDCF/60) in same situations

• Expected goalie- Charlie Lindgren

  • .925 Save % in 5-on-5 situations. Ranks 12th in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx) with +7.6

Florida Panthers

• Coming off loss to Flyers on Tuesday

  • First loss in five games

  • Scored one goal while only generating 21 shots on goal

• One of more elite defenses in NHL this season

  • Rank second in xGA/60 (2.26) in 5-on-5

  • Allow fifth-fewest high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes in 5-on-5 situations

• Expected goalie- Sergei Bobrovsky

  • .920 Save % in 5-on-5. Ranks 13th in GSAx (+7.4)

What’s the Play?

Defense and goaltending are the name of the game this evening, and as a result we agree with our model that this should be a low-scoring contest.

Washington is consistently one of the worst scoring attacks in the NHL, ranking 30th in goals and shots on goal per game as well as ranking 29th in power play success. The Caps don’t find the back of the net often, and it will continue to be a challenge tonight against an elite Panthers defense.

However, Lindgren presents the Florida offense with a challenge, which will likely allow the Capitals to keep the deficit manageable. We’ll roll with the under here.

The Play: Under 6 (-120)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Boston Bruins- 31-10-9 overall this season, 16-5-3 as the home team

• Vegas Golden Knights- 30-15-6 overall this season, 11-10-4 as the away team

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Washington Capitals- Under is 27-20-1 this season with average total of 5.58

• Florida Panthers- Under is 31-18-1 this season with average total of 5.76

Puck Line Trends ➕➖

• Vancouver Canucks- Puck line is 34-16 this season

• Philadelphia Flyers- Puck line is 30-21 this season

😬 Winnipeg’s Dillon suspended three games. The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced that Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon will be sidelined for three games following his hit to Pittsburgh Penguins forward Noel Acciari's head in Tuesday's game. The hit occurred early in the second period, knocking Acciari's helmet off and resulting in Dillon receiving a match penalty and a five-minute major. Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan provided an update on Acciari's condition postgame, stating that he's being evaluated and their primary concern is his health, while Dillon has faced suspension once before in 2017 for slashing.

💰 Flames sign Pospisil to two-year extension. The Calgary Flames have extended forward Martin Pospisil's contract for two years, with an average annual value of $1 million. Pospisil, previously a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights, is currently playing on a one-year contract worth $775,000 signed last July. The 24-year-old rookie, drafted by Calgary 105th overall in 2018, has recorded four goals and seven assists in 34 games this season.

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- What current New York Knicks player wears #11?

Question #2- Who did the St. Louis Rams select with the No.1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft?

Question #3- Matt Olson played for what MLB team from 2016-2021 before his current stint with the Atlanta Braves?

Anyone know what has happened on February 8th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On February 8th…

1960- Bill Russell becomes the first NBA player to record 50 rebounds in a single game. Russell grabbed three rebounds in the final 36 seconds to give him the record, beating his own NBA record of 49 rebounds. Russell would end his NBA career averaging 22.45 boards per game, the second-most in NBA history.

1975- Pete Maravich scores 47 points in a 106-102 Jazz win over the Atlanta Hawks. The performance was a much needed one for the Jazz, as it helped the team snap a 28-game road losing streak. The Jazz went on to finish the season with a 23-59 record.

1986- Spud Webb wins the NBA Dunk Contest. Webb dazzled the crowd with his athleticism, but what made the win even more impressive is that Webb stood at just 5-feet-7-inches tall. Webb defeated his teammate, Dominique Wilkins, in the contest, scoring a perfect 50 on his final two dunks to win the event.

1. Jalen Brunson

2. Sam Bradford

3. Oakland Athletics