13.12.2022

Coyotes @ Sharks Game Preview and Pick

We’ll be previewing the late game from the 12-game NHL slate tonight between the Arizona Coyotes and San Jose Sharks, and then we’ll dive into a best bet for the action as well.

Game Preview

The Arizona Coyotes enter tonight on a two-game win streak but overall, over their last ten games, they’ve put up a record of 3-4-1-2. They haven’t been a good defensive team all season, as they are ranked 27th in goals against and 30th in shots against, but they’ve managed to look even worse on the defensive end over their last ten games.

In just their last five games, the Coyotes have allowed a combined 21 goals to be scored. We’ll likely see Connor Ingram in the net tonight, and he has struggled as of late. Over his last ten games, Ingram has a save percentage of just .866, and in his last game, he allowed eight goals to be scored in a loss to the Oilers.

Some strong recent offensive play by Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse has been the only true highlights of Arizona’s recent ten-game stretch. Keller was able to net a hat trick in the Coyotes' most recent game, which was an overtime win over the Flyers.

San Jose has gone 3-5-2 over their last ten games, so both teams tonight have been playing similarly as of late. The Sharks are also coming off a win in their most recent game, as they were able to beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-1.

That game was only one of the three times over their recent ten-game stretch where they held a team to one goal or less. This explains why they’re 27th in the league in goals allowed, with an average of 3.7 a game. Offensively, they have scored 11 total goals in their last two games, so we’ll see if they can get some momentum going.

Pick for the Game

My best bet for this game is the Over of 6 at (-115). The over is 10-4 when San Jose plays at home, and it is also 5-0 when they’re the favorite in the game. Arizona has had three straight games go over, and if Ingram does get the start in net, with the way he’s playing, I think the over has too much value to pass on.

Despite their losing record in the last ten games, I like how the Sharks' offense has recently looked. San Jose has two guys who have been able to put up seven points over the last ten games and five guys who have put up six points, all at even strength. Arizona also allows the most powerplay opportunities in the league, so San Jose should be able to take advantage of this, especially Thomas Hertl and Alexander Barbanov, who both have four powerplay points in the last ten games.

As for the Coyotes, they do have the third-best shooting percentage in the league despite being 28th in goals, so they should be able to find the back of the net a few times against this Sharks team that is 30th in opponent shooting percentage. I think it’ll be a late-night shootout in San Jose.