Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Seattle Kraken Expert Pick – Thursday, February 29, 2024

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS VS. SEATTLE KRAKEN EXPERT PICK – The Pittsburgh Penguins look to extend their three-game winning streak tonight against the Seattle Kraken.

With the trade deadline looming every game in the next couple weeks takes on increased importance. The team may have saved their season coming back twice to defeat the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 in overtime. 

“I’m real proud of them,” Coach Mike Sullivan stated. “I just thought we we had a certain resilience about us all night long. We get down a couple of goals, we just stay with it, just kept competing. I think we’re capable of coming back in games, and tonight was evidence against a really good team.”

This team has been inconsistent at best and now is dealing with key injuries, not only to Jake Guentzel, but also to Bryan Rust which decimates the Sidney Crosby line which has been one of the best in the NHL this year. 

Penguins Betting Insights

• Penguins are 2-3 in their last 5 games.
• Penguins are 2-3 in their last 5 games against the spread
• Penguins are 14-13 in their road games against the spread
• The totals have gone OVER in 0 of Penguins’ last 5 games
• The totals have gone OVER in 11 of Penguins’ 29 last games at home

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The Odds

Puck Drop

When: Thursday, February 29, 2024 10PM

Where: Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA

TV Channel: ESPN +

Players to Watch

The Penguins are 4-1-1 since Sidney Crosby spoke about willing this team to the playoffs. You must believe that Crosby wants the much sought after Jake Guentzel to be his line-mate for the foreseeable future. To avoid losing their best winger this team needs to be in playoff contention when the trade deadline approaches. 

With Guentzel and Rust out with injuries key players must step up. The first player that comes to mind is superstar Evgeni Malkin who has had a rough season so far. He has a total of two goals and 10 total points in the last 16 games. It’s time to find that elite level and help this team.

Reilly Smith is another player to watch tonight. To say Smith has had a poor season is an understatement. He has only scored two goals since late December, but those goals came in the last four games which may be a sign he is turning the corner. 

Defensemen Erik Karlsson has been more than steady on defense in his first season with the Penguins. His offensive production has been good overall but inconsistent. He is coming off the game winning goal and may be ready to pick up some of the slack left from the injuries to the top line. 

The Pick

I started this article picking the Kraken as the injuries just seemed too daunting to overcome. As I did my research there was nothing that should have changed my mind. This team is inconsistent, terrible on the power play and playing their second game on the west coast. All things point to a loss… but Sidney Crosby is on another level right now and I am riding ‘The Kid’ until the streak is over.