Detroit Red Wings Vs. Pittsburgh Penguins 10/10

Overview

The 2024-25 season brings a new light of hope to HockeyTown. Looking to bring back the flare of the ‘90s and 2000s teams, Yzerman’s rebuild is looking to start hot against the Pittsburgh Penguins. After a devastating ending to their season last year, missing the playoffs by a tiebreaker to the Washington Capitals, the Red Wings will look to get off to a 1-0 start to the season at home.

Despite the city of Detroit being distracted by the success of their beloved Tigers and Lions, I expect fans to show their unwavering support tonight. With additions to the team, such as Cam Talbot and Vladimir Tarasenko, I anticipate them to come out with the same fire they had at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Predictions

With the heated rivalry between the Penguins in the late 2000s, every game against Pittsburgh is a quality one. While Pittsburgh is off to a rough start, losing their opening game 6-0 to their other rivals, the New York Rangers, I don’t expect this game to be easy. However, I am confident that the Red Wings will be able to secure this battle at home.

With 2023-star Lucas Raymond signing a massive contract in the offseason, I don’t expect to see a fall from him this season. After producing 31 goals and 41 assists, we will soon find out if he can replicate those stats again. Another player to keep an eye on is newcomer Vladimir Tarasenko. It is projected that he will share a line with future Hall of Famer Patrick Kane in his first appearance in the Winged Wheel. With this in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Vlad net one in his first game. Vlad has a history of playing well when on a line with players who like to slow the game down and that is what Kane does to a T. We will also likely see Vlad enter his way onto one of their powerplay units which also gives him a nice boost at notching one. His current odds to score tonight are +210 on Hard Rock.

I fully expect the Red Wings to come out buzzing tonight, despite the Penguins looking for a bounce back. Look for goaltender, Ville Husso, to reclaim his starting nod back from star performer, Alex Lyon. Lyon played a major impact on the Wings late season success, finishing 21-18-5 with a save percentage of 0.904. However, with his job on the line, Husso will show up tonight when the team needs him. Their success tonight will also lie on the strength of their top 6 forwards, who are among some of the best in the league. At -145, I expect this game to be a clean win for the Red Wings to start the season off right.

My Picks:

Valdimir Tarasenko o0.5 goals @ +210 (0.5u)

Detroit Red Wings ML @ -145 (2u)

Detroit Red Wings -1.5 @ +150 (1u)