Carolina vs Pittsburgh Prediction 5 January 2025

🔊 Will the “Hurricanes” keep the guests out of the Eastern Conference playoff eight? Carolina continues to remain among the favorites of the Eastern Conference and consistently earns points. Now, the task is to try to challenge the leaders. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, is still fighting for a place in the playoff zone and has nothing outstanding to boast about in this endeavor.

📊 Head-to-head

The opponents have already met twice in the current regular season, and in both cases, the “Hurricanes” left the “Penguins” with no chance (4:1, 5:1). The most productive player in those encounters was Carolina forward Martin Nečas. In total, the Czech scored a goal and provided two assists. The hockey player is currently in excellent form and has been scoring points for two consecutive matches.

🔴 Carolina

The current standings fully reflect the form of the home team. Rod Brind'Amour's squad plays in a high-energy but effective style with numerous unprepared shots and active forechecking in the neutral zone. Right now, the team has reached a relatively stable level of point accumulation and is quite capable of competing with the leaders of the Eastern Conference such as Washington, New Jersey, and Toronto. The “Hurricanes” have successfully played against each of these clubs and are ready to stand on equal footing with them.

⚫ Pittsburgh

The “Penguins” almost managed to close the gap from the playoff zone in the East but reverted to their old ways and started losing to everyone. In their last four matches, Mike Sullivan's team suffered three defeats, only managing to beat the Islanders. Such a state of affairs cannot be deemed successful. However, everything is in the hands of the players from Pennsylvania. With the right approach, reaching the eighth spot should not be difficult.

📌 Probable Lineups

Carolina: Kochetkov - Slavin, Burns - Roslovic, Aho, Jarvis

Pittsburgh: Jarry - Grzelcyk, Karlsson - Rakell, Crosby, Rust

🥅 Goalkeepers

Carolina's goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov maintains high standards for himself and remains an integral part of his team's success. The Russian had an excellent game against Florida, managing to stop 25 out of 26 shots on goal.

Pittsburgh's goaltender Tristan Jarry had a rather impressive game against the champions from Miami but was unable to secure a win (2:3 SO). The Canadian still plays very rarely, although he is trying to rectify the situation and become the first choice again.

📝 Editorial Prediction

Most head-to-head encounters between these teams are low-scoring matches. For eight consecutive times, the opponents have not scored more than six goals. The teams focus on defense and diligently minimize mistakes. We tend to believe that this trend will continue, and the opponents will once again reduce the game to a minimal number of goals scored. Our key bet is total under 6.5 goals.