Edmonton Oilers vs. Calgary Flames Picks, Predictions, Odds

Daniel Dobish Sports Betting Expert

12 minute read

The Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames meet at Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday night for Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals, a best-of-seven series. The Flames lead the series 1-0. Puck drop is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET, and the game can be viewed on ESPN.

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Score Prediction

Flames 5, Oilers 4

Best Bet

Oilers +1.5 (-179)
Over 6.5 (-115)

EDMONTON OILERS vs. CALGARY FLAMES PREDICTIONS

There is so much to unpack here. Game 1 of the Battle of Alberta on Wednesday night was absolutely wild.

Elias Lindholm and Andrew Mangiapane lit the lamp in the first 51 seconds of the game, beating Mike Smith for the quick 2-0 lead. Brett Ritchie scored on an unassisted goal at 6:05 of the first period, and the Oilers elected to make a goalie change. It didn't make a difference. Game 1 was just getting revved up, and we were going to see an avalanche of goals.

Connor McDavid scored to slice the lead to 3-1, and that's how the first period ended. Four goals seemed like a lot for a period. It wasn't. There were seven total goals in the second.

Blake Coleman scored back-to-back goals before an answer from Evan Bouchard. Matthew Tkachuk scored on the power play to restore the four-goal lead, but Zach Hyman scored two, and Leon Draisaitl and Kailer Yamamoto notched goals to tie the game 6-6 early in the third period. The game stayed level for 89 seconds before Rasmus Andersson untied it. Tkachuk was back with an unassisted goal at 8:55 of the third, and he added an empty-net goal to seal it, making the hats fly in the 9-6 win. It was the first Flames hat trick in a playoff game since Theoren Fleury notched a trick against the San Jose Sharks on May 13, 1995. It was the first playoff trick, and just the second-ever at home for the franchise, since Doug Risebrough's hatty May 5, 1986 against the St. Louis Blues.

Oddly enough, you needn't look very far back to the last time the Flames dropped a nine-spot on their provincial rivals. It happened the last time these teams met on March 26 in Calgary, as the Flames skated away with a 9-5 win. The last time the Oilers scored six in a playoff game and lost was May 12, 1985 in the Campbell Conference Finals in Game 4 against the Chicago Blackhawks, falling 8-6 at the old Chicago Stadium. Edmonton rebounded to win that series 4-2.

The 9-6 victory for the Flames helped these teams tie the fifth-highest combined goal total in NHL playoffs history.

Updated on 12/26/2024

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EDMONTON OILERS vs. CALGARY FLAMES BETTING ODDS

Oilers +140
Flames -175
Oilers +1.5 (-179)
Flames -1.5 (+155)
Over 6 (-120)
Under 6 (+100)

More Odds | Futures Odds

EDMONTON OILERS vs. CALGARY FLAMES BETTING RESOURCES

• Date: Friday, May 20, 2022
• Matchup: Pacific vs. Pacific
• Venue: Scotiabank Saddledome
• Location: Calgary, Alta.
• TV-Time: ESPN, 10:30 p.m. ET

EDMONTON OILERS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 53-30-7
• ATS: 43-47
• O/U: 46-41-3

So the last time we had seen the Oilers, they were on the good end of a 2-0 shutout win behind Smith in Game 7 against the Los Angeles Kings. The Oilers had allowed 13 total goals in the final six games of the series against the Kings, so naturally...a nine-spot.

The good news is that Edmonton's offense hasn't been an issue in the postseason. The Oilers have scored 16 goals across the past four games, or 4.0 GPG, and 33 total goals across eight postseason outings, or 4.1 GPG overall, while scoring four or more goals in three of their four road playoff contests.

The Oilers have still win 23 of the past 33 games overall, including seven of the past 11 road games. And Edmonton knows that even with the ugly, roller-coaster loss, it's just one loss. They didn't win or lose the series in Game 1. There is still plenty of hockey to be played in this series. The bad news is that the Oilers are just 2-6 in the past eight as an underdog, and 2-7 in the past nine as a road underdog.

It was a rare OVER result, too, as the UNDER was 3-1 in the final four games of the Kings series. The UNDER is still 7-3 in the past 10 road games for Edmonton, and 4-1 in the past five overall as an underdog.

CALGARY FLAMES BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 55-24-11
• ATS: 48-42
• O/U: 43-39-8

So the Flames outscored the Dallas Stars 15-14 in their seven-game series. Of course, EVERYONE could see a nine-goal outburst coming in Game 1 against their biggest rivals! In addition, Calgary had just nine 5-on-5 goals in the seven-game set with the Stars, notching one penalty-shot goal, three power-play goals and a pair of empty-net markers.

The Flames improved to 25-9 in the past 34 games at the Scotiabank Saddledome, while going 7-1 in the previous eight at home when favored, including that 9-5 whitewashing of the Oilers last time they met in the regular season.

The OVER in this series was not a huge surprise, as the OVER has cashed at a 14-6-1 clip across the past 21 meetings in Calgary. The OVER is also 13-6-2 in the past 21 games after notching at least five goals in the previous outing, so there might be more where that came from in Game 2. The OVER is also 5-1 in the past six when Calgary's opponent scores five or more goals in the most recent game.

EDMONTON OILERS vs. CALGARY FLAMES CONCLUSION

The Oilers will be looking to bounce back in Game 2, but will they be able to do it? The home team has come away with victories in each of the past six meetings. Calgary looked awfully good, and the fact they scored six goals and still weren't able to beat Jacob Markstrom is not a good sign.

This isn't a news flash, but we're not going to see 15 total goals again. Things are going to tighten up in Game 2, and if Edmonton were to somehow steal the game, no one would remember the crazy amount of goals and wild swings we saw in Game 1. But, the Oilers aren't going to win. We'll see another OVER result, as Smith and Mikko Koskinen just aren't terribly consistent or reliable. I'd much rather put my eggs in the basket of Markstrom and the home side, and I could see Calgary winning in five games in this series now.

EDMONTON OILERS vs. CALGARY FLAMES BETTING TRENDS

• Oilers are 23-10 in the past 33 games overall.
• Oilers are 7-4 in the past 11 road games.
• Oilers are 2-6 in the past eight as an underdog.
• Oilers are 2-7 in the past nine as a road 'dog.
• Flames are 37-17 in the past 54 games overall.
• Flames are 25-9 in the past 34 home games.
• Flames are 7-1 in the past eight as a home fave.
• UNDER is 7-3 in the past 10 road games for the Oilers.
• UNDER is 4-1 in the past five as a 'dog for the Oilers.
• UNDER is 6-3-1 in the past 10 games for the Flames.
• UNDER is 3-1-1 in the past five as a home fave for the Flames.
• UNDER is 11-5-2 in the past 18 playoff games as a favorite for the Flames.
• Home team is 6-0 in the past six meetings.
• Favorite is 5-1 in the past six meetings.
• Oilers are 1-5 in the past six trips to Calgary.
• OVER is 14-6-1 in the past 21 meetings in Calgary.

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Daniel Dobish

Dan is a handicapper and sports betting expert for VegasInsider with years of experience writing for a number of top publications in the industry. More from Daniel Dobish