Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Florida Panthers December 13 Betting Preview

Columbus Blue Jackets and Ohio hockey fans, what we have here is a winning streak! The Blue Jackets have won two games in a row and head to Florida to take on the Panthers. For Florida's part, the Panthers have lost their last two games to the Seattle Kraken and Tampa Bay Lightning. 

This is the second of three head-to-head matchups between the Panthers and Blue Jackets this season, with Columbus winning the first matchup 5-3 on November 20.

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Columbus Blue Jackets Preview

With a two-game winning streak, the Columbus Blue Jackets have improved their record to 10-15-2, ranking CBJ eighth in the Metropolitan Division. The Blue Jackets have lost three of the previous five games, with two games hitting 6.5 goals and four ending in at least a 1.5-goal spread. 

Notably, Columbus is 1-8 in the last nine games after scoring five goals or more in the previous game. The over is 8-2 in games following a CBJ win, but the under has gone 4-1 in the Blue Jackets' last five games against Eastern Conference competition. 

We expect Elvis Merzlikins back in the net for CBJ. Merzlikins has a 4-7-0 record, a 4.83 goals-against average, and a .862 save percentage. 

Daniil Tarasov is back with Columbus, replacing an injured Joonas Korpisalo. If Tarasov gets the start, he has a 2-3-1 record, a 3.17 goals-against average, and a .912 save percentage.

Florida Panthers Preview

The Florida Panthers have lost their last two games to very tough competition. The Panthers enter Tuesday night with a 13-12-4 record. The Panthers have lost three of their last five games, with all five games ending in at least a 1.5 goal spread, while only one game has hit the over of 6.5.

Notably, four of the Panthers' previous five games have ended with either six or 6.5 total goals. The over is 6-1 in the Panthers' previous seven home games, while the under is 4-0 when the Panthers play a team with a sub .400 winning percentage. 

With Spencer Knight listed as day-to-day, we expect Sergei Bobrovsky to start for the Florida Panthers. Bobrovsky has a 5-8-1 record, a 3.58 goals-against average, and a .884 save percentage.

Blue Jackets vs. Panthers Odds And Picks

As mentioned, the Columbus Blue Jackets are the moneyline underdog, listed at (+230), while the Florida Panthers are the favorite at (-286). 

Columbus is listed at +1.5 on the puckline spread with (-104) odds, while Florida is listed at -1.5 with (-118) odds. The Blue Jackets have a 13-14 record against the spread, while the Panthers are 9-20 against the spread.

Using a total goals line of 6.5 goals, the over is listed at (-127), while the under is listed at (+105) odds. 

The over/under trends for the Blue Jackets vs. Panthers can lead to different picks on the total goals line. However, we're going to take the under of 6.5.

For the second pick, we're taking CBJ on the moneyline. They are red-hot, and why not make it three in a row?