The Florida Panthers will head into Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins in this marquee matchup tonight between two top teams in the league. The last time these teams met, the Penguins won 3-2 in a shootout. The Panthers are back in first place in the Atlantic while the Penguins are tied for second in the Metro. It’s time to continue our NHL odds series with a Panthers-Penguins prediction and pick.

Here are the Panthers-Penguins NHL Odds, Courtesy of FanDuel

NHL Odds: Panthers-Penguins Odds

Florida Panthers: -1.5 (+180) (-126 ML)

Pittsburgh Penguins: +1.5 (-230) (+105 ML)

Over: 6.5 (-122)

Under: 6.5 (+100)

Why The Panthers Can Cover The Spread/Win

Tonight, the Panthers will look to play the tail end of their back-to-back matchup and fourth game total in six nights. Florida has been red hot all year long, and their offense is incredible, scoring more than four goals per game, which deservedly ranks them number one in the league. The goaltending for the Panthers has also been incredible as backup Spencer Knight got the start against Buffalo, so it is very likely that starting goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky will get to start between the pipes tonight. He's been fantastic this season, partially due to the offense that he has in front of him, with a 28-6-3 record and sporting a .917 save percentage while allowing 2.54 goals against. He'll look to stay hot tonight against a pesky Penguins team who love to put pucks on net.

Why The Penguins Can Cover The Spread/Win

The Pittsburgh Penguins will obviously have their work cut out for them, but they're also well-rested since their last game was a Friday night 3-2 overtime loss to the Hurricanes. The Pens' offense has been up to par so far this season, ranking 11th with 3.21 goals per game. However, because of the Panthers' explosive offense, the Penguins will have to rely on their defense tonight; which luckily is one of the best in the league. Most of the defensive success can be credited towards their star goaltending in Tristan Jarry, who's 27-11-6 this season with a .921 save percentage and allowing 2.30 goals per game. He'll need to stay sharp tonight and allow his team to make the plays that he needs in front of him.

Final Panthers-Penguins Prediction & Pick

The Penguins are much more rested, so I expect them to come out on home ice tonight and dominate the first period. As long as they can strike early and often, and keep the pressure on throughout the game, the Penguins should have no problem taking care of a tired Panthers team. Lifetime Penguin, Sidney Crosby is on a six-game point streak as he'll look to keep that alive tonight as well. I'm going to back the home dogs here tonight, especially while it's in plus money, and take the Penguins straight up. I think they can pull this off on their home ice.

Final Panthers-Penguins Prediction and Pick: Penguins Moneyline (+105)