For the upcoming battle between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday at 7:00 PM ET, we have highlighted the best bets to ponder, along with our picks and predictions, in the piece below.

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Penguins vs. Blue Jackets Picks

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Total Pick

Pick OU: Over 6.5 (model projecting 6.9 goals)

• Pittsburgh and its opponent have hit the over on this game’s total (6.5 goals) 22 times this season.
• In Columbus’ 40 games this season, 27 have finished with more goals than Tuesday’s over/under of 6.5.
• The over/under for this game (6.5) is 0.1 more than the combined scoring averages for the Penguins (3.02) and the Blue Jackets (3.38).
• This game’s total is 0.8 less than the 7.3 goals these two teams give up per game combined.

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Moneyline Pick

Penguins Moneyline: -150

• The Penguins have gone 7-2 this season when favored on the moneyline.
• Pittsburgh has had three games with moneyline odds of -150 or shorter and won them all.
• Based on the moneyline in this contest, the Penguins’ implied win probability is 60.0%.

Blue Jackets Moneyline: +126

• Columbus has 14 wins when playing as the underdog on the moneyline this season (which has happened 33 times).
• The Blue Jackets have 10 victories in games with moneyline odds of +126 or longer (in 23 chances).
• Columbus has a 44.2% chance to win this matchup (implied from the moneyline odds).

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Score Prediction

Prediction:
Pittsburgh 4, Columbus 3

Penguins Points Leaders

• With 11 goals and 31 assists this season, Sidney Crosby is one of Pittsburgh’s leading contributors (42 points).
• Rickard Rakell has 32 points (18 goals, 14 assists) to add to the team’s scoring efforts.
• Evgeni Malkin has created 31 points for Pittsburgh in 41 games this season, scoring on 10% of his shots and recording seven goals and 24 assists.
• As Pittsburgh’s top goalie, Tristan Jarry has recorded 8 wins and 6 losses this season while giving up 60 goals with 471 saves.

Blue Jackets Points Leaders

• Columbus’ Zachary Werenski has collected 33 assists and 12 goals in 40 games, good for 45 points.
• Kirill Marchenko is crucial for Columbus’ attack with 43 total points (1.1 per game), including 17 goals and 26 assists through 40 contests.
• Sean Monahan has 14 goals and 26 assists, for a season point total of 40.
• Elvis Merzlikins has an .888 save percentage (55th in the league), with 655 total saves, while allowing 83 goals (3.2 goals against average). He has put up a 13-10-3 record between the posts for Columbus this season.

Penguins’ Schedule

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Blue Jackets’ Schedule

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Pittsburgh vs. Columbus Game Info

• Date: Tuesday, January 7, 2025
• Time: 7:00 PM ET
• How to watch on TV: ESPN+
• Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo (Regional restrictions may apply)
• Live Stream: Watch this game on ESPN+
• Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Venue: PPG Paints Arena

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