Pittsburgh Penguins vs Chicago Blackhawks Prediction 12/28/2025 Today’s NHL Picks
Chris Ruffolo
Dec 23, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby (87) warms up before playing the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
MATCHUP
Pittsburgh Penguins
Chicago Blackhawks
Team Records
15-12-9
14-17-6
Spread
-1.5 154
+1.5 -185
Moneyline
-170
+142
Total
Over 5.5 (-130)
Under 5.5 (110)
Where
United Center, Chicago, IL
When
Sunday, December 28, 2025
Time
07:00 PM EST
TV
ESPN+
The Pittsburgh Penguins and the Chicago Blackhawks meet Sunday in NHL action from the United Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Chicago Blackhawks prediction.
Pittsburgh Penguins Recap
The Pittsburgh Penguins come into this game looking to rebound from their 6-3 loss at the hands of the Maple Leafs last time out to sit at 15-12-9 this season. After this game, Pittsburgh will head home for a game against Carolina.
Penguins Drop 9 Of Last 10
Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh in scoring with 38 points including a team-high 20 goals and 18 assists while Evgeni Malkin has 29 points with 8 goals and 21 assists. Anthony Mantha has 23 points with 11 goals and 12 assists. Erik Karlsson has 23 assists while Bryan Rust has 30 points with 13 goals and 17 assists. Arturs Silovs has gone 5-5-6 with a 3.22 GAA and an .889 save percentage in goal for the Penguins so far this season while Stuart Skinner is 0-3 with a 4.18 GAA and an .831 save percentage this year. Sergei Murashov is 1-1-2 with a 2.56 GAA and an .897 save percentage in goal for Pittsburgh this season.
Chicago Blackhawks Recap
The Chicago Blackhawks come into this game looking to add on to their 4-3 shootout win over the Dallas Stars last time out to sit at 14-17-6 this season. After this game, Chicago will take on the New York Islanders in a game at home.
Blackhawks Snap Six-Game Losing Streak
Entering the game against Dallas, Connor Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 44 points including a team-high 19 goals and 25 assists while Frank Nazar has 21 points with 6 goals and 15 assists. Teuvo Teravainen has 17 points with 11 assists while Ryan Donato has 15 points with 9 goals of his own. Andre Burakovsky has 23 points with 9 goals and Tyler Bertuzzi has 26 points with 16 goals and 10 assists. Spencer Knight has gone 10-10-5 with a 2.55 GAA and a .914 save percentage while Arvid Soderblom has gone 3-7-1 with a 4.04 GAA and an .873 save percentage so far this season in goal for Chicago.
Pittsburgh Penguins @ Chicago Blackhawks Betting Trends: December 28, 2025
Why the Chicago Blackhawks will win
The Blackhawks have won each of their last four games as underdogs after coming off a shootout.
The Penguins have lost nine of their last 10 games.
The Blackhawks have covered the puck line in each of their last six home games after coming off overtime.
The Penguins have failed to cover the puck line in seven of their last eight games.
The Penguins have lost the third period in each of their last five road games.
Why the Pittsburgh Penguins will win
The Blackhawks have lost nine of their last 10 night games on the second leg of a back-to-back.
The favorites have won each of the Penguins’ last six games.
The favorites have covered the puck line in four of the Penguins’ last five games.
The Blackhawks have failed to cover the puck line in four of their last five home games following a shootout win.
The favorites have won the first period in each of the Penguins’ last five games.
Total Goals Facts
Eight of the Blackhawks’ last nine games following an overtime win have gone UNDER the total goals line.
Each of the Penguins’ last four night games against Central Division opponents have gone UNDER the total goals line.
The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Blackhawks’ last eight home games against the Penguins.
The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Penguins’ last seven games as favorites against the Blackhawks.
Chicago Blackhawks Player Prop Facts
Connor Bedard has scored at least one goal in three of his last four appearances in home games.
Connor Bedard has recorded at least one assist in each of his last five appearances after playing the previous day.
Andre Burakovsky has recorded 28 career hits against the Penguins – most against any opponent (including playoffs).
Pittsburgh Penguins Player Prop Facts
Anthony Mantha has scored a goal in three of his last four appearances against the Blackhawks.
Bryan Rust has recorded at least one assist in each of the Penguins’ last four games as favorites.
Sidney Crosby ranks T6th in the league for Power Play Goals (8) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
The Chicago Blackhawks rank 4th in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (84.50%).
The Chicago Blackhawks rank 26th in the league for goals per game this season (2.76).
The Pittsburgh Penguins rank 3rd in the league in power play percentage this season (29.29%).
The Pittsburgh Penguins have recorded the equal-longest losing streak (8 games) in the NHL this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Chicago Blackhawks Prediction
I’m going to side with Chicago here. The Blackhawks haven’t been great, but they got a nice win over Dallas last time out and even though the Penguins are the far more rested team here, having not played since before the Christmas Break, I still think that the Penguins just aren’t a team I’m looking to back right now. The back-to-back spot isn’t ideal, but if Chicago can take down Dallas I think they can definitely knock off Pittsburgh here. Give me the Blackhawks.
