Photo: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA – Photo by Icon sport
We are getting closer to the final quarter of the NHL season, and teams will need to step up in order to put themselves in a situation to play for the Stanley Cup. There is a thin line between the teams at the top of the conference and those in the middle, and only a handful of games can change everything.
Saturday night will bring us 13 games around the league, and we have our game breakdowns and NHL betting trends for four of them.
The New Jersey Devils will try to build momentum when they host the Montreal Canadiens, who have struggled the entire season. The Tampa Bay Lightning are going through a difficult period and will try to end their losing streak when they visit the New York Islanders. The Florida Panthers and the Washington Capitals will be part of an Eastern Conference classic, while the best teams in both conferences, the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins, will face each other tonight as well.
Let’s take a deeper look at the NHL betting trends for these four games.
Montreal Canadians vs New Jersey Devils
The Montreal Canadiens are 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 22-27-8 record. They have lost the last four games and are coming off a 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Canadiens are 28th in the NHL, scoring 2.74 goals per game, and are ranked one spot lower, allowing 3.53 goals per game. Nick Suzuki is the best player on the Canadiens with 53 points so far in the season, followed by Cole Caufield with 45.
The New Jersey Devils are 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 28-24-4 record. They have lost three of the last four games and are coming off a 5-1 loss to the New York Rangers. The Devils are 12th in the league, scoring 3.32 goals per game, and 26th, allowing 3.48. Jesper Bratt leads the Devils with 58 points, seven more than Jack Hughes.
Montreal Canadians vs New Jersey Devils: NHL betting trends
New Jersey is 12-4 SU in the last 16 games played against Montreal. The Devils are 1-5 SU their last 6 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference. The Canadiens are 4-1 SU in the last 5 game splayed in New Jersey, 1-6 SU in their last 7 games overall and 1-5 SU in their last 6 road games.
Prediction and Conclusion
Both teams are struggling lately and need to step up their game before it is too late. The Devils have a better roster, but their ups and downs have put them in a situation where they have to chase a spot in the playoffs. The Canadiens have slim hopes to do that, but they are a team that can beat anybody on a good night. They won 3-2 the last time they were in New Jersey, but the Devils are ready for a comeback. New Jersey is one game away from being 50% at home and will reach that mark with a win over the Canadiens.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Islanders
The Tampa Bay Lightning are eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 30-23-5 record. They have lost the last three games, all of them at home, and are coming off a 5-3 loss to the Washington Capitals. The Lightning are the best team in the league, converting 29.7% of the power play and fourth in penalty minutes with 670. Tampa Bay is seventh in the NHL, scoring 3.38 goals per game and 25th, allowing 3.41 goals per game. Nikita Kucherov leads the league with 95 points, is tied for second place with 59 assists, and is tied for third place with 36 goals.
The New York Islanders are 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 23-19-14 record. They have lost four of the last five games and are coming off a 4-0 loss to the St. Louis Blues. The Islanders are 22nd in the league, scoring 2.93 goals per game, and one spot lower, allowing 3.34. Matthew Barzal leads the team with 59 points, one more than Noah Dobson.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Islanders: NHL betting trends
The Lightning have won 6 of the last 8 games against the Islanders. They are 2-5 SU in the last 7 games against teams from the Eastern Conference. The Islanders have won 4 of the last 6 home games against Tampa Bay. They are 1-4 SU in the last five games overall and 1-5 SU in their last 6 home games.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Lightning have made the playoffs in the last six seasons, winning two Stanley Cups in that span, and will have to pick their game up if they want to keep that run alive. Losing three games in a row at home has sounded the alarm in Tampa Bay. On Friday, they are visiting the Islanders, who have won the last two games against the Lightning. However, New York has another poor season, and the Lightning will manage to end their losing streak and win their first game in New York after losing the last two when visiting the Islanders.
Boston Bruins vs Vancouver Canucks
The Boston Bruins are back on top of the Eastern Conference with a 34-12-12 record. The Bruins have lost five of their last seven games and are coming off a 3-2 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames, which was their fourth consecutive game ending in a tie after 60 minutes. The Bruins are third in the league with a 91.6 save percentage and fifth with 2.69 goals per game. Offensively, they are tenth, scoring 3.34 goals per game. David Pastrnak has another impressive season, finishing fourth in the league with 82 points.
The Vancouver Canucks are on top of the Western Conference with the best record in the league, 37-16-6. The Canucks are having the longest losing streak of the season, failing in the last four games, and are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Seattle Kraken. Vancouver is fourth in the league, scoring 3.64 goals per game, and is ranked seventh, allowing 2.75. JT Miller leads the Canucks with 76 points, three more than Elias Pettersson.
Boston Bruins vs Vancouver Canucks: NHL betting trends
Four of the last five games between these two teams have finished under the total goal line. Boston has played under the total goal line in 9 of their last 13 games, in 6 of the last 8 games against teams from the Pacific Divison and in 12 of their last 18 games in February. The Canucks have stayed under in 4 of their last 5 games against teams from the Eastern Conference.
Prediction and Conclusion
Both teams are having great seasons but have been going through a difficult period lately. That is especially the case with the Canucks, who lost the last four games but are coming back home after a three-game road trip. The Bruins are continuing their road trip with a stop in Vancouver. Every Boston game this week has ended in a tie in regulation, and this will be another close one. Knowing how good both defensive teams are, this will be a low-scoring game, finishing under 6.5.
Washington Capitals vs Florida Panthers
The Washington Capitals are ninth in the Eastern Conference with a 26-21-8 record. The Capitals have won the last three games and are coming off a 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Washington is 16th in the league, allowing 3.06 goals per game, and is ranked 30th with 2.53. Alex Ovechkin leads the team with 42 points, one more than Dylan Strome.
The Florida Panthers are third in the Eastern Conference with a 37-16-4 record. After winning six consecutive games, they lost 1-0 to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers are 13th in the league, scoring 3.28 goals per game and second, allowing only 2.40. Sam Reinhart leads Florida with 67 points, two more than Matthew Thachuk.
Washington Capitals vs Florida Panthers: NHL betting trends
14 of the last 19 games between these two teams have gone over the total goal line. Washington has played over in 4 of their last 5 games overall and in 5 of the last 7 road games.
Prediction and Conclusion
It seemed like the playoff hopes were over for Washington, but they have won the last three games, and things look promising again. However, the Panthers have won the last eight games against the Capitals, so winning in Florida will be tough for the team from DC. Still, they have nothing to lose in this one and will go into full offensive mode since that is the only way they can compete against the Panthers. Florida saw their winning streak snapped in the last one and will try to get back on winning track right away. Given that, this will be an up-tempo hockey game that will go over 6.5 goals.
10 no sweat bets up to $1000 total
