New Jersey Devils vs. New York Rangers Prediction, NHL Odds
Coming off a 5-3 home win against St. Louis on Wednesday, the Rangers are comfortably in the playoff picture with an eight-point cushion over Washington in the Metropolitan Division standings. The same can’t be said of the Devils. Following New Jersey’s 4-3 loss in Columbus on Tuesday, they’re now a whopping 22 points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
New York is a -175 favourite to win on the NHL odds, with a total of 6.0.
Devils vs. Rangers NHL Betting Odds
This is the second of four regular season meetings between the teams this year. The Rangers have come out on top in the last seven head-to-heads, including winning 4-3 in a shootout at home on Nov. 14. The teams will meet in New Jersey on March 22, then again on April 5. The Over has hit in eight of the last 10 games between these teams.
The Devils have struggled on the road this season, winning just eight of 27 games. They’re 26-28 against the spread overall, including 14-13 ATS on the road. Poor defence and goaltending has helped the total go Over in their last five games overall and their last five on the road.
New York is hot at home, winning 10 of their last 13 games at Madison Square Garden. They’re an even 27-27 ATS for the season, with covers in 12 of 26 home games. Vezina-calibre performances from Igor Shesterkin has helped the total go Under in five of the Rangers’ last seven games.
New Jersey Devils
Jack Hughes’ power-play marker in the first minute of the game on Tuesday put the Devils ahead early, but within 12 minutes the game was tied and New Jersey never led again. It was the fifth game this season in which the Devils have scored in the first minute, the most in the NHL. Nico Hischier and Pavel Zacha also scored in the loss, while rookie Nico Daws made 27 saves. Jesper Bratt, who leads the team with 50 points (19G, 31A), was held pointless for the first time in four games. Hughes is second on the team with a career-high 39 points (17G, 22A) and he’s riding a six-game point streak. Hischier is third with 36 (15G, 21A).
There’s been no word on who gets the start between 21-year-old Daws and Jon Gillies. Daws, who has started consecutive games for the first time in his NHL career, has a 3-2-0 record with a 2.79 goals-against average and .909 save percentage. Gillies has struggled heavily, losing his last three starts. He’s 3-9-0 with a 3.77 GAA and .884 SV.
New York Rangers
The Rangers avoided a season-high third consecutive loss on Wednesday, with Alexis Lafreniere, Ryan Strome, Patrik Nemeth, Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin all scoring goals. Adam Fox had three assists and Shesterkin made 29 saves. New York trailed 3-2 heading into the third period. Their 18 comeback wins this season is tied with Columbus for most in the NHL. Kreider is third in the NHL with a career-high 35 goals, including a league-high 18 on the power-play. Fox is third in scoring among defencemen, putting up 53 points (7G, 46A). Panarin leads the team with 59 points (15G, 44A).
It will either be Shesterkin or Alexandar Georgiev in net on Friday. Shesterkin, who has posted a 26-6-3 record, is a leading candidate for the Vezina Trophy and has even emerged in the Hart Trophy conversation. Among goalies with at least six games played this season, he is second in GAA (1.98), first in SV (.940) and sixth in shutouts (3). With trade interest surrounding Georgiev, he could get the start simply as a showcase to potential suitors. Georgiev is 7-8-2 with a 3.05 GAA and .897 SV.
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