New Jersey Devils vs. Buffalo Sabres Prediction, NHL Odds
Hockey is finally back. With all due respect to the NHL pre-season, I have zero respect for the NHL pre-season. I mean come on, the only players trying in exhibition games are players who likely won’t play in the NHL. The only thing the pre-season does is risk injuries to star players for the sake of a few extra home gates for the owners. OK, rant over.
On to the regular season, which begins with two games between the New Jersey Devils and the Buffalo Sabres at the O2 Arena in Prague, Czechia on Friday and Saturday.
Game 1 is set for a 1 p.m. ET start. The Devils enter as -150 favourites to win on the NHL odds, with the total set at 6.5.
Devils vs. Sabres NHL Betting Odds
New Jersey took two of three games against Buffalo last season, with the home team winning all three contests (obviously not a factor this weekend with the games played in Europe). These teams generally combine for high scoring games as the Over has hit in eight of the last 10 head-to-heads, including five straight.
After an injury-plagued season that saw the Devils finish seventh in the Metropolitan Division last season, there are high expectations for a bounce-back year in New Jersey. They’re tied with Dallas for the fourth-shortest Stanley Cup odds at +1100 on the NHL futures board and they’re favoured to win the Metro at +220. While New Jersey to make the playoffs at -450 doesn’t offer a ton of value, I like them at +1100 to win the Presidents’ Trophy.
It’s not as optimistic in Buffalo, with the Sabres sitting at +9000 to win the Stanley Cup and +1600 to win the Atlantic Division. This is one of the youngest teams in the league and they’re primed to take a step forward this season. It’s tempting to take Buffalo at +170 to make the playoffs, but I think a more reasonable goal is for the Sabres to finish with Over 88.5 points. They had 84 points last season and the improvements they have made to the roster in the off-season are worth at least another three wins.
If you’re looking for player props, I think there’s tremendous value on Jack Hughes winning the Hart Trophy at +1100. Hughes’ points-per-game average over the last three years puts him at well over a 100-point pace for the season if he stays healthy and he’ll have the narrative of dragging the Devils back to the post-season.
New Jersey Devils
New Jersey made some significant moves in the off-season, trading for goalie Jacob Markstrom and hiring new head coach Sheldon Keefe. Markstrom is a massive upgrade in net. He stopped nearly 14 goals above expected last season on a bad Calgary team, compared to the combined 0.01 goals saved above expected by the five goalies who played for New Jersey. And Keefe is one of the most successful regular season coaches in NHL history, with his .665 winning percentage in five seasons leading Toronto ranking third all-time among coaches with at least 100 regular season games under their belt. Keefe is also the Jack Adams favourite at +550.
Another reason for optimism is the return of a healthy Dougie Hamilton. The blueliner was limited to 20 games because of injury last year, but his 16 points put him on a 66-point pace for the season, which would have made him the ninth-highest scoring defenceman in the league. One defenceman who won’t be in the lineup, however, is Luke Hughes, who is expected to miss at least a couple months with a shoulder injury.
Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres made some solid upgrades in the off-season, trading for Ryan McLeod from Edmonton and signing Jason Zucker, James Reimer and Colton Poolman each to low-risk one-year deals. Buffalo’s biggest losses are Zemgus Girgensons, Tyson Jost, Victor Olofsson and Eric Comrie, who all signed elsewhere in free agency. Defenceman Rasmus Dahlin was recently named captain and I think he provides solid value at +1500 to win the Norris Trophy. The 24-year-old was nearly a point-per-game player two years ago and he’ll be a big factor if Buffalo ends their 13-year playoff drought.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will be the undisputed starter in Game 1 for the first time in his NHL career. Luukkonen played the majority of the games last season, going 27-22-4 with a 2.57 goals-against average, .910 save percentage and four shutouts. The 25-year-old is expected to play the first game in the Global series, which likely means Reimer plays the second. Reimer played for Detroit last season, finishing 20-11-8 with a 3.11 GAA, .904 SV and two shutouts.
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