Edmonton Oilers vs. New York Islanders Prediction, NHL Odds
Edmonton is coming off a shutout and is heating up with back-to-back wins after a loss in their season opener. The Islanders are on the opposite side of the coin, losing all three games and giving up 13 goals in the process.
The NHL odds have the Oilers as the -170 road favourites, with the total set at an even six goals. Puck drop at KeyBank Arena is set for 7:30 PM ET.
Oilers vs. Islanders NHL Betting Odds
The Oilers won both of the meetings last season in the cross-conference season series, in two tight one-goal contests. Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl scored four times in the season set, including both game winners. The Oilers have beaten the Isles in seven of their past 10 head-to-heads, playing the OVER in just three of those games.
The Oilers have a reputation for having gifted scorers, but bad goaltending. They have flipped the script on that early on this season, giving up just one goal in their past two wins, while scoring five. They are 1-2 on the OVER/UNDER and have covered the spread in both of their victories.
After back-to-back cup final appearances, the Oilers are the +775 favourite to bring home the cup this season. Our NHL Futures Board also features Connor McDavid as the front-runner for the Hart Trophy (+225) and the Art Ross (+170). McDavid is goalless but leads the team with four assists.
New York has opened as the favourite in just one game so far, putting them 0-3 against the spread, and their 13 goals against have helped them hit the OVER in each. They average 2.33 goals per game, which is the fifth lowest in the league. The slow start has hurt their playoff odds, pushing them to +375 to make it in. Rookie Matthew Schaefer has been the bright spot so far for New York, with a point in all three games. The first overall pick from the past draft has the second-best odds at the Calder Trophy (+340) behind Montreal’s Ivan Demidov.
Edmonton Oilers
The Oilers picked up their first win of the season in a dominant 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, outshooting the Canucks 37-15. They kept the ball rolling in their first road game of the season on Tuesday, taking down the New York Rangers 2-0.
Stuart Skinner stood on his head in that game, stopping all 30 shots and stealing a win for the Oilers. Trent Frederic scored his first of the season at the midway point of the game to break the scoreless tie, before Adam Henrique would throw one in the empty net to seal the deal.
Before the season, Captain Connor McDavid said he was looking to score more goals this year to prove his 64 goals in 2022-23 were no fluke. Last year, McDavid scored just 26 goals, his lowest total since his rookie campaign. He has yet to pop off with a huge McDavid-like performance in the early season, and Thursday looks like the perfect time to do so.
Edmonton has had six different goal scorers so far this season, led by perennial 50-goal man Leon Draisaitl. With two goals down, the German is looking for his second straight Rocket Richard Trophy.
New York Islanders
Wrapping up a three-game homestand on Thursday, the Islanders will look to pull off the upset to get their first points of the season. After back-to-back losses to inter-divisional opponents, the Islanders faced the reigning Western Conference champs, the Winnipeg Jets, on Monday. They fell behind 2-0 in the first, before Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s first of the season cut the lead in half. It would only take the Jets 14 seconds to regain their two-goal lead on their way to a 5-2 win.
Rookie defenceman Matthew Schaefer picked up another assist in the loss, bringing him to three points (1G, 2A), one in each professional game he has played. The 18-year-old is averaging over 23 minutes a night, proving to have the trust of head coach Patrick Roy.
New York ran a goaltending tandem of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov for the past few seasons. Still, with Varlamov on the shelf for the foreseeable future, Sorokin has taken over as the clear number one. The 30-year-old Russian has struggled in the early stage of the season, giving up four goals in each outing, while posting an .854 save percentage.
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