The Nashville Predators (23-19-7) come off a 5-4 victory over the Washington Capitals Wednesday and face the New Jersey Devils (18-24-7) Thursday at Prudential Center. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. We analyze the Predators-Devils sports betting odds and lines, while providing NHL betting tips and picks around this matchup.
Predators at Devils: Projected starting goalies
Pekka Rinne vs. MacKenzie Blackwood
Rinne took Wednesday night off in favor of backup Juuse Saros. The 37-year-old starter is 16-11-3 on the season with a .897 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average. He gave up four goals on 30 shots against the Toronto Maple Leafs Monday in his most recent start.
Blackwood backstopped the Devils to a win over the Ottawa Senators Monday, stopping 35 of 38 shots faced. He is now 15-12-6 on the campaign with a .906 SV% and 2.95 GAA through 32 starts and four relief appearances.
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Predators at Devils: Odds, picks and betting tips
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 9 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Devils 3, Predators 2
Moneyline (ML)
The Predators (-143) have been up-and-down and back-and-forth all season. Just when you’d think a win over the first-place Capitals would start the turnaround back in the direction of a playoff spot, they find ways to lose to teams like the Devils. They have strung together multiple wins just seven times this season and have won more than two games in a row just once all year (four). While Rinne enters the second half of the back-to-back rested, there’s a strong case to be made for Saros being the better of the two this year.
This leaves us with the DEVILS (+120). There isn’t a whole lot to like about picking them outright. They’re coming off a 4-3 shootout win over the lowly Senators but are still last in the Metropolitan Division and just 4-5-1 across their last 10 games. They’re 7-9-7 at home this season and the Preds are 12-9-3 on the road. This is about the plus-money return.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Devils to win outright returns a profit of $12.
Puck Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
The only play I really feel confident with Thursday is backing the DEVILS (+1.5, -222) with a goal of insurance in the event of a loss, but it’s plenty costly.
These two clubs have been two of the NHL’s largest disappointments this season. The Devils are 21-28 against spread overall and 10-13 at home. The Preds are 19-30 ATS overall and 11-13 on the road.
Over/Under (O/U)
Stuck between a rock and a hard place once again, we’re simply going to chase the value with the UNDER 5.5 (+125).
The Preds are 5-4-1 against the Over/Under across their last 10 games; the Devils are 6-4-0.
Esten’s NHL betting record: 188-176
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