The New York Islanders (8-5-0) and New York Rangers (6-4-3) meet Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Islanders vs. Rangers odds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
The Islanders are coming off a 4-3 overtime win Monday against the visiting Calgary Flames, winning for the 6th time in their last 7 games. The Isles kicked off the stretch with a 3-0 win over the Rangers at UBS Arena behind G Ilya Sorokin.
The Rangers have dropped back-to-back games on home ice to fellow Original 6 teams, the Boston Bruins (5-2 Thursday) and Detroit Red Wings (3-2 in overtime Sunday). New York is 3-3-3 across its last 9 outings.
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Islanders at Rangers odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 7 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Islanders +145 (bet $100 to win $145) | Rangers -180 (bet $180 to $100)
- Puck line (PL)/Against the spread (ATS): Islanders +1.5 (-165) | Rangers -1.5 (+133)
- Over/Under (O/U): 6.5 (O: -103 | U: -117)
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Islanders at Rangers projected goalies
Semyon Varlamov (2-2-0, 2.90 GAA, .909 SV%) vs. Igor Shesterkin (6-1-2, 2.41 GAA, .916 SV%, 1 SO)
Varlamov suffered a loss with 2 goals allowed on 24 shots last time out at Detroit Saturday. He was actually pulled midway through the 3rd period in favor of Sorokin.
Shesterkin, the defending Vezina Trophy winner, allowed 4 goals on 36 shots in a loss against the visiting Bruins Thursday. That setback snapped a 3-game win streak, and it was his 1st regulation setback in 9 starts overall.
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Islanders at Rangers picks and predictions
Prediction
Rangers 4, Islanders 2
Moneyline
The RANGERS (-180) are worth playing lightly, but this is a little expensive based on the head-to-head trends.
The Islanders have managed 17 wins in the last 22 trips to MSG and are 7-2 in the last 9 overall in the series.
So why pick the Blueshirts? The difference is that Shesterkin will be in the crease, with Varlamov — and not Sorokin — between the pipes for the Isles.
Puck line/Against the spread
The RANGERS -1.5 (+133) is a decent play worth a half-unit on home ice.
The Rangers have really struggled lately, so this is risky business. They’re 1-5 in the past 6 games at home, but they should catch a break against Varlamov. The offense should be able to come alive, but be ready to sweat a little. It might come down to an empty-net goal to get over the hump here.
Over/Under
UNDER 6.5 (-117) is the best play on the board here.
The Under has been such a dominating trend in this series that you have to keep rolling with it until the Over starts to hit on a routine basis.
The Under is 12-3-1 in the past 16 meetings overall in this series and has cashed at a 6-0-1 mark in the past 7 meetings at MSG.
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