The New York Rangers (43-19-5) face off against the Detroit Red Wings (26-32-8) Wednesday at Little Caesars Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we look at the Rangers vs. Red Wings odds and lines, and make our expert NHL picks, predictions and bets.
The Rangers are on fire as winners of 5 of the last 6, including a 3-2 victory in Pittsburgh Tuesday. We nailed that one as the Rangers entered at +145 on the money line and stole the road win. They’ll be on the back end of a back-to-back on the road, and this is their seventh game in 11 days.
The Red Wings probably can’t wait to hit the ice and forget Sunday even happened as they were clubbed, 11-3, by the Pittsburgh Penguins. They have won just 2 of their last 10.
Rangers at Red Wings odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 3:12 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Rangers -140 (bet $140 to win $100) | Red Wings +115 (bet $100 to win $115)
- Against the spread (ATS): Rangers -1.5 (-170) | Red Wings +1.5 (-230)
- Over/Under (O/U): 6.5 (O: -135 | U: -100)
Rangers at Red Wings projected goalies
Alexandar Georgiev (10-9-2, 3.08 GAA, .894 SV%, 1 SO) vs. Alex Nedeljkovic (17-20-7, 3.26 GAA, .901 SV%, 2 SO)
Georgiev survived a 5-4 overtime scare Sunday against the lowly Buffalo Sabres his last time out. He made just 13 saves on 17 shots in the game. That’s a far cry from shutting out the first-place Carolina Hurricanes March 20 when he stopped 44 shots.
Nedeljkovic started the laugher against the Penguins and coughed up the first 7 goals before hitting the showers. If you take out Sunday’s massacre, he has a solid .908 SV% on a bad team this month. He did not play in the game against the Rangers last month.
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Rangers at Red Wings odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Red Wings 4, Rangers 3
Money line
The Red Wings stunned the Rangers last month in a 3-2 win via shootout. And that was against Vezina Trophy front runner Igor Shesterkin. This time they have added motivation and newly acquired C Oskar Sundqvist in tow. Sunny has two goals, an assist and is a plus-1 in four games since he was acquired from the St. Louis Blues.
This feels like a trap game, and the Red Wings are rested and angry. LEAN RED WINGS +115 for the upset.
Against the spread
Both teams are decent on the puck line as the Rangers are 20-16 against it on the road, and the Red Wings are 17-17 against it at home. The Red Wings offer no insurance in the event their upset plans come undone at +1.5 (-230). So we’re going to STEER CLEAR of this one even though it may be a safe bet to side with Detroit.
Over/Under
I don’t like taking 6.5 Overs, but this one makes some sense. The first game ended 3-2 with the Rangers’ top goalie in net. This one features a leaky backup and an angry team that just saw the lamp light up so much that Pittsburgh may raise ticket prices to cover the electric bill. The Rangers are 6-4 O/U in thelast 10 games while the Red Wings are 6-3-1 O/U. The Over is also 8-1 in the last 9 at Little Caesars Arena. Let’s put up a half-unit on the OVER 6.5 (-135).
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