It was a rough night for us on Tuesday with the Bruins and Leafs showing no signs of rust playing their second of back to back games. Tonight I looked at the odds and was very surprised at what I saw. Many teams that would be favourites or big favourites in my books were either dogs or given a slight edge. See what I mean below:
Vancouver Canucks @ New York Rangers
The Canucks have been by far the hottest team in the NHL over the past quarter of the season. The stats are simply amazing. The Canucks have only lost 1 of their last 22 games in regulation. They are actually currently on a 17 game streak of retaining at least 1 point from each game played. They’ve won 9 of their last 10 and have shown no signs of stopping. The Rangers on the other hand, have been playing fairly average hockey, winning 5 of their last 10, but their success has not come at home this season (10-9-2). Expect the Canucks to add another win to their tally. I was expecting the Canucks to be big favourites, but you can bet them at just -120.
My Pick: Vancouver Canucks -120 (Sportsbook.com)
Ottawa Senators @ New York Islanders
When I looked at the line earlier today and saw that the Senators were slight -115 favourites at Bookmaker.com I was surprised and expected to be placing a wager on the Islanders. After I investigated some more though I have found that Robin Lehner will be getting his first start in goal as a Senator tonight and Corey Locke, the AHL’s leading scorer will finally be getting the call to play with the big club. These might be Brian Murray’s smartest moves all season long. Lehner is, in my opinion, the best goaltender in the Senators system even though he is just 19. The team will come to play tonight, because they will want to perform for their rookie goaltender and the shakeup can only do good. Corey Locke will bring some added creativity and production to the team which has been sorely lacking. Bringing up other role players from the AHL was always strange to me, especially when you have the AHL’s leading scorer just waiting for a shot at the big time. Expect the Senators to be on their game tonight, but even that might not be enough. That being said I see them winning, with Lehner having a strong game and Locke picking up at least a point.
My Pick: Ottawa Senators -110 (Bodog.com)
Carolina Hurricanes @ Buffalo Sabres
The Hurricanes have been playing very well of late and for some reason are tagged as +110 underdogs in this game. The ‘Canes are (11-8-4) on the road this season, while the Sabres are (9-11-1) at home. The Canes are on a 3 game winning streak, while the Sabres have lost their last game. The Hurricanes definitely have at least a 50/50 chance of winning tonight.
My Pick: Carolina Hurricanes +110 (Bookmaker.com)
Nashville Predators @ Florida Panthers
The Predators are on a 6 game tear heading into Florida tonight, but once again the Predators are the underdogs for reasons on beknownst to me. The Preds have shown they are a very streaky team so you have to back them when they are on one of these streaks. They put a clinic on against the Wild a couple nights ago, and the Wild are a stronger team than the Panthers. Expect the streak to continue.
My Pick: Nashville Predators +100 (Bookmaker.com)
These are four great plays for this evenings games. Check out our past NHL predictions and sign up for exclusive picks through our newsletter below.
Written by: Niko de Jonge
Tagged with: buffalo sabres • Carolina Hurricanes • Florida Panthers • Nashville Predators • New York Islanders • New York Rangers • Ottawa Senators • Vancouver Canucks