Buffalo Sabres at New Jersey Devils NHL Picks & Predictions 12/29/2017

Friday, December 29, 2017

Prudential Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Buffalo Sabres travel to Prudential Center to play the New Jersey Devils on Friday, December 29, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Sabres at +113 and the Devils at -125.

Buffalo has a record of 9-20-8 this season and on the road they have a record of 4-10-6-0. They are 8th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 80 goals and given up 123 goals for a point differential of -43. For the season they have an ATS record of 9-28-0 and an over/under record of 14-20-0. New Jersey is 22-9-5 including 12-5-2-1 at home this season. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 116 goals and surrendered 104 for a goal differential of +12. Their record against the spread is 22-14-0 while their over/under record is 19-16-0.

Valuable Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 9-28-0 straight up this year

The Buffalo Sabres are 14-20-0 against the over/under this season

Important New Jersey Devils Betting Trends

The New Jersey Devils are 22-14-0 straight up this year

The New Jersey Devils are 19-16-0 against the over/under this season

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

11/17/17 D Taylor Fedun Lower Body IR (11/15)

Key New Jersey Devils Injuries

11/15/17 D Mirco Mueller Collarbone IR (11/12)

Player Spotlight

Jack Eichel has accumulated 33 total points this season for the Sabres. He has 13 goals this year with 121 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 20 assists on the season and averages 20.5 minutes played per game. Evander Kane averages 19.9 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 15 goals on 158 shots. He has 19 assists, giving him a total of 34 points on the season. Robin Lehner has 8 wins and 14 losses this season in net for the Sabres. He has 823 shots against him and he's given up 70 goals. He's made 753 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Jesper Bratt has scored 24 total points this year for the Devils. He has 10 goals this season with 56 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 18%. He has a total of 14 assists on the season and averages 16.2 minutes played per game. Nico Hischier averages 16.3 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 9% by scoring 7 goals on 81 shots. He has 16 assists, giving him a total of 23 points on the season. Cory Schneider has 17 wins and 6 losses this year in goal for the Devils. He has 899 shots against him and he's surrendered 69 goals. He's made 830 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres have 26 total points this season, which ranks them 30th in the NHL. They are 31st in the league in goals scored with 80 while they've given up 123 goals, ranking them 3rd overall. They have had 110 power play opportunities and have scored 13 goals on those chances for a percentage of 12%. That is 30th in the NHL. The Sabres have allowed 114 power play opportunities and have given up 20 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%, putting them 11th in the league when short-handed. They average 31 shots per game and as a team shoot 6.99% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%. That puts them 26th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Devils are 4th in the NHL with a total of 49 points this year. They have 23 power play goals on 110 opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That ranks them 10th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 128 power play opportunities and have given up 20 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 84%. That is 3rd in the NHL. As a team, the Devils are 8th in the league with 116 goals scored while they've given up 104 goals, which is 20th overall. They average 30 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.57%. As a team they give up 33 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 12th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Buffalo has a Corsi percentage of 48% as they've tried 2,006 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,171 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 24th in Corsi percentage. They are 22nd in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 48.2% as they have 1,528 shots while they've given up 1,644 attempts on defense. The Sabres start possessions in the offensive zone 52.7% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.3% for the year. That puts them 8th and 22nd in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,134 face-off wins as opposed to 1,093 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.9%. That is 10th overall in the NHL. On defense Buffalo has 860 hits and they've blocked 527 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 21st in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Devils are 31st in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 46.3% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 53.7% for the season, which is 4th in the NHL. They have 1,077 face-off wins compared to 1,194 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 47.4%. That is 29th in the league. On defense New Jersey has 778 hits and they have blocked 543 shots from the opposition, which is 17th in the league. New Jersey is 29th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 46.9% as they've attempted 1,931 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,183 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 47.7% ranks 24th as they have 1,493 attempts while they have given up 1,640 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Sabres/Devils NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take New Jersey -125

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