Buffalo Sabres at New York Islanders NHL Picks & Predictions 10/7/2017

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Barclays Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Buffalo Sabres travel to Barclays Center to play the New York Islanders on Saturday, October 7, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Sabres at +125 and the Islanders at -155.

Buffalo had a record of 33-37-12 last season and on the road they had a record of 13-22-6. They finished 8th in the Atlantic Division. They scored 201 goals and gave up 237 goals for a point differential of -36. For the season they had an ATS record of 33-49-0 and an over/under record of 37-38-0. New York finished with a record of 41-29-12 including 22-12-7 at home last season. They were 5th in the Metropolitan Division. They scored 241 goals and surrendered 242 for a goal differential of -1. Their record against the spread was 41-41-0 while their over/under record was 42-37-0.

Valuable Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres were 33-49-0 straight up last year

The Buffalo Sabres were 37-38-0 against the over/under last season

Important New York Islanders Betting Trends

The New York Islanders were 41-41-0 straight up last year

The New York Islanders were 42-37-0 against the over/under last season

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

10/06/17 D Justin Falk Lower Body "?" Saturday vs. NY Islanders
10/06/17 D Zach Bogosian Lower Body "?" Saturday vs. NY Islanders

Key New York Islanders Injuries

10/05/17 C Alan Quine Wrist out indefinitely
10/05/17 LW Shane Prince Ankle out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Rasmus Ristolainen accumulated 45 total points last season for the Sabres. He had 6 goals last year with 183 shots on goal giving him a shooting percentage of 3%. He had a total of 39 assists on the season and averaged 26.6 minutes played per game. Jack Eichel averaged 20 minutes of ice time per game last year. In that time he had a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 24 goals on 241 shots. He had 33 assists giving him a total of 57 points on the season. Robin Lehner had 23 wins and 26 losses last season in net for the Sabres. He had 1,910 shots against him and he gave up 152 goals. He made 1,758 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Jordan Eberle scored 47 total points last year for the Islanders. He had 16 goals last season with 198 shots on goal giving him a shooting percentage of 8%. He had a total of 31 assists on the season and averaged 16.8 minutes played per game. John Tavares averaged 20.4 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he had a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 28 goals on 260 shots. He had 38 assists giving him a total of 66 points on the season. Jaroslav Halak had 12 wins and 9 losses last year in goal for the Islanders. He had 885 shots against him and he surrendered 75 goals. He made 810 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres had 78 total points last season, which ranked them 26th in the NHL. They were 25th in the league in goals scored with 201 while they gave up 237 goals, ranking them 10th overall. They had 233 power play opportunities and scored 57 goals on those chances for a percentage of 24%. That was 1st in the NHL. The Sabres allowed 237 power play opportunities and gave up 53 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 78%, putting them 25th in the league when short-handed. They averaged 30 shots per game and as a team shot 8.07% for the season. They allowed 34 shots to their opposition per contest and had a team save percentage of 92%. That put them 4th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Islanders were 17th in the NHL with a total of 94 points last year. They had 35 power play goals on 234 opportunities for a percentage of 15%. That ranked them 28th in the league as a power play unit. They allowed 227 power play opportunities and gave up 40 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%. That was 11th in the NHL. As a team, the Islanders were 10th in the league with 241 goals scored while they gave up 242 goals, which was 8th overall. They averaged 30 shots per contest and had a team shooting percentage of 9.72%. As a team they gave up 32 shots per game and had a save percentage of 91%. That was 17th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

The Sabres started possessions in the offensive zone 48.7% of the time while their defensive zone percentage was at 51.3% for the year. That ranked them 21st and 4th respectively in the NHL. They had 2,445 face-off wins as opposed to 2,484 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage was 49.6%. That was 12th in the league. On defense Buffalo had 1,872 hits and they blocked 1,121 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 18th in blocked shots. Buffalo was ranked 28th in Corsi percentage with 47.2% as they tried 4,416 shots on goal while at full strength while they surrendered 4,939 shots on net when they had a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage was 27th in the NHL at 47%, as they had 3,384 shots while they gave up 3,818 attempts on defense.

Advanced Statistics

New York was 25th in the NHL in Corsi percentage last year with 47.5%, as they attempted 4,574 shots on net at full strength while they gave up 5,049 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage was 47.9% as they had 3,395 attempts while they gave up 3,686 shots on the defensive end. That ranked them 26th in the league. The Islanders started possessions in the offensive zone 50.2% of the time, which was 17th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage was at 49.8% for the season. That was 12th overall in the NHL. They had 2,261 face-off wins compared to 2,480 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage was 47.7%. That ranked them 25th in the league. On defense New York had 2,126 hits and they blocked 1,363 shots from the opposition, putting them 1st overall.

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

Guy's Pick: Take New York -155

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Read more articles by Guy Bruhn