New Jersey Devils vs. New York Islanders - 1/2/20 NHL Picks, Odds, and Prediction

Game: New Jersey Devils vs New York Islanders

Date: Thursday, January 2, 2020

Location: Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY

TV: NBCS

Odds/Point Spread: Devils (+188) Islanders (-210)

Total/Over-Under: 5.5

Semyon Varlamov and the New York Islanders (25-10-3, 2nd in the Metropolitan Division) host the New Jersey Devils (14-19-6, 8th in the Metropolitan Division) at Barclays Center on Thursday, January 2, 2020. The Devils open this matchup at +188 while the Islanders are coming in at -210. The total is set at 5.5. The Devils are covering 32.4% of the time, having gone 12-25 SU. New York is covering 62.9% of the time, going 22-13 straight up.

The New Jersey Devils head into this game holding a record of 14 wins and 19 losses, which puts them at 8th in the Metropolitan Division. So far this season, they have earned a total of 100 goals which has them ranked at 15th in the conference and 29th in the league. Their goal differential is -34, which puts them at 30th in the league. The Devils currently have a total of 34 points, which has them ranked at 30th in the league and 15th in the East. When talking about shots toward the net, they currently have a total of 1,214 which has them ranked at 12th in the Eastern Conference and 24th in the league. As a unit, New Jersey has earned a total of 719 hits which means they are averaging 18.4 per contest. They currently have a total of 454 blocks for the season. The man in the crease for New Jersey is MacKenzie Blackwood from Vancouver, British Columbia. He is 23 years old and has totaled 1,704 minutes protecting the goal for the campaign. Blackwood is surrendering an average of 2.85 goals per contest which ranks him 13th among Eastern Conference goaltenders and 27th in the NHL among goaltenders. During this season, he's allowed 81 goals. He holds a save % of .907 which ranks him 16th among Eastern Conference goaltenders.

Related: NHL Totals Betting: Expert Tips and Advice

The New Jersey Devils were on the right side of the scoreboard with a 3 - 2 victory over the Boston Bruins in their previous game. The Devils offense showed they have some room for improvement in this win. For this matchup, they scored on 3 out of the 44 shots they put on goal. In addition, they had 4 power play opportunities but weren't able to score a goal. New Jersey had a total of 6 penalty mins while out there on the ice. The Corsi for the Devils sat at 68 and the Corsi against was 54 which tells us they had a Corsi percentage of 55.7%. Their Fenwick sat at 54 while the Fenwick against was 40, which tells us they had a Fenwick percentage of 57.4%. They earned 18 face-off wins at even strength and lost 19 of all total face-offs. Their starts in the offensive zone came in at 33.8% and they had a PDO of 101.6 for this one. When it comes to their opponent, the Boston Bruins put up 30 shots. They finished with 8 penalty minutes and they notched 3 power play opportunities.

The Islanders will be on the other side of the ice and for the current year they sit with 25 wins and 10 losses. With reference to goal differential, they currently sit 7th in the conference and 9th in the NHL with +12. They currently have a total of 111 goals for this season which ranks 13th in the Eastern Conference. New York has a team save % of .917 which is good for 5th in the NHL, which means scoring chances may be limited. They have a team shooting percentage of 10.2% putting them at 8th in the East. In net for New York is Semyon Varlamov who is having an average season by allowing 2.43 GAA and that ranks him 7th among Eastern Conference goalies and 13th in the NHL. In the 1,310 minutes he's been on the ice this year, he's allowed 53 goals. He holds a save % of .920, which puts him at 5th among Eastern Conference goalies and 13th in the NHL.

Related: How to Turn Hockey Bets into Big Profits

The New York Islanders went up against the Washington Capitals in a matchup where the Islanders took home the win by a final of 4 - 3. For this matchup, New York had a 34.8% Corsi rating. That percentage was had by earning a Corsi of 40 while the opposition had a Corsi of 75. Their Fenwick percentage was 35.9% with a Fenwick of 28 and the Capitals ending the game with a 50 Fenwick at even strength. These Corsi stats tell us the story of the kind of game New York played and they showed up in this game. They had a PDO of 110.0 and they finished this one with an oZS percentage of 34.8%. The Islanders notched 4 goals of the 22 shots on goal they tried. They had 2 power play chances in this game but didn't put one in the back of the net. Regarding the opposition, the Capitals had 2 power play attempts but weren't able to take advantage of it. New York gave up 39 shots on goal and the Capitals racked up a total of 6 minutes in the box.

Who will win tonight's hockey game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take New Jersey (+188)

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