Buffalo Sabres vs New York Islanders Prediction, 2/2/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Buffalo Sabres vs New York Islanders

Date: Tuesday, February 2, 2021

Location: Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY

TV: NBCSN

Odds/Point Spread: Sabres (+120) Islanders (-143)

Barclays Center is the site where Semyon Varlamov and the New York Islanders (3-4-2) will take on the Buffalo Sabres (4-4-2) on Tuesday. The Islanders open this matchup at -143 while the Sabres are priced at +120. The over/under opens at 5.5.

The Sabres were on the wrong end of the scoreboard with a 5 - 3 defeat to the Devils the last time they stepped on the ice. The Sabres had a middle of the road offensive performance in this loss. For the game, they earned a goal on 3 out of the 33 shots they attempted. Furthermore, they had 4 power play opportunities and scored 2 goals out of those opportunities. Buffalo had a total of 6 penalty mins in this matchup. The Corsi for the Sabres sat at 46 and the Corsi against was 59 which gave them a Corsi percentage of 43.8%. Their Fenwick sat at 39 while the Fenwick against sat at 50, which tells us they had a rate of 43.8%. They took 31 face-off wins at even strength and were beaten on 22 attempts to control the puck. Their offensive zone starts came in at 40.7% and they had a PDO at even strength of 90.5 for this one. Concerning opponent stats, the New Jersey Devils racked up a total of 37 shots. They had 8 minutes in the box and they earned 3 power play chances.

The Sabres have had 304 shots taken against them and have earned a save percentage of .898. When playing at even strength, the Sabres have allowed the opponent to score 27 goals while getting 16 on offense. Buffalo Sabres opponents have totaled 23 power play opportunities (26th in professional hockey) and have come away with 4 goals in those chances. For the season, they sit with 10 points and their points percentage is sitting at .500. Buffalo has attempted 322 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 8.7%. Concerning their scoring capabilities, the Buffalo Sabres have notched 28 goals (11th in pro hockey) on the year and have given up 31. Buffalo has accumulated 39 power play chances and they have tallied 12 goals during those advantages, garnering them a rate of 30.77%.

The man protecting the goal in this game is Linus Ullmark. Opponents have been able to score 16 goals against Ullmark in his NHL career and his goals against average per contest is 2.56. Ullmark has played in 6 contests throughout his NHL career. He has a save percentage of .914 in his 376 mins between the pipes. He has accumulated an overall mark of 3-1-2 and he has started in 6 games. For his career, Ullmark has 3 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .500. Ullmark has seen 187 shots taken against him and has amassed 171 total saves.

The Islanders played the Flyers in an outing where the Islanders ended up losing by a final of 4 - 3. New York had a 44.3% Corsi rating. They ended up with that by earning a Corsi of 35 while they conceded a Corsi of 44. They had a Fenwick percentage of 46.9% with a Fenwick of 30 and the Flyers finishing with a 34 Fenwick at even strength. This Corsi percentage speaks to the kind of game that New York played and you can say they had a mediocre outing. Their PDO was 95.5 and their percentage of oZS was 74.7%. The Islanders notched 3 goals out of the 36 shots on goal they were seeking. They had 6 power play attempts in this one and were able to notch 1 out of those chances. Regarding their opponent, the Flyers had 4 power play attempts and ended up scoring 1 goal. New York gave up 29 shots on goal and the Flyers had a total of 12 minutes in the box.

The Islanders have accumulated 13 goals at even strength and 6 goals (17th in professional hockey) while on the power play. New York has taken 264 shots (13th in the league) and has earned a shooting percentage of 7.20%, while allowing the other team 244 shots. For the year, the New York Islanders have earned 19 goals, 8 points, in addition to a points percentage of .444. They have recorded 38 opportunities on the power play and they have a power play percentage of 15.79%. They have recorded a penalty kill percentage of 77.78% on their oppositions 27 power play chances, and their save percentage is 7.2%. They have permitted 24 goals to be scored by way of 18 goals at even strength and 6 goals while they were shorthanded.

For the opposition you are likely to see Semyon Varlamov protecting the net. Opponents are averaging 2.00 goals per game and he has yielded 12 goals overall. Varlamov's quality start rate comes out to 66.7% and he has accumulated 4 quality starts in his hockey career. He has started in 6 games and has played for a total of 360 minutes. Varlamov is the owner of a lifetime record of 3-2-1 and has been in net for 6 games. He has recorded 146 saves out of 158 shots tried, giving him a save % of .924.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Buffalo (+120)

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