New Jersey Devils vs Buffalo Sabres Prediction, 1/30/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: New Jersey Devils vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: Saturday, January 30, 2021

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: NHL Network

Odds/Point Spread: Devils (+135) Sabres (-162)

KeyBank Center is the site where Linus Ullmark and the Buffalo Sabres (3-3-2) will play the New Jersey Devils (3-3-1) on Saturday. The Sabres open this game at -162 while the Devils are priced at +135. The over/under has been set at 6.5.

The Devils will need a bounce back game after taking a 3 - 1 loss against the Flyers their last time out. The Devils could have played much better offensively in this loss. For the game, they scored on 1 out of the 34 shots they tried. They also had 4 power play chances but didn't net one. New Jersey had a total of 4 penalty mins in this matchup. The Corsi for the Devils was 53 and the Corsi against was 32 meaning they had a Corsi percentage of 62.4%. Their Fenwick was 37 while the Fenwick against was 25, which means they earned a rate of 59.7%. They earned 12 face-off wins at even strength and lost 32 attempts to control the puck. Their starts in the offensive zone came in at 68.1% and they had a PDO of 85.9 in this game. When it comes to their opponent, the Philadelphia Flyers earned a total of 17 shots. They finished with 8 penalty mins and they notched 2 power play attempts.

New Jersey Devils opponents have totaled 25 power play opportunities (20th in the league) and have scored 8 goals in those attempts. The Devils have had 226 shots tried against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .920. New Jersey has attempted 196 shots and is the owner of a shot percentage of 7.7%. While playing at even strength, the Devils have allowed the opponent to score 9 goals while scoring 13 on offense. New Jersey has 18 power play chances and they have scored 2 goals out of those advantages, giving them a rate of 11.11%. For the year, they have 7 points and their points percentage is .500. In the matter of their goal scoring prowess, the New Jersey Devils have accounted for 15 goals (26th in the NHL) on the year and have conceded 18.

The man protecting the net in this game is Mackenzie Blackwood. Opponents have scored 185 goals versus Blackwood in his pro career and his goals against average per game is 2.68. Blackwood has participated in 73 games over the course of his NHL career. He has a save percentage of .917 in his 4,138 minutes in the crease. He has amassed a record of 34-24-9 and was named the starter in 67 games. From the beginning of his pro career to now, Blackwood has recorded 39 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .582. Blackwood has seen 2,236 shot attempts against him and has accrued 2,051 total saves.

The Sabres squared up with the Rangers in a matchup where the Sabres ended up taking the loss by a mark of 3 - 2. Buffalo wound up with a 40.5% Corsi rating. They got there by having a Corsi of 32 while they surrendered a Corsi of 47. Their Fenwick percentage was 37.7% by notching a Fenwick of 23 and the Rangers earning a 38 Fenwick. This Corsi rating tells us the kind of game Buffalo played and we'd say it was a below average outing in all. Their PDO at even strength was 94.2 and they finished this one with an oZS percentage of 52.0%. The Sabres netted 2 goals out of the 25 shots on goal they took. They had 4 power play opportunities in this one and scored 1 out of those attempts. Concerning the opposition, the Rangers had 3 power play attempts but were not able to take advantage. Buffalo allowed 39 shots on goal and the Rangers had a total of 10 penalty mins.

Buffalo has attempted 258 shots (5th in hockey) and has earned a shooting percentage of 8.53%, while allowing the other team 233 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill rate of 80.00% on the other teams 15 power play opportunities, and their save percentage sits at 8.5%. They have earned 30 chances on the power play and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 30.00%. The Sabres have scored 13 goals at even strength and 9 goals (4th in the NHL) while on the power play. They have allowed 23 goals to be scored by of a combination of 20 goals at even strength and 3 goals while they had less men on the ice. Over the course of the season, the Buffalo Sabres have tallied 22 goals, 8 points, and a points percentage of .500.

On the other side of the ice you are likely to see Linus Ullmark in net. His opposition is averaging 2.79 goals/game and he has relinquished 273 goals overall. Ullmark's percentage of quality starts comes in at 55.7% and he has accumulated 54 quality starts in his NHL career. He has started in 97 contests and has accumulated 5,870 minutes. Ullmark has a career mark of 43-42-12 and has participated in 102 games. He has recorded 2,816 stops out of 3,089 shots taken, giving him a save % of .912.

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

Tony's Pick: Take New Jersey (+135)

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