New York Rangers vs Buffalo Sabres Prediction, 4/1/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: New York Rangers vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: Thursday, April 1, 2021

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: MSG

Odds/Point Spread: Rangers (-208) Sabres (+170)

Dustin Tokarski and the Buffalo Sabres (6-23-5) host the New York Rangers (16-15-4) at KeyBank Center on Thursday. The Sabres open this game at +170 while the Rangers are coming in at -208. The total is set at 6.5.

The Rangers had a good night with a 5-2 win against the Capitals in their last game. The Corsi for the Rangers came in at 38 and the Corsi against when the final whistle blew was 41 meaning they had a Corsi percentage of 48.1%. Their starts in the offensive zone were at 41.7% and their PDO rating was 112.7 for this one. New York accounted for 16 minutes in the box for this game. The Rangers had a great offensive game plan going into this one and it showed in the win. Their Fenwick was 30 and the Fenwick Against sat at 31, meaning they had a Fenwick percentage of 49.2%. They had a tally of 20 face-off wins at even strength and were beaten on 24 attempts to control the puck. Furthermore, they had 2 power play tries but weren't able to convert one of them into a goal. While out there on the ice, they tallied a score on 5 out of the 27 shots they put on goal.

Regarding scoring goals, the New York Rangers have tallied 111 goals (9th in the National Hockey League) on the year and have surrendered 93. For the current season, they have recorded 36 points and their points percentage comes in at .514. New York has accounted for 127 power play chances and they have scored 23 goals out of those chances, giving them a rate of 18.11%. While playing at even strength, the Rangers have allowed the opponent to score 76 goals while getting 88 when they are on offense. New York has taken 1,018 shots and is the owner of a shot percentage of 10.9%. The Rangers have had 1,003 shots taken against them and hold a save percentage of .907. New York Rangers opponents have recorded 111 power play tries (9th in the NHL) and have scored 17 goals in those chances.

The man protecting the net in this game is Igor Shesterkin. From the beginning of his pro career to now, Shesterkin has recorded 20 quality starts and his quality starts percentage is .714. He has a save percentage of .928 in his 1,674 minutes between the pipes. Shesterkin has seen 930 shots taken against him and he has 863 total saves. Opponents have scored 67 goals versus Shesterkin in his pro hockey career and his goals against average per contest is 2.40. He has earned an overall mark of 18-10-1 and was named the starter in 28 games. Shesterkin has played in 30 games over the course of his professional hockey career.

When they were on the ice last, Buffalo faced the Flyers in an outing where the Sabres ended up losing by a mark of 4-3. Their PDO at even strength was 98 and their oZS percentage was 63.3%. They had 2 power play opportunities in this one but weren't able to finish one of them with a goal. Their Fenwick percentage came in at 44.2% by tallying a Fenwick of 34 and the Flyers having earned a 43 Fenwick. The Sabres had 3 goals of the 32 shots on goal they took. Buffalo went home with a 43.6% Corsi rating. This Corsi rating tells us the kind of game Buffalo played and you can say they had a mediocre outing.

The Sabres have 49 goals at even strength and 20 goals (22nd in the league) while having a power play advantage. Buffalo has taken 952 shots (30th in the league) and has a shooting percentage of 7.25%, while allowing their opponents 1,083 shots. On the year, the Buffalo Sabres have earned a total of 69 goals, 17 points, in addition to a points percentage of .250. They have earned 88 power play chances and they have earned a power play percentage of 22.73%. They have recorded a penalty kill rate of 78.41% on their oppositions 88 tries on the power play, and their save percentage comes in at 88.9%. They have granted a total of 120 goals to be scored by of a combination of 101 goals at even strength and 19 goals while they were shorthanded.

On the other side of the ice you are expected to see Dustin Tokarski in the crease. Opponents are averaging 2.96 goals per contest and he has allowed 92 goals overall. Tokarski's rate of quality starts is 41.4% and he has 12 quality starts in his pro career. He was named a starter in 29 games and has played 1,867 mins. Tokarski has compiled a career record of 10-15-5 and has participated in 37 games. He has recorded 854 saves out of 946 shots attempted against him, which gives him a save % of .903.

Who will win tonight's NHL game ATS?

Guy's Pick: Take Buffalo (+170)

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