Los Angeles Kings vs New Jersey Devils Prediction, 12/12/2024 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Los Angeles Kings vs New Jersey Devils

Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024

Location: Prudential Center in Newark, NJ

TV: MSG+

Odds/Point Spread: Kings (-275) Devils (+220)

Prudential Center is the site where the New Jersey Devils (18-10-3) will go up against the Los Angeles Kings (17-8-3) on Thursday. The moneyline on this game has Los Angeles at -275 while New Jersey is coming in at +220. The over/under has been set at 6.5.

The Los Angeles Kings came out of this game feeling pretty good about themselves with a 3-1 win over the Islanders their last time out. Los Angeles recorded 6 penalty mins in this game. Moreover, they had 1 power play opportunity but didn't convert it into a score. The Kings were neither impressive or disappointing offensively in the win. For the outing, they tallied a score on 3 out of the 30 shots they put on net.

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With regard to their goal scoring prowess, the Los Angeles Kings have earned 86 goals (14th in the National Hockey League) on the year and have surrendered 71. For the season, the have a total of 37 points and their points percentage is .661. Los Angeles has tallied 78 power play chances and they have notched 13 goals during those advantages, giving them a percentage of 16.67%. When playing at even strength, the Kings have allowed the opponent to score 53 goals while notching 73 themselves. Los Angeles has taken 786 shots and holds a shooting percentage of 10.9%. The Kings have had 676 shots taken against them and have a save percentage of .895. Los Angeles Kings opponents have tallied 92 power play opportunities (8th in professional hockey) and have come away with 18 goals in those chances.

The man protecting the goal in this game is David Rittich. For his career, Rittich has tallied 104 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .553. His save percentage currently is .906 for his 10,635 mins between the pipes. Rittich has seen 5,579 shot attempts against him and he has 5,052 total saves. Opponents have scored 527 goals versus Rittich in his career and his goals against average per contest is 2.97. He has an overall record of 102-63-24 and he has started in 188 games. Rittich has taken the ice for 213 contests during his NHL career.

The last time they were on the ice, New Jersey played the Maple Leafs in a matchup where the Devils ended up taking the loss by a score of 2-1. They had 4 power play opportunities in this contest but weren't able to score a goal. The Devils tallied 1 goal of the 39 shots on goal they pursued.

Over the course of the season, the New Jersey Devils have earned 103 goals, 39 points, in addition to a points percentage of .629. They have permitted 84 goals to be scored by way of 67 goals at even strength and 17 goals while they had less men on the ice. The Devils have accumulated 73 goals at even strength and 30 goals (1st in hockey) while on the power play. They have a total of 96 opportunities on the power play and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 31.25%. New Jersey has taken 947 shots (1st in professional hockey) and has earned a shot percentage of 10.88%, while allowing their opponents 826 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill percentage of 81.11% on their opponents 90 power play tries, and their save percentage sits at 89.8%.

Across the ice you will find Jacob Markstrom in net. Teams are averaging 2.83 goals/game and he has relinquished 1,317 goals altogether. Markstrom's percentage of quality starts comes out to 52.8% and he has 258 quality starting assignments in his hockey career. He has started in 489 contests and has played for a total of 27,906 minutes. Markstrom has a lifetime mark of 228-202-59 and has been in goal for 506 games. He has tallied 13,127 stops out of the 14,444 shots tried, giving him a percentage of .909.

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

Josh's Pick: Take Los Angeles (-275)

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