Boston Bruins at New Jersey Devils odds, picks and prediction.
ESPN: Bruins head coach in a big problem as Brad Marchand intend to leave.
The Boston Bruins (18-5-3) and New Jersey Devils (14-11-1) tangle Wednesday night in Newark. Puck drop at the Prudential Center is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET (TNT). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Bruins vs. Devils odds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
Boston has been off since downing the Arizona Coyotes 5-3 Saturday. The Bruins killed off each of 5 penalties in winning for the 4th time in their last 5 games (4-1-0). Over that stretch. the league’s top short-handed unit (89.9%) has killed off 18-of-18 penalties.
The Devils are back at home after a 3-1-0 trip out West. New Jersey won the 1st 3 games of that voyage but then lost 4-1 to the Edmonton Oilers Sunday. The Devils are 6-2-0 with a robust 56.2% Corsi-for since Nov. 25.
Bruins at Devils projected goalies
Linus Ullmark (9-4-1, 2.71 GAA, .917 SV%) vs. Vitek Vanecek (10-5-0, 3.49 GAA, .879 SV%)
Ullmark stopped 31-of-34 in Saturday’s triumph over Arizona. The 2023 Vezina Trophy winner owns a career .929 SV% against New Jersey
Vanecek started Saturday against the Calgary Flames and stopped 23-of-25 pucks to log his 3rd win in his last 3 starts. He has scuffled, however, in his last 2 home starts and owns a Newark save percentage of just .867.
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The Bruins have owned this series of late, winning 6 in a row against New Jersey. But Boston is just 1-3-0 in the 1st tilt of multi-game trips (which this is). Over the last 2 seasons, Boston is 6-2-1 when playing on 3-day rest, which sounds great, but percentage-wise, its not among the team’s best rest splits.
New Jersey’s puck-possession numbers of late are quite good, and expected-goal numbers peg better days ahead for the Devils and lesser ones for the visitors.
Ullmark has been partially propped up by a .923 SV% when short-handed; Vanecek has been hampered by an .806 mark in the same category.
The Over has cashed in 5 of the last 7 Boston-New Jersey games and in 12 of the Devils’ last 14 games on home ice. The Over is a lean but is priced accordingly. PASS.
