The New York Islanders, spearheaded by Mathew Barzal and Josh Bailey, are ready to take the ice against Jack Eichel, Jeff Skinner, and the Buffalo Sabres at the KeyBank Center in an Eastern Conference showdown. MSG Plus 2 will broadcast the game, and the action gets underway at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 12.
New York Islanders at Buffalo Sabres Odds
Buffalo (-105) is currently the underdog to New York (-115) and oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
New York is 33-22 straight up (SU) and has netted 17.4 units for moneyline bettors this season. Through 55 regular season contests, 34 of its games have gone under the total, while 18 have gone over and just three have pushed. The Isles are 16-11 SU on the road in 2018-19.
New York has converted on just 16.1 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s ranked 26th in the NHL. Its penalty kill is ranked 21st out of 31 teams, and it’s successfully killed off 79.4 percent of all penalties..
Averaging 26.2 saves per game with a .930 save percentage, Robin Lehner (17-13-4) has been the top option in goal for New York this season. If it chooses to rest him, however, the team might go with Thomas Greiss (19-10-2 record, .927 save percentage, 2.28 goals against average).
On the other side of the ice, Buffalo is 27-28 straight up (SU) and has earned 2.9 units for moneyline bettors this year. 30 of its outings have gone over the total, while 24 have gone under and just one has pushed. The team is 16-12 SU at home this season.
The Sabres have converted on just 18.2 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked ninth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 82.0 percent of all penalties.
Carter Hutton (27.3 saves per game) has been the top option in goal for the Sabres. Hutton has 15 wins, 19 losses, and three OT losses and has registered a pedestrian 2.84 goals against average and a poor .910 save percentage this year.
New York Islanders at Buffalo Sabres Betting Predictions
NHL Pick: SU Winner – Sabres, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- 44.4 percent of Buffalo’s wins have come by two or more goals (the team is 12-14 overall in games decided by at least two scores) while 57.6 percent of New York’s wins have come by two goals or more (19-12 overall in such games).
- The Islanders are 13-9 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 24-16 in games where they’re in the box for fewer than 10 total penalty minutes.
- Three of New York’s last ten games have gone to a shootout. The team is 1-2 in those games and 3-5 overall in shootouts this season.
- For both of these clubs, the over has hit in three of their past five matchups.
- New York has averaged 6.8 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 10.6 giveaways per game (ranked 19th overall).
- Buffalo skaters have averaged 9.8 giveaways over its last five home games, its season average of 9.5 giveaways per game (ranked 10th).
- New York skaters have dished out the ninth-most hits in the league (23.9 per game).
