NHL Picks: New York Rangers Worth a Look Versus New Jersey Devils

What Went Right This Weekend

The good news is that December is almost here at gambling.com. As the NHL schedule gets more involved, so do we. The New Jersey Devils covered the Puckline in back-to-back games. That included beating the Washington Capitals, which occurs about as often as a blue moon. 

Unfortunately, the continued bad news on Aleksander Barkov’s illness hurts us, along with the sputtering Carolina Hurricanes. However, the Seatle Kraken has won eight of ten games. It has been a crazy first eight weeks of the season. 

The weekend is over! It is time for just another manic Monday. 

New Jersey Devils at New York Rangers

The crazy theories of the NHL abound as the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers renew their Hudson River Rivalry. The New Jersey Devils are 9-1 on the road and 18-4 overall. They have won 15 of their past 16 games. It does not matter who is in or out of the lineup. Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid are stopping the shots they have to. Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt are leading the way offensively.

It is early, but the New York Rangers have struggled to put streaks together. Last year was a dream season as Igor Shesterkin saved nearly 45 goals above expected. This 2022-23 campaign has been far different. Shesterkin and the Rangers find that increased expectations are more challenging to live up to. 

Despite some initial bumps, New Jersey’s run is not a fluke. Their goal differential of +34 is one of the best, and their goals for and against both rank third in the NHL. New Jersey’s speed and ability to cover for mistakes have been a huge reason why the Devils keep winning games. Teams like the Rangers have the offensive firepower and all-world goaltending and are struggling. See Tampa Bay also. 

New York is better than their record. Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin will get it going again. Once they get a few wins, New York should get on a run. 

New York, in regulation, makes some sense at +130. After that, it is about the line movement and where it roams. Refrain from betting the Moneyline at around -110 to -120. 

Vegas Golden Knights at Columbus Blue Jackets

The biggest thing with hockey is that we always need to find out when the immovable object meets the irresistible force. Oh no! The Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights face the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight.

Vegas is 16-6-1 on the season and in first place in the Pacific Division. Also, the Golden Knights still have a goal differential of +19. However, the Vegas team is returning to Earth a bit. They allowed five goals over the weekend to Vancouver. Do not ever wear those glow-in-the-dark uniforms ever again. All joking aside, there lies a surprise here.

Both teams have dropped two straight decisions after decent runs. For a while, it looked like Columbus was starting to play better hockey (4-1-2 in seven games). A home game against a team allowing a few more goals than usual will help. 

Hopefully, this game brings some goal-scoring heat. The Over is still at just 6.5 goals. If there is one way to take a shot here is to look at the total Over for starters. Even Columbus +1.5 goals are at -110. Those are decent starting points this first day of the week. 

Some Picks To Consider

• Jason Robertson Over 0.5 power-play points at +125
• Igor Shesterkin save prop. Check the number
• Columbus +1.5 goals at -115
• Rangers 3-way bet at +130
• Mika Zibanejad Over 1.5 points. Check for a number.
   

Good luck, and once again, thanks for reading! We will have a few more plays on social media as conditions warrant.

All odds today come from BetMGM Sportsbook.