The New Jersey Devils (25-22-2) and Edmonton Oilers (25-17-8) will face off Tuesday evening. Puck drop is set for 10:00 p.m. EST at Rogers Place in Edmonton, AB. The game will be broadcast live on TNT.
The Oilers are priced at +140 to cover the puck-line (-1.5), with the total set at 6.5 (O +105 /U -125). The Oilers are priced at -180 to win outright, while the Devils are priced at +150 to pull off the upset.
Let's get into my Devils vs. Oilers predictions and NHL picks.
Devils vs. Oilers Odds, Pick
| Devils Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -166 | 6.5 105o / -125u | +150 |
| Oilers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 +140 | 6.5 105o / -125u | -180 |
- Devils vs. Oilers Spread: Devils +1.5 (-166), Oilers -1.5 (+140)
- Devils vs. Oilers Over/Under: 6.5 (O +105 /U -125)
- Devils vs. Oilers Moneyline: Devils +150, Oilers -180
Devils vs. Oilers Preview
New Jersey Devils
It's not exactly breaking news that New Jersey has underperformed expectations this season, but the betting markets offer a pretty clear synopsis of just how much it has failed to live up to the hype.
The Devils entered the season priced at -330 to make the playoffs, with a betting total of 99.5 points. Following last night's overtime win in Calgary, they are priced at +155 to make the playoffs and hold a betting total of 90.5 points.
Goaltender Jacob Markstrom has played to a -9.2 GSAx rating and .882 save percentage, which is one reason for the Devils' disappointing record. Key defenders such as Luke Hughes, Jonas Siegenthaler and Dougie Hamilton have been, to varying degrees, worse than expected.
Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt have combined for just 105 points across 129 man games, with Hughes going as the team's only point-per-game player with exactly 31 points in 31 games. That's certainly not something I would have predicted, and it's a major issue for a team that doesn't offer overly strong depth scoring options.
While a point-per-game pace for Jack Hughes is a disappointment, his game has been trending in the right direction recently and offers one positive for the Devils. Though he's mired in a 13-game goalless drought, he's put up seven assists over the last six games and generated a ton of scoring chances.
In a tight-checking game last night in Calgary, Hughes had eight shot attempts and seven shots on goal before ultimately earning a primary assist on Simon Nemec's overtime winner. Out of his seven shots on goal, six came from inside of "home-plate/the house," and were legitimate chances to score.
Luke Hughes was in a better run of play of late after an extremely disappointing first half of the season, but suffered a dislocated shoulder last night in Calgary and will miss this matchup.
With Hughes sidelined, Dougie Hamilton will likely be elevated back onto the top power play unit, though it is also possible that head coach Sheldon Keefe will place Nemec into the role.
As Markstrom started last night versus his former side, it's a safe bet to assume that Jake Allen will get this start. For a second consecutive season, Allen has greatly outperformed Markstrom in playing to a +5.0 GSAx rating and .906 save percentage in 24 appearances.
Edmonton Oilers
Despite yet another rocky start to the season, the Oilers are now 25-17-8 and are a near-lock to be at worst a divisional seed out of an extremely thin Pacific Division. There's not much reward for finishing as a high seed following the 82-game slog that is the regular season, and that point is particularly true for teams in a weaker division.
Based on the level of complacency the Oilers have displayed early in the last two seasons, the team seems well aware of that point, and they have slowly transitioned into a higher form, just like the previous two seasons.
Though the Oilers will still remain a very tough side to knock out come the playoffs, they will almost certainly need somewhat improved play from the bottom six in order to have a realistic chance of knocking off the Colorado Avalanche and perhaps even the Vegas Golden Knights.
Connor McDavid has put up 49 points over his last 23 games played. While he has visibly elevated his game relative to earlier in the year, he has also been aided by the returns of Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins into the lineup.
Their returns have allowed head coach Kris Knoblauch to stick with what has been a highly effective top unit, after Knoblauch was shuffling his top-six on a nightly basis for the first two months of the season.
Hyman and Nugent-Hopkins returns have also helped the Oilers' top power play find greater success, as over the last 20 games, Edmonton's power play has succeeded on an absurd 34.9% of opportunities.
The lineup consistency that Edmonton had enjoyed while finally playing at full health has currently been disrupted, as Leon Draisaitl is currently on a personal leave to tend to a family illness back home in Germany.
With Draisaitl sidelined, the Oilers have skated a top line of McDavid, Vasily Podkolzin and Zach Hyman, and shifted Nugent-Hopkins back into the middle, centering the second line. They have been going with a rare two-defender look on the top power play unit, as Jake Walman has skated on the top unit.
Since Draisaitl began his leave of absence, the Oilers have won their first two games by a combined margin of 11-0. They were soft matchups skating versus the Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues, but it's still been an impressive response from a group that certainly owes it to Draisaitl to play well during his absence.
In 12 games since the holiday break, the Oilers have allowed 2.74 xGA/60, which ranks 12th in the NHL. They are never going to be a team that succeeds first and foremost based on their defensive play, but they have been quietly solid defensively in the previous two seasons, and that has been the area in particular where they have progressed later on in each of the last three seasons.
Tristan Jarry is expected to get the start in goal. He holds a .907 save percentage across his first five starts with the Oilers and a +7.7 GSAx rating across 19 appearances this season.
Devils vs. Oilers Prediction
As the Oilers are now priced at -180 to win this game after opening at -155, the prices look fair to me, though that is coming from someone who has had a hard time downgrading the Devils enough this season.
Though the Oilers have been defending much more effectively of late, at +190 backing Jack Hughes to score is my favorite play from this matchup.
Based on his recent play, it's not simply betting into the narrative that Hughes is "due" to believe that +190 is a good price for Hughes to score.
He's looked much more dynamic offensively of late and has been generating plenty of shots on target from good locations. Plus, he is a career 11% shooter who has typically shown solid finishing ability.
Pick: Jack Hughes Anytime Goalscorer +190 (DraftKings, Play to +170)
