New Jersey Devils (13-15-5) vs. Boston Bruins (16-10-2)
January 4, 2022 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Boston Bruins -250 / New Jersey Devils +205; Over/Under: -5.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins meet Tuesday in NHL action at the TD Garden. The New Jersey Devils look to build on their three-game winning streak. The Boston Bruins look for a win after splitting their last 10 games.
The New Jersey Devils are averaging 2.8 goals per game and are scoring on 14.6 percent of their power play opportunities. Andreas Johnsson leads New Jersey with 9 goals, Jesper Bratt has 20 assists and Dougie Hamilton has 108 shots on goal. Defensively, the New Jersey Devils are allowing 3.4 goals per game and are killing 80.9 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Jonathan Bernier has allowed 26 goals on 264 shots faced, and Mackenzie Blackwood has allowed 56 goals on 546 shots.
The Boston Bruins are averaging 2.8 goals per game and are scoring on 21.7 percent of their power play opportunities. Brad Marchand leads Boston with 11 goals, Charlie McAvoy has 15 assists and Patrice Bergeron has 104 shots on goal. Defensively, the Boston Bruins are allowing 2.6 goals per game and are killing 81.6 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Linus Ullmark has given up 33 goals on 407 shots faced, and Jeremy Swayman has allowed 33 goals on 410 shots.
The Devils are 2-6 in their last 8 road games and 6-15 in their last 21 overall. The Bruins are 13-5 in their last 18 games as a favorite and 2-5 in their last 7 home games. The over is 7-1 in Devils last 8 overall. The under is 8-3 in Bruins last 11 overall. The Devils are 5-15 in the last 20 meetings in Boston and 12-30 in the last 42 meetings.
The Boston Bruins should be favored for obvious reasons, as they’re the better team and have beaten up on the Devils over the years. With that said, the Bruins have had issues stringing wins together, and they’ve lost some questionable games as a favorite. The New Jersey Devils are also coming off three straight wins against decent competition, and the defense has been better. I’ll take a shot with the big underdog, as the Bruins have run hit or miss all year.
