The New Jersey Devils and the Pittsburgh Penguins meet Thursday in NHL action from the PPG Paints Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a New Jersey Devils vs. Pittsburgh Penguins prediction.
New Jersey Devils Recap
The New Jersey Devils come into this game looking to bounce back from their 2-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres last time out to sit at 28-28-2 this season. After this game, New Jersey will head on the road for a game against St. Louis.
Devils Lose 4 In A Row
Nico Hischier has 42 points with a team-high 19 goals and 23 assists while Jesper Bratt has 42 points with 13 goals and 29 assists. Jack Hughes has 12 goals and 25 assists for his 37 points and Dawson Mercer has 13 goals and 17 assists for his 30 points. Timo Meier has 29 points with 15 goals and 14 assists while Luke Hughes has 26 points with 21 assists and Arseny Gritsyuk has 23 points with 9 goals and 14 assists. Jake Allen has gone 12-15-1 with a 2.64 GAA and a .907 save percentage while Jacob Markstrom has gone 15-13-1 with a 3.20 GAA and an .882 save percentage this season.
Why the New Jersey Devils will win
- The Devils have won each of their last four games as road underdogs on the second leg of a back-to-back.
- The Penguins have lost six of their last eight games as home favorites following a road win.
- The Devils have covered the puck line in each of their last eight games as road underdogs following a loss.
- The Penguins have failed to cover the puck line in eight of their last nine games as favorites against Eastern Conference opponents.
New Jersey Devils Player Prop Facts
- Nico Hischier has scored at least one goal in four of his last five road appearances against the Penguins.
- Jack Hughes has recorded at least one assist in each of his last eight Thursday road appearances.
Pittsburgh Penguins Recap
The Pittsburgh Penguins come into this game looking to add on to their 5-2 win over Buffalo last time out to sit at 29-15-12 this season. After this game, the Penguins will head on the road for a game against the New York Rangers.
Penguins Win 7 Of Last 9
Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh in scoring with 59 points including a team-high 27 goals and 32 assists while Evgeni Malkin has 44 points with 13 goals and 31 assists. Anthony Mantha has 42 points with 20 goals and 22 assists. Erik Karlsson has 31 assists while Bryan Rust has 40 points with 19 goals and 21 assists. Arturs Silovs has gone 11-7-8 with a 2.93 GAA and an .896 save percentage in goal for the Penguins so far this season while Stuart Skinner is 8-4-1 with a 2.72 GAA and an .887 save percentage this year. Sergei Murashov is 1-1-2 with a 2.56 GAA and an .897 save percentage in goal for Pittsburgh this season.
Why the Pittsburgh Penguins will win
- The Devils have lost each of their last eight games against Eastern Conference opponents.
- The Penguins have won each of their last seven games following a road win.
- The Devils have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last eight games.
- The Penguins have covered the puck line in each of their last seven night games following a road win.
Pittsburgh Penguins Player Prop Facts
- Bryan Rust has scored at least one goal in six of his last seven appearances with the Penguins as favorites against the Devils.
- Erik Karlsson has recorded at least one assist in each of his last seven appearances against Metropolitan Division opponents.
Total Goals Facts
- Each of the Penguins’ last nine games as home favorites against opponents who are on the second leg of a back-to-back have gone OVER the total goals line.
- Each of the Devils’ last six games against Eastern Conference opponents have gone UNDER the total goals line.
- Six of the last seven games between two teams from the Metropolitan Division have gone UNDER the total goals line.
New Jersey Devils vs. Pittsburgh Penguins Prediction
I’m on the under here. The Devils continue to struggle offensively, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they did here too considering Pittsburgh was playing pretty well defensively going into the break. On the flipside, Sidney Crosby being out for Pittsburgh I think is a big deal, and that could really affect the Penguins’ offensive production and I want to see how Pittsburgh does in their first game back without their captain. I think we could see a low-scoring battle here, so give me the under.