Madison Square Garden plays host to an Eastern Conference showdown as the Buffalo Sabres face off against the New York Rangers. It’s the third and last time that the two clubs will go at it in the regular season. MSG Network will air the action, which gets underway at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 24.
Buffalo Sabres vs. New York Rangers Odds
New York (-175) is currently the favorite over Buffalo (+155), and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -120 for the under and +100 for the over.
Losing -9.3 units for moneyline bettors, New York is 32-42 straight up (SU) overall this year. That early-season winning percentage is a noticeable slide from what the team recorded during the 2016-17 season (48-34). Through 74 regular season contests, 41 of its games have gone over the total, while 31 have gone under and just two have pushed. The team’s 20-18 SU at home this year.
The Rangers have converted on 21.7 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked sixth overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 83.0 percent of all penalties.
As a team, the Rangers have been penalized 3.5 times per game overall this season, and 2.6 per game over their last five at home. The team’s had to kill penalties for just 7.2 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, in total.
With a .915 save percentage and 29.1 saves per game, Henrik Lundqvist (25-34-6) has been the top option in goal for New York this year. If New York decides to give him a breather, however, the team might turn to Ondrej Pavelec (5-11-11 record, .910 save percentage, 3.01 goals against average).
Mats Zuccarello and Vladislav Namestnikov will each lead the offensive attack for the Rangers. Zuccarello (49 points) has tallied 15 goals and 34 assists and has recorded two or more points in nine different games this year. Namestnikov has 22 goals and 25 assists to his credit and has recorded a point in 35 contests.
On the other bench, Buffalo is 23-51 straight up (SU) and has lost 17.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year. A total of 36 of its games have gone under the total, while 33 have gone over and just four have pushed. As a road team, the Sabres are 12-23 SU.
The Sabres have converted on just 16.9 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s ranked 26th in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 21st overall and it’s successfully killed off 78.8 percent of all penalties.
Buffalo’s players have been penalized 3.5 times per game in total this season, and 2.4 per game over their past five outings. The team’s had to stave off opponent power plays just 8.4 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Robin Lehner (27.3 saves per game) has been the primary option in the net for Buffalo. Lehner has 14 wins, 37 losses, and nine overtime losses to his credit, while registering a .911 save percentage and 2.93 goals against average this year.
Jack Eichel (22 goals, 32 assists) and Ryan O’Reilly (20 goals, 32 assists) have been the top playmakers for Buffalo and will lead the offensive attack for the visiting Sabres.
Buffalo Sabres vs. New York Rangers Betting Predictions
NHL Pick: SU Winner – Rangers, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
Buffalo is 1-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while New York is 3-5 in shootouts.
The total has gone over in each of New York’s last five outings.
New York has allowed 3.2 goals per game overall this year, but has allowed 4.3 goals per matchup over its three-game losing streak.
Eight of Buffalo’s last ten games have been decided by two goals or more. The team is 2-6 in those games.
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