Matching up for the final time this season, the New York Islanders and the Nashville Predators collide at Bridgestone Arena in an East-West showdown. The match will get going at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, October 13, and it’ll be showcased live on Fox Sports Tennesse.
New York Islanders at Nashville Predators Odds
Nashville (-240) is currently the favorite over New York (+200), and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
Nashville is 3-1 straight up (SU) and has earned 1.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. That winning percentage, ranked third in the league in this young season, is fairly close to the 53-29 record the team produced during last year’s regular season campaign. The team is 1-1 SU at home thus far.
The Preds have successfully found the net on 0.0 percent of their power play opportunities in 2018-19. That’s a noticeable drop-off from last season, when they were ranked 11th in the league by scoring on 21.2 percent of their extra-man advantages. Their penalty kill has fallen off significantly year-over-year as they’ve gone from successfully defending 82.2 percent of opponents’ power plays (ranked sixth overall last season) to 72.7 percent this year.
As a collective unit, the Predators have been penalized 4.3 times per game this season. Last year, that number was at 4.5, the highest mark in the league. After serving an average of 10.9 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has been forced to stave off opponent power plays for 10.0 minutes per matchup this year.
With a .946 save percentage and 29.0 saves per game, Pekka Rinne (2-1) has been the principal goalkeeper for the Preds this year. If Nashville chooses to rest him, however, it might turn to Juuse Saros (1-0 record, .897 save percentage, 3.00 goals against average).
The Preds will continue looking for offensive production out of Ryan Ellis and P.K. Subban. Ellis has recorded three assists while Subban has one goal and two assists to his credit so far in the early stages of the season.
On the visiting bench, New York is 2-1 straight up (SU) and has netted 2.0 units for moneyline bettors this season. A total of two of its games have gone under the total, while one has gone over and none have pushed.
The Isles have recorded a goal on 27.3 percent of their power play chances this year after converting on 23.2 percent of their extra-man opportunities last season (when the team ranked seventh in the league in that category). The team has gone from killing off 73.2 percent of opponents’ power plays (ranked 31st overall last season) to 100.0 percent this year.
New York’s skaters have been penalized 3.0 times per game this season, a number that’s pretty close to the 3.4 penalties per game given up last year. After serving an average of 7.8 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has been forced to stave off opponent power plays for 6.0 minutes per matchup this year.
Thomas Greiss (.928 save percentage and 2.52 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for New York. Greiss is averaging 32.0 saves per game and owns a 1-1 record.
For the visiting Islanders, the offense will be facilitated by Josh Bailey (one goal, three assists) and Mathew Barzal (one goal, three assists).
New York Islanders vs. Nashville Predators Free Picks
Prediction: SU Winner – Predators, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Trends
New York has yet to lose a game by two or more goals this season.
The under has hit in three of Nashville’s last five outings.
New York skaters converted 6.6 takeaways per game while allowing 11.2 giveaways per matchup in 2017-18
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