Two teams trying to find more consistency to end January will collide tonight, with the Vegas Golden Knights visiting the New York Islanders.
All Odds Courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook
Vegas Golden Knights (-122) vs. New York Islanders (+102) Total: 6 (O-105, U-115)
The Golden Knights and Islanders have very similar strengths in that they play a defense-first style of hockey and rely on their goaltending to be strong too. That’s worked more so for the Golden Knights, but they’re also deeper offensively and have used that to their advantage. This will be the second meeting between these teams this season, which initially saw the Isles pick up a 5-2 victory on the road.
Both teams could use a victory tonight, and New York certainly more so than the Golden Knights, when you consider that they’ve fallen out of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference. The Golden Knights are sitting at 3-6-1 over their past ten games, while the Islanders are 2-5-3 over that same sample size but are coming off a victory last night against the Detroit Red Wings.
Looking toward the projected goalie matchup tonight, the visiting Golden Knights are expected to start Logan Thompson, while the Islanders should do the same with Semyon Varlamov. The Golden Knights netminder has posted a 19-13-2 record, paired with a .912 save percentage, while Varlamov is sitting at 8-6-1, along with a .912 save percentage. There’s a lot to like about this goalie matchup tonight, and there’s potential for a lower-scoring affair.
Neither team inspires much confidence at the moment, but the Islanders are slight home underdogs here and have already demonstrated they can handle their business against this Vegas team. This matchup will likely play out differently, but it’s hard to avoid the plus-money home underdogs tonight.
Best Bet: Islanders moneyline (+102)
The Isles and Golden Knights both sit in the top 12 of the NHL in goals allowed per game, but that didn’t stop them from combining for seven goals when they faced off just over a month ago. That doesn’t mean this matchup will follow that same game script, though, when you consider that the Golden Knights have seen just one of their past five games total six or more, while the Isles have seen that transpire in two of their previous five. That should give us an idea that the under is a good value play here tonight, also priced at an appetizing -115.
Best Bet: Under 6 (-115)
It’s no secret that the New York Islanders struggle to score goals, which is a big reason why they’ve fallen outside of the playoff race. Still, that doesn’t mean talented players aren’t on this roster. It just means they have trouble finding consistency on a nightly basis. Brock Nelson, their hottest player with four goals over their past five games, continues to stand out offensively. Nelson sits at a very appetizing +210 price to score tonight, which is a number bettors should gravitate toward.
Best Prop: Brock Nelson to Record Over 0.5 Goals (+210)
