The New Jersey Devils (14-11-1), fifth in the NHL standings for the Metropolitan Division, host the Boston Bruins (18-5-3) in an Eastern Conference showdown on Wednesday at the Prudential Center. It’s the first meeting between the two teams since Boston beat the Devils 2-1 on April 8, 2023, and one of just five NHL matchups on the NHL schedule today.
Bruins vs Devils Picks
- NHL Pick: Devils -115
Jeremy Swayman (2.08 GAA, .932 save percentage) is expected to start in goal for the Bruins and Vitek Vanecek (3.49 GAA, .879 save percentage) is the likely starting goaltender for the Devils. Let’s take a closer look at the Bruins vs Devils betting analysis.
Boston Bruins vs. New Jersey Devils Odds
Bruins vs. Devils Information
Boston Bruins vs New Jersey Devils
Location of the game: Prudential Center. Newark, New Jersey.
Date & Time: Wednesday, December 13 at 7 p.m. ET
How to Watch: TNT
Recent Scores
Before we dive into the Bruins vs Devils betting analysis, let’s take a look at how the teams have fared as of late. Boston, which is a top team in most NHL stats, has been an average team over the last 10 games, going 5-4-1. They’re coming off a 5-3 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday.
The Devils, among the NHL picks to win the Stanley Cup before the season, are 6-4 in their last 10 games and coming off of a 4-1 loss to the red hot Edmonton Oilers. They had won three games in a row before that.
Boston Bruins vs New Jersey Devils Betting Analysis
Bruins Goaltending Coming Back to Earth
Boston has one of the best defenses and goaltending tandems in the league, but they’ve fallen from first to third in goals allowed (2.5) in recent weeks as they’ve allowed 27 goals over their last eight games, nearly four per game. However, Swayman, who is expected to start against the New Jersey Devils, has won each of his last two starts, allowing just one goal on 51 shots.
David Pastrnak leads the Boston Bruins statistics with 39 points (16 goals, 23 assists), while Brad Marchand is second with 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists), including four goals in his last four games.
Devils Desperately Need Better Goaltending
While the Boston Bruins goaltending is still near the top of the league, the Devils rank second-last in that category, allowing 3.62 goals per game. This is despite the fact they’re 11th in shots allowed (29.7). They’ll have to address this in the near future as both Vanecek and Akira Schmid have GAAs above 3.00.
Jack Hughes leads the Devils in scoring with 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists), but is pointless in his last three games. Jesper Bratt is second with 32 points (12 goals, 20 assists).
Updates
It’s worth noting for the Bruins vs Devils betting analysis that Charlie McAvoy and Pavel Zacha, two of Boston’s most important players, will be out of the lineup. They are both day-to-day on the NHL injury report, but were ruled out for the game on Tuesday.
New Jersey, meanwhile, is without defenseman Dougie Hamilton, Erik Haula, and Tomas Nosek.
Bruins vs. Devils Betting Preview
- The Devils opened as slight moneyline favorites with NHL odds of -115 and puck line odds of -1.5 (+200).
- The Bruins, one of the NHL picks today to win the Stanley Cup, are underdogs despite their 8-3-2 road record.
- They have -105 moneyline odds and +1.5 (-245) puck line odds.
- The over/under is 6.
Boston Bruins vs. New Jersey Devils Betting Prediction
Considering the absences of Zacha and McAvoy, effectively Boston’s top center and defenseman, it’s not unreasonable to expect a home win for the Devils, even if they’re just 5-6-1 at home this season. The over is another good value bet, considering it has hit in 10 of 12 Devils home games.
- NHL Pick: Devils -115
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