The Buffalo Sabres leave the comforts of Western New York and travel to Edmonton Oilers for their first road game of the 2022-23 NHL season to play the Oilers.
The Sabres are in another year of building toward the future, while the Oilers are considered a Stanley Cup contender. Neither team has looked exceptional in their first two games of the season, especially in net.
Buffalo and Edmonton might have the same record, but they are far from similar teams. Our Sabres vs Oilers betting analysis will review all the NHL stats, NHL odds, and trends to get you primed for Tuesday night’s matchup.
Puck drop is set for 9:00 P.M. ET from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
NHL Previous Scoreboards
The last time the Buffalo Sabres and the Edmonton Oilers met was on March 17, 2022, in Edmonton. The Oilers won that matchup 6-1.
Buffalo and Edmonton have changed critical positions over the off-season, so last season’s NHL matchups won’t be factored into our Sabres vs Oilers betting analysis.
Both NHL teams are coming off losses in their last NHL games. The Edmonton Oilers are coming off a 4-3 loss to the Calgary Flames on Saturday night, while the Buffalo Sabres are coming off a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Matchup Information
- Game: Buffalo Sabres vs. Edmonton Oilers
- Venue: Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
- Game Time: Tuesday, October 18, 2022. 9:00 P.M. ET
- Watch: NHLPP or ESPN/ESPN+
Buffalo Sabres vs. Edmonton Oilers Betting Analysis
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are perennially looking toward better days in the future. The Sabres are again stocking their franchise with young talent, hoping this crop will be the crew to get the Sabres back into playoff contention in the future.
The Atlantic Division will be among the most competitive this season, with five teams all contenders to make the playoffs, meaning the Sabres are likely to have a long year and another high draft pick.
Inner-divisional Matchups
The Buffalo Sabres arrive in Edmonton with a 1-1-0 record for their first game on the road. The Sabres opened their season with a pair of inner-divisional matchups, opening the season with a 4-1 win against the Ottawa Senators.
The Sabres dropped a 4-3 loss to Matthew Tkachuk and the Florida Panthers. Rasmus Dahlin leads the Sabres in points with three (two goals and one assist).
First Two Games
Buffalo has split the first two games of the season between their goalies, meaning we’re not sure who will get the start in Edmonton.
Craig Anderson won the season opener, giving up one goal and making 35 saves, while Eric Comrie gave up four goals and made 33 saves in the loss to the Panthers.
The Sabres are one of two teams who have not scored a power-play goal this season, while their penalty kill is operating at 80%.
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers enter Tuesday night’s matchup with a 1-1-0 record, defeating the Vancouver Canucks 5-3 in their season opener while losing 4-3 to the Calgary Flames on Saturday night.
In this Sabres vs Oilers betting analysis, we would be silly and misguided not to speak about Connor McDavid.
Edmonton’s Dynamic Duo
McDavid is the best player in the NHL and, along with Leon Draisaitl, for Edmonton’s dynamic duo that will be among the NHL stats leaders all season long. And the McDavid/Draisaitl duo is off to a great start.
McDavid and Draisaitl lead the Oilers with five points a piece. He has four goals and one assist, while Draisaitl has one goal and four assists.
McDavid, Draisaitl, and top defenseman Darnell Nurse have led the Oilers’ power play to a 50% conversion rate early this season. Edmonton’s power play efficiency is currently 83.3%.
Stanley Cup Contender
The Oilers will need newly acquired starting goalie Jack Campbell to be much better if Edmonton is going to be the Stanley Cup contender they envision themselves as Campbell has a 1-1-0 record this season, posting 5.98 goals against average and a .851 save percentage.
Backup goalie Stuart Skinner replaced Campbell in the Flames game, making 31 saves in 48:44 of ice time and keeping Calgary from scoring.
Buffalo Sabres vs. Edmonton Oilers Betting Preview
Moneyline
Online sportsbooks have the Edmonton Oilers listed as the heavy moneyline betting favorite, listed between -227 and -250 odds.
The Buffalo Sabres are the moneyline betting underdog, listed between +185 and +210. The Edmonton Oilers and Buffalo Sabres are both 1-1 on the moneyline in 2022-23.
NHL Pick: Oilers (-235)
Puck line
As of publication, the puck line spread is set to 1.5, with Edmonton (-1.5) being the betting underdog, listed between+105 and -110.
The Buffalo Sabres (-1.5) are listed as the betting favorite against the spread, with odds listed between -115 and -125. So far in 2022-23, the Oilers are 1-1 against the spread, while the Sabres are 2-0.
NHL Pick: Oilers -1.5 (+135)
Total
The total goals lines are set at either 6.5 or 7, with the over listed between +112 (7 goals) and -141 (6.5 goals), while the under is listed between +120 (6.5 goals) and -133 (7 goals).
We don’t favor total goal lines in our NHL picks, and varying lines like these are one of the reasons why.
NHL Pick: 7 (-120)
Buffalo Sabres vs. Edmonton Oilers Betting Prediction
On paper, this game shouldn’t be close. The Edmonton Oilers should defeat the Buffalo Sabres.
Neither team has game-changing goaltending right now, which definitely raises concerns for Sabres vs. Oilers betting predictions.
We don’t like total goals betting lines, yet there is a real possibility to make a wager on the total goals because of our lack of confidence in the goaltenders.
And our faith in the best player in hockey and his tag team partner to fill the net. Despite the heavy favorite odds, we’re picking the Edmonton Oilers to win on the moneyline, with odds between -227 and -250.
Who to Bet On?
The Oilers are the better team and will have to play poorly or get exceptionally poor goaltending for the Sabres to win this matchup.
We’d also consider taking the Oilers to cover the spread, but we will wait until the Sabres announce whether Anderson or Comrie will get the start.
It’s unlikely, but if Comrie is starting for the Sabres, we’d be very interested in parlaying our Oilers to win on the moneyline with Edmonton to cover the spread.
NHL Pick: Oilers -1.5 (+105)
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