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The New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes will renew acquaintances to start the second half of the season as they play a home-and-home series on Friday and Saturday night. They have seen plenty of each other this year, with this game marking the fourth matchup after they traded 4-2 home victories back in October and November. Despite trading victories earlier this year, the Hurricanes dominated the matchup over the past ten games, winning eight, with two coming overtime. The Devils struggle to score against the Hurricanes, which includes Carolina's playoff victory in 2023. New Jersey scored two or fewer goals in all eight losses. It's time to continue our NHL odds series with a Devils-Hurricanes prediction and pick.
Here are the Devils-Hurricanes NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NHL Odds: Devils-Hurricanes Odds
New Jersey Devils: +1.5 (-220)
Moneyline: +112
Carolina Hurricanes: -1.5 (+176)
Moneyline: -134
Over: 6.5 (+104)
Under: 6.5 (-128)
How To Watch Devils vs. Hurricanes
Time: 7 PM ET/4 PM PT
TV: Fanduel Sports Network, MSGSN2
*Watch NHL games LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why the Devils Could Cover the Spread/Win
The Devils were on fire to end the first half, winning seven of their ten games, with one of those losses coming in overtime. The defense has been most impressive, which takes nothing away from Jacob Markstrom's back-to-back shutouts. New Jersey defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers 5-0 and 3-0 to enter the break, which gave Markstrom back-to-back 12-save shutouts. Markstrom also allowed one goal in his two starts on December 17 and 14. As mentioned, the defense is the catalyst, as the Devils allowed 20 or fewer shots in five consecutive games.
The Hurricanes' most significant issue is that their goaltending tandem is now Pyotr Kochetkov and Dustin Tokarski. They entered the break with a 1.80 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage over their last five games, but it remains to be seen whether they can keep that up. Kochetkov will start in the first game of the back-to-back, which means Tokarski will get the opportunity at home. Tokarski played his first two games in the NHL since the 2022-23 season, and he wasn't that impressive last year in the American Hockey League. He recorded a 3.32 goals-against average and a .890 save percentage with the Rochester Americans.
Why the Hurricanes Could Cover the Spread/Win
The Hurricanes had a slow stretch through the middle of December and entered the holiday break by losing two of their last three games. However, they still have a .500 record over their previous two games and are third in the Metropolitan Division. They are behind the Devils, but New Jersey has four games in hand. A couple of wins in this back-to-back would go a long way toward chasing down New Jersey and claiming second place in the division. It's starting to get to the time of year when the Hurricanes excel, and it'll be intriguing to see if the Devils will start to fall off.
Final Devils-Hurricanes Prediction & Pick
The goaltending matchup for this game will likely be Dustin Tokarski vs. Jake Allen. Allen wasn't impressive in his last start, allowing three goals on 19 shots and suffering a 4-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. We have two explosive offenses who can score in bunches in this matchup, which means it'd be a long night for any goaltender. When the goaltenders are Tokarski and Allen, that could equal plenty of goals.
Final Devils-Hurricanes Prediction & Pick: Over 6.5 (+104)
