Two teams each coming off 7-0 losses collide in Buffalo as the Nashville Predators face off against the Buffalo Sabres. It’s time to continue our NHL odds series with a Predators-Sabres prediction and pick.
Both Nashville and Buffalo are in the midst of three-game losing streaks. Nashville just fell to the Rangers 7-0, following losses to the Jets and Blackhawks. Currently sitting five points out of the wild card spot, the Predators still have a chance at catching the Jets for the final spot, but time is running out. Buffalo finds itself in almost the exact same spot. They are six points out of the wild-card sport and just lost 7-0 to the Bruins. They are coming off losses to the Flyers and Capitals, in recent games. Both teams needing to fix defensive woes, look to get right against each other Tuesday night.
Here are the Predators-Sabres NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NHL Odds: Predators-Sabres Odds
Nashville Predators: +1.5 (-188)
Buffalo Sabres: -1.5 (+155)
Over: 6.5 (-128)
Under: 6.5 (+104)
How To Watch Predators vs. Sabres
TV: MSG-B / ESPN+
Stream: NHLPP / ESPN+
Time: 7:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM PT
*Watch NHL games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Predators Could Cover The Spread
Losing the last three games by a combined 12-3 shows how rough this stretch has been for Nashville. Kevin Lankinen is the current projected starter, but considering his most recent outing, it would not be surprising if that changed. On Sunday, Lankinen let in four goals in five shots before being pulled. It may have just been an off night though, as his other two starts in March were both wins, and both had save percentages over .963. In the two wins, he let in a combined two goals.
Goaltending play will be key for the Predators. For Lankinen, when he is over .915 save percentage he has won his six stars since December. When he is under, he has lost all four. Similar is Saros, who is 5-2 in his last 15 starts when over a .915 save percentage, but 2-6 when he is under.
Nashville needs to find a consistent goal scorer as well. The current team leader is Matt Duchene, who has 19 goals in 67 games. That is tied for 101st in the NHL. The team’s leading goal scorer has not scored since March 2nd. This conundrum of goal scoring is due to an injury to Forsberg being injured and Nino Niederreiter being traded to the Jets. Someone has to fill the void, and if it is not Duchene it could be Tommy Novak. He has only played in 37 games this year, but had 13 goals, with four in March. He only has 64 career games under his belt, so asking him to carry the load may be a little much for Nashville.
Why The Sabres Could Cover The Spread
The Sabres are coming off a 7-0 drubbing at the hands of the Bruins, but the Bruins are the best team in hockey, so a loss is not a complete shock. The loss to the Flyers, who sit below them in the standings, and the Capitals, whom they are trying to catch, are major issues. The defense has gone cold for the Sabres. In their last six games, they have given up 32 goals. Even more, 19 of those goals, and three of those games, all losses, were at home.
The Sabres have struggled at home this year. They are 13-19-3 this year, which is a similar record to Columbus. Columbus sits dead last in the Eastern Conference. Young stud Tage Thompson has done cold. He has not scored since March 4th, a streak of eight games. In that span, the Sabres have one win.
Alex Tuch has not shown much recently either. Since missing games in early March, he scored twice in the 4-3 win over Toronto, but not in the next three games. In the major loss on Sunday, he was held without a shot. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is expected to start in the net tonight. He has not won a game since February against the Capitals and has been hit or miss all year. The formula for the Sabres is simple if they get more shots off than the last few games, and slightly better goaltending, they will win.
Final Predators-Sabres Prediction & Pick
The over is favored because of how bad both teams have been on defense lately, and how much Buffalo can score. The problem is, both teams have not shown they are capable of scoring on a consistent basis. The smart play may be to take both the under 6 and over 7 at plus value on both. Fan Duel has Over 7 at +124, and Under 6 at +140. The worst case is a push and a loss, but based on the recent performance, one will win, meaning that money will be made.
Final Predators-Sabres Prediction & Pick: Over 6.5 (-128)
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