NHL Picks Today: Thursday, February 5
New York Islanders vs. New Jersey Devils
The Devils enter today's game having lost four of their last five games. It’s not like they’ve been playing elite teams – they lost to Seattle, Ottawa, and Columbus by multiple goals and to Winnipeg by a goal. Their one win came, in overtime, against a Nashville team that ranks fifth-to-last in goal-scoring defense. New York has one of the top goal-scoring defenses, so New Jersey will struggle to score.
New Jersey is very bad without center Jack Hughes, whose ability to get teammates involved offensively was absolutely crucial to its goal-scoring. The Devils’ goal-scoring defense ranks toward the bottom after recently giving up four goals to bottom-feeder offenses like Seattle’s and Vancouver’s, so New York won’t have a problem scoring enough goals to win tonight.
The Islanders are already 3-0 against the Devils, who couldn’t beat them even when they had Hughes. Expect another Islanders win tonight.
Los Angeles Kings vs. Las Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights are only favored in this matchup because oddsmakers fail to account for current form. Vegas is 2-7 in its last nine games, with the two wins coming against a Toronto team that was mired in a big slump and against a Vancouver team that has the fewest points in the NHL.
The Kings, on the other hand, have recently faced a tough schedule but defeated Detroit and took Carolina to overtime. They have the top goal-scoring defense, which means that their offense will have an easy time scoring enough goals to win given Vegas’ ongoing defensive struggles, which have dropped Vegas’ goal-scoring defense to 23rd. The Golden Knights are starting slow, committing turnovers, making bad passes, and positioning themselves poorly, which is making it easy for opposing offenses to score more goals than they usually do.
| Matchup | Pick | Odds | Confidence Level | Sportsbook |
| Islanders vs. Devils | Islanders ML | -107 | Highest | BetOnline |
| Kings vs. Golden Knights | Kings ML | +125 | Highest | Bovada |
New York Islanders vs. New Jersey Devils
The Devils enter today's game having lost four of their last five games. It’s not like they’ve been playing elite teams – they lost to Seattle, Ottawa, and Columbus by multiple goals and to Winnipeg by a goal. Their one win came, in overtime, against a Nashville team that ranks fifth-to-last in goal-scoring defense. New York has one of the top goal-scoring defenses, so New Jersey will struggle to score.
New Jersey is very bad without center Jack Hughes, whose ability to get teammates involved offensively was absolutely crucial to its goal-scoring. The Devils’ goal-scoring defense ranks toward the bottom after recently giving up four goals to bottom-feeder offenses like Seattle’s and Vancouver’s, so New York won’t have a problem scoring enough goals to win tonight.
The Islanders are already 3-0 against the Devils, who couldn’t beat them even when they had Hughes. Expect another Islanders win tonight.
Los Angeles Kings vs. Las Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights are only favored in this matchup because oddsmakers fail to account for current form. Vegas is 2-7 in its last nine games, with the two wins coming against a Toronto team that was mired in a big slump and against a Vancouver team that has the fewest points in the NHL.
The Kings, on the other hand, have recently faced a tough schedule but defeated Detroit and took Carolina to overtime. They have the top goal-scoring defense, which means that their offense will have an easy time scoring enough goals to win given Vegas’ ongoing defensive struggles, which have dropped Vegas’ goal-scoring defense to 23rd. The Golden Knights are starting slow, committing turnovers, making bad passes, and positioning themselves poorly, which is making it easy for opposing offenses to score more goals than they usually do.
