Calgary Flames vs New Jersey Devils Betting Picks

After upsetting the Wild on the road and beating the Kraken at home, the Devils had their mini two-game win streak halted by the Hurricanes this past Saturday. New Jersey is seven points shy of the final Wild Card berth in the Eastern Conference. So the Devils are putting heavy emphasis on winning this game. Calgary has 46 points, which is four points fewer than New Jersey. The Flames rank 29th in scoring and 30th on the power play. Calgary just made a trade with an eye towards the future, dealing defenseman Rasmus Andersson to the Golden Knights for Zach Whitecloud, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a prospect. Andersson had the third-most points on the Flames and gave their blue line an offensive thrust that they won't have with Whitecloud, who may not be able to join the team in time for today's game. The Devils should be able to take advantage of the Flames' transition to playing without Andersson. Calgary is 1-2 in its last three home games with upset losses to the Kraken and Predators during this time span. Take the Devils.

Calgary has the worst offense in the NHL, averaging 2.54 goals. They're also 19th on the power play and 31st in shooting percentage. They're on a 22-10-1 run UNDER the total with a defense that is 14th in goals allowed (2.91 per game) and 13th in save percentage (.905). New Jersey's offense is 15th in shooting percentage, while the defense is third in penalty killing, plus fourth in goals given up (2.63 per game) and in save percentage (.910). The Devils are on a 31-14 run UNDER the total. Take Calgary/New Jersey UNDER the total. 

The Calgary Flames have opened the second-half with a big win over Boston on the road by the score of 4-1. This shoud have the team mentally ready to take on New Jersey in the second of a four-game road trip. New Jersey scored a big win at home in their first game back over Colorado 5-3. I'm still concerned about the Colorado leaky defense that has now allowed three or more goals in eight of their last nine games, including each of the last five. Calgary closed the first half of the season with a shutout, and held Boston to one gaol on the road to open the second-half. I think they slow down Colorado here, and I will go with Calgary.