Columbus Blue Jackets vs New York Islanders Betting Picks

Columbus will try to even the season series and avenge a 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders on Feb. 28. The Blue Jackets have won 19 of 25 and currently have a four-game win streak after defeating Seattle 5-2 on Saturday. Defenseman Zach Werenski assisted on three first period goals and Elvis Merzlikins stopped 15 of 17 shots for Columbus. New York has lost five of nine and two in a row following a 7-3 loss to Montreal in the Islanders third road game in five days. Ilya Sorokin was bombarded with six goals on 32 shots, but he still could get the start today due to David Rittich's recent inconsistency. The Blue Jackets have won eight of 10 road games and they have gone UNDER four of six versus the Eastern Conference. The Islanders are 5-1 UNDER their past six games while averaging 2.60 goals. Take the Blue Jackets and the UNDER.

Rick Bowness has turned the Blue Jackets around after being hired as the team's head coach last month. Columbus had won a season-high seven games in a row before losing to the Bruins, 4-2, on the road this past Thursday in their first game following the Olympic break. Look for the Blue Jackets to bounce back here. They are 11-2 in their last 13 games. Each of Columbus's last six wins has been by more than a goal. Even with the loss to the Bruins, the Blue Jackets have surrendered an average of only 2.1 goals a game during their last eight games. They have been a top-10 penalty-kill unit since January. The Islanders came back on multiple occasions to defeat the Canadiens, 4-3 in overtime, this past Thursday in their first game following the Olympic break. That game was in Montreal. Now the Islanders are in Columbus. Tough spot for them against a hot team. Lay 1.5 goals with the Blue Jackets on the puckline.

Islanders coach Patrick Roy did something interesting this past Friday against the Capitals. He switched his lines putting Mat Barzal and Bo Horvat alongside Emil Heineman and had Cal Ritchie center another line with Jonathan Drouin and Kyle Palmieri. The Islanders scored two third period goals to beat Washington, 3-1, as a plus $1.98 road underdog. The Islanders are an above average offensive team and they are in a good position to end Columbus' four-game win streak. This is a tough situational spot for the Blue Jackets. Columbus nipped the Blues, 3-2, on Saturday. The Blue Jackets were outshot by the Blues, 39-35. St Louis fired 18 shots on goal in the final period. Now, less than 24 hours later, the weary Blue Jackets have to play again since this is an earlier than usual start time. It is Columbus' fourth game in six days. The extra day of rest for the Islanders should come in handy for this matchup allowing them to win by more than one goal against a  tired Blue Jackets squad carrying a high fatigue rating. Take the Islanders on the puck line.