After almost a month of action in the 2021-22 National Hockey League season, several teams are off to hot starts, but none have been hotter than the Florida Panthers, who are 10-0-1 (21 points) and have yet to lose a game in regulation. They have a goal differential of +22, which is 20 higher than any other team in the Atlantic Division. Their 46 goals scored leads the NHL, and if they can keep scoring 4.2 goals per game, they will be extremely difficult to slow down. In the Western Conference, the hottest start belongs to the Edmonton Oilers (9-1-0, 18 points).
Let’s take a look at some of your best sports betting picks from the rink as this week opens up.
NHL News: Top Betting Games of the Week
Florida Panthers at New Jersey Devils (7:00 pm ET, ESPN+ / Hulu)
Tuesday, November 9
The white-hot Panthers saw their eight-game winning streak to start the season come to an end in Boston, where the Bruins won a shootout to edge the Panthers, 3-2. After that, the Panthers bounced back to beat Washington, 5-4, and Carolina, 5-2. That win over the Panthers on Saturday tied the Panthers for the best 11-game start in league history. Carolina came in with a 9-0 record and was looking to become just the third team to start a season with 10 straight wins. Spencer Knight stopped 28 shots for Florida, who made a statement by taking a 4-0 lead after just one period despite missing captain Aleksander Barkov, the top player on the team, who got scratched shortly before game time due to a lower body injury. The team has also dealt with the surprise resignation of coach Joel Quenneville, who left as part of the scandal surrounding the way the Chicago Blackhawks handled a player’s allegations of sexual assault at the hands of a video coach 11 seasons ago. With that sort of focus, the Panthers should be able to roll for a while.
New Jersey had dropped three in a row, with a home loss to Columbus and setbacks in Anaheim and Los Angeles before knocking off San Jose on the road on Saturday, prevailing 3-2 in a shootout. In that game, the Devils trailed 2-1 until Janne Kuokkanen lit the lamp with 2:56 remaining in regulation to send the game to overtime. Jonathan Bernier stopped 25 shots in a gritty win for a team playing its second overtime game in as many days. While the win was impressive, San Jose has not been one of the elite teams in the league so far.
Final Score Prediction: Florida 4, New Jersey 2 : Bet the Game Today
Seattle Kraken at Vegas Golden Knights (10:00 pm ET, ESPN+ / Hulu)
Tuesday, November 9
Seattle is going through some of the customary bumps in the road that expansion teams face. On Tuesday, they visit a team that was an historic exception when they head to Las Vegas. The Golden Knights rolled to the Stanley Cup Finals in their first season, the first team to do that since the St. Louis Blues pulled it off in 1970. In 1970, though, the Blues were part of an entirely new West Division in the league, made up completely of expansion teams, so it was guaranteed that one expansion team would play for the Cup. Seattle has dropped three of four, including a 5-4 setback in Phoenix on Saturday. That win was the first for the Arizona Coyotes this season and was the first game featuring Scott Wedgewood, whom the Coyotes claimed off waivers, oin goal. He stopped 27 shots, and Lawson Crouse put the puck in the net twice, including the game-winning goal with 1:05 left in regulation.
The Kraken look to bounce back against one of the league’s top teams. The Golden Knights had won five of six before getting shelled, 5-2, in Detroit on Sunday. Vegas sent 40 shots toward the Detroit net, but Red Wings goalie Thomas Greiss stopped 38 of them — including 19 saves in the third period. The Golden Knights took an early 1-0 lead just 3:48 into the game, but then Detroit would score the next four goals to take control of the game. The Red Wings are not the doormat they have been in recent seasons, currently with a 6-5-2 record. The Golden Knights should be able to right the ship against a struggling Seattle team.
Final Score Prediction: Vegas 3, Seattle 1 : Bet the Game Today
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