The New Jersey Devils will travel to take on the Buffalo Sabres on Friday in a game between a first-place team and a last-place team in the Eastern Conference. The Devils are playing high-level hockey and sit atop the Metropolitan Division, while the Sabres are struggling and will try to turn things around here. Before the puck drops in Buffalo, I’ve made my Devils vs Sabres prediction below.
Our Devils vs Sabres Pick
- Pick: Buffalo Sabres moneyline
- Confidence: ★★★☆☆
Game Snapshot
- Matchup: New Jersey Devils @ Buffalo Sabres
- Date & Time: Friday, November 28, 2025, 4:00 p.m. ET
- Venue: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York
- Broadcast: ESPN+
Key Storylines
Recent form
The Devils (15-7-1) enter this game having won two straight games. Their most recent outing saw them earn a 3–2 overtime win over the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday. Their home dominance has been impressive, but New Jersey sits at 6-7-0 away from home and will try to get back to .500 on the road here. The Sabres (9-10-4) had a two-game winning streak snapped in their last game. Buffalo fell 4-2 against the Pittsburgh Penguins and will try to rebound in this game from their home rink.
Goaltending
New Jersey is expected to rely on Jacob Markstrom, who has posted victories in both of his last two starts and three of his last four. Markstrom hasn’t had the best goaltending numbers on his own team this season and will try to move them in the right direction in this contest. Goaltending remains a potential weakness for Buffalo. The team allows 3.44 goals per game, putting added pressure on their skaters to produce offensively.
Key skaters
The spotlight is on Nico Hischier and Timo Meier for New Jersey. Both have contributed consistently of late and will try to team up with Jesper Bratt to create dangerous scoring chances consistently for the Devils. Buffalo’s Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch have carried their offense. Thompson has 12 goals to lead the Sabres and he will likely need to score for the Sabres to have a realistic shot in this one.
Best Player Props
| Player | Prop |
|---|---|
| Tage Thompson (Sabres) | Over 0.5 Goals |
| Nico Hischier (Devils) | Over 0.5 Points |
| Timo Meier (Devils) | Over 0.5 Points |
| Alex Tuch (Sabres) | Over 0.5 Points |
Betting Trends & H2H
- This is the first game of the season between the Devils and Sabres.
- Buffalo is 10-13 on the puckline to start this season.
- The Sabres have gone over the total in 12 of their 23 games.
- New Jersey is 9-14 on the puckline through their first 23 outings.
- The over is 12-11 for Devils games so far this year.
Devils vs Sabres Model Projection
Score Projection: Buffalo 4 – New Jersey 3
Win Probability: Devils 49%, Sabres 51%
Final Thoughts
The Devils are favored in this game and they are playing much better hockey than the Sabres this season. But I think that we will see the Sabres pull off an upset of the Devils on their home ice today. Buffalo is playing some decent hockey of their own lately and I think they’ll have a good enough chance to win this game late that it’s worth playing them as a dog.
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