Two clubs that split their season series two wins apiece a year ago, the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers clash at Madison Square Garden. The action gets underway at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, January 21, and fans at home can witness this Metropolitan Division matchup live on MSG Network.
New York Islanders vs. New York Rangers Odds
The Rangers (+105) at DraftKings are entering this one as the underdogs to the Islanders (-125), and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at an even 6 goals (-120 to bet the under, +100 for the over).
The Islanders are 28-20 straight up (SU) and have earned 4.7 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 48 regular season matches, 27 of their games have gone under the total, while 19 have gone over and just two have pushed. The Isles are 13-10 SU on the road in 2019-20.
The Islanders have converted on just 18.0 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a mark that places them in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. Additionally, their penalty kill is ranked 17th in the league, and they’ve successfully killed off 80.0 percent of all penalties.
For the team as a whole, the Isles have been sent to the penalty box 3.5 times per game overall in the 2019-20 season, and 4.8 per game over their past five match ups. The team’s had to kill penalties a whopping 8.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
With a .915 save percentage and 25.7 saves per game, Semyon Varlamov (16-15-4) has been the top option in goal for the Islanders this year. If they choose to give him a rest, however, head coach Barry Trotz might go with Thomas Greiss (13-10-1), who has a .923 save percentage and 2.45 goals against average this year.
The visitors have relied on Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson this season. Barzal (40 points) has tallied 17 goals and 23 assists, and has recorded two or more points 11 times. Nelson has 19 goals and 18 assists to his name (and has notched at least one point in 24 games).
the Broadway Blueshirts are 23-24 straight up (SU) and have earned 6.0 units for moneyline bettors this season. Through 47 regular season contests, 23 of their games have gone over the total, while another 23 have gone under and just one has pushed. They’re 13-11 SU as the home team this season.
The Rangers have converted on 21.0 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a figure that places them in the top-10 among NHL teams. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 18th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 79.7 percent of all penalties.
The Rangers have been penalized 4.7 times per game this season, 5.0 per game over their past five contests total, and 4.4 per game over their last five home outings. The team has had to kill penalties a whopping 15.2 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Henrik Lundqvist has stopped 29.1 shots per game as the primary option in goal for the Rangers. Lundqvist has nine wins, 16 losses, and three overtime losses and has recorded a fairly-weak .907 save percentage and 3.18 goals against average this season.
The Broadway Blueshirts offense will be led by Artemi Panarin (26 goals, 42 assists).
New York Islanders at New York Rangers Free Picks
Free NHL Pick: SU Winner – Islanders, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
For both of these teams, the game went over the total in three of their last five outings.
The Rangers are 10-14 SU when they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Islanders are 21-9 SU in games where they spend more time in the box than the opposition.
The Islanders (3-2 in shootouts) have more shootout experience coming into this one. The Rangers came up short in both of their shootouts this year.
The Rangers have created 9.2 takeaways per game over their last five home games, an improvement over their season average of 8.3 takeaways per game (ranked 8th in the league).
The Islanders have given up 3.7 goals per game (while scoring just 2.3 goals per contest) over their three-game losing streak.
The Islanders are ranked 12th in the league this season with 7.9 takeaways per game. That figure has trended upward recently, as they’ve averaged 8.9 takeaways over their last 10 games and 9.2 takeaways over their last five.
The Islanders might hold the upper hand if it’s a tight one late. They’re an impressive 15-9 in games decided by one goal, while the Rangers are 8-10 in such games.
