The final game on Wednesday’s NHL slate is the lone matchup dropping the puck at 10 p.m. EST. The Vegas Golden Knights continue to chase the top of the Pacific Division, and a battle with a struggling New Jersey Devils group may be just what they need to tack on the points needed to claim first place.
Read on for a Devils vs. Golden Knights prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Wednesday night’s game.
Devils vs. Golden Knights prediction, preview
The visiting Devils have experienced a very rough stretch ever since star Jack Hughes suffered a somewhat mysterious hand injury allegedly at a team dinner. New Jersey’s record was 12-4-1 before the star went down, leaving the group near the top of the Eastern Conference. Since then, the team is just 6-10-0 with 37 points overall and a -6 goal differential. The Devils score 2.88 goals per game (23rd), and while the power play hits at a 21.4% clip (10th), it’s clear that Hughes is missed. Jesper Bratt paces the team with 29 points as a playmaker from the wing with 23 assists while Nico Hischier (26 P), Timo Meier (23 P) and Dawson Mercer (22 P) all have 10 goals apiece. Defensemen Simon Nemec and Luke Hughes have 18 points each, but whiffing on adding the third Hughes brother via blockbuster trade does hurt after Quinn was instead shipped to Minnesota last week. The blue line could use some work with New Jersey allowing 3.12 goals per game (19th) with a PK% of just 75.8% (27th). Netminder Jacob Markstrom has struggled this season with a 3.56 GAA and .874 SV%, so it’d be nice to see Jake Allen (2.60 GAA, .907 SV%) get the start instead. However, the starter hasn’t yet been announced, so stay tuned.
The Golden Knights suit up at home with 41 points, the second-most in the Pacific Division. Their 31 games are three fewer than the current division-leading Ducks, though, so Vegas sees a real chance to retake the top of the standings with a win on Wednesday. The offense hasn’t become totally dominant in year one of the Mitch Marner era as Vegas scores 3.06 goals per game, but the group hits at a 24.7% rate with the man advantage and averages the sixth-most shots per game of any team. Jack Eichel leads the way with 41 points but is day-to-day and won’t play tonight. Marner’s 32 are second on the roster with a team-best 26 assists. The stars are followed by Ivan Barbashev with 25, Tomas Hertl with 22 and Pavel Dorofeyev with 21. Plus, Mark Stone has 24 points in just 16 appearances and had scored a point in eight consecutive games since returning from an injury prior to his last contest on December 13. As for defensemen, Shea Theodore paces the group with 20 points but will also miss tonight’s game with an injury. As a whole, the unit limits opponents to 2.81 goals per game (11th) and the second-fewest shot attempts. They’re also good on the penalty kill at 82.5%. The Golden Knights do well to insulate their array of goalies, and Carter Hart is in line to make his fifth start of the year with a 2.61 GAA and .901 SV%.
Devils vs. Golden Knights pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Golden Knights as -166 favorites on the Moneyline while the Devils come in at +140 odds. Betting splits show 81% of straight bets in Vegas’ favor at home with 64% of wagers leaning over on the total of 5.5 combined goals.
Vegas does have a pretty clear upper hand in this contest, especially if Markstrom does play for New Jersey. The veteran netminder just hasn’t looked like himself whatsoever this season, scraping by with an 8-7 record despite his poor statistical output. If Allen steps into the crease though, the Devils do have a better chance of hanging in there against one of the NHL’s better offensive units. Granted, missing Eichel tonight leaves the Golden Knights without their top offensive threat and will likely result in Brett Howden sliding up to play top-line center, while Theodore’s absence also means they’ll be without their leading skater in TOI.
Still, this Vegas team is equipped with plenty of other talent and should manage to weather the storm so long as Hart manages to hold up in net, which may be easier said than done after allowing multiple goals in all four of his starts. Taking Vegas in regulation makes some sense regardless though.
