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Friday Night NHL Expert Picks and Predictions (October 20th, 2023)

Get ready for an intense night of NHL action as two exciting matchups take place tonight! The first game features the Flames taking on the Blue Jackets, followed by a faceoff between the Devils and the Islanders.

semyon-varlamov

New Jersey Devils vs New York Islanders

  • Game: New Jersey Devils vs New York Islanders
  • Date: Friday, October 20, 2023
  • Location: UBS Arena in Elmont, NY
  • TV: MSG
  • Odds/Point Spread: Devils (+100) Islanders (-125)

Odds source: Bovada Sportsbook (USA), Bodog Sportsbook (Canada)

The New Jersey Devils (1-1-1) are set to face off against the New York Islanders (2-0-0) at UBS Arena on Friday. The Devils are listed as +100 underdogs, while the Islanders come in as -125 favorites. The betting total is set at 7.

In their previous game, the New Jersey Devils suffered a 4-3 defeat at the hands of the Panthers, accumulating 10 penalty minutes. They scored 2 goals on 34 shots and had a middle-of-the-road performance overall.

While playing at even strength, the Devils have scored 5 goals and allowed 5 goals. They have had 15 penalty kill opportunities, allowing 5 goals, and have scored 10 goals on 97 shots attempted, giving them a shooting percentage of 10.3%. Their points percentage stands at .500, with 3 points earned. The Devils have faced 98 shots and have a save percentage of .898. On the power play, they have converted 5 out of 16 chances, resulting in a 31.25% success rate.

The Devils will have Vitek Vanecek in goal, who has a record of 75-34-14 in his career. He has faced 3,546 shots, making 3,222 saves for a save percentage of .909. Vanecek has 69 quality starts and a quality start percentage of .552.

In their last game, the New York Islanders secured a 1-0 victory over the Coyotes. They scored 1 goal on 34 shots in the game.

The Islanders have scored 3 even-strength goals and 1 power play goal this season. They have attempted 63 shots, resulting in a shooting percentage of 6.35%, while allowing 42 shots. They have tallied 4 goals, 4 points, and a points percentage of 1.000. Defensively, they have allowed 2 goals, including 2 even-strength goals and 0 shorthanded goals. On the power play, they have converted 1 out of 6 chances, giving them a power play percentage of 16.67%. They have a penalty kill rate of 100.00% on 5 power play chances faced, with a save percentage of 95.2%.

Semyon Varlamov will be in goal for the Islanders, with a career record of 272-220-64. He has allowed 1,472 goals on 17,512 shots, resulting in a save percentage of .916. Varlamov has a quality start percentage of 56.8% with 316 quality starts in his career.

The Pick: New York Islanders (-125)

Calgary Flames vs Columbus Blue Jackets

  • Game: Calgary Flames vs Columbus Blue Jackets
  • Date: Friday, October 20, 2023
  • Location: Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH
  • TV: Bally Sports Ohio
  • Odds/Point Spread: Flames (-154) Blue Jackets (+125)

Odds source: Bovada Sportsbook (USA), Bodog Sportsbook (Canada)

The Calgary Flames (1-1-1) are heading to Nationwide Arena on Friday to face off against the Columbus Blue Jackets (1-2-0). The Flames are favored with a moneyline of -154, while the Blue Jackets open as underdogs at +125. The betting total for this game is set at 7.

The Calgary Flames showed a decent effort in their previous game, finishing in a 2-2 tie against the Capitals. However, their offensive performance could have been better as they only scored on 2 out of 40 shots. They also had 5 power play opportunities, converting 1 of them into a goal. Calgary spent 6 minutes in the penalty box during the game.

While at even strength, the Flames have scored 6 goals and conceded 10 goals. Their opponents have had 10 power play opportunities, but the Flames defense has managed to keep them scoreless. Offensively, Calgary has scored 9 goals (ranking 18th in the league) and given up 10 goals so far this season. They have taken 98 shots with a shooting percentage of 9.2%. Currently, the Flames have 3 points and a points percentage of .500. They have faced 89 shots and achieved a save percentage of .888. The Flames have had 11 power play chances, resulting in 3 goals and a power play rate of 27.27%.

Daniel Vladar will be in goal for the Calgary Flames in this matchup. Throughout his career, Vladar has allowed 145 goals with a goals against average of 2.87 per game. He has played in 55 games, accumulating a save percentage of .898 in 3,027 minutes. Vladar has a record of 29-14-8, starting in 47 games. He has recorded 23 quality starts with a quality starts percentage of .489. Vladar has faced 1,424 shots and made 1,279 saves.

In their last game, the Columbus Blue Jackets suffered a 4-0 defeat against the Red Wings. Despite having 4 power play opportunities, they were unable to score a goal. The Blue Jackets managed to register 0 goals out of 23 shots on goal.

So far this season, the Blue Jackets have scored 7 goals, earning 2 points with a points percentage of .333. They have allowed 11 goals, with 8 goals conceded at even strength and 3 goals while shorthanded. Offensively, Columbus has scored 6 goals at even strength and 1 power play goal (ranking 26th in the NHL). They have had 9 power play opportunities with a power play rate of 11.11%. The Blue Jackets have taken 77 shots (ranked 23rd in the league) with a shooting percentage of 9.09%. Defensively, they have allowed 107 shots and have a penalty kill rate of 72.73% on 11 power play chances. Their save percentage is currently 89.7%.

Elvis Merzlikins will be guarding the crease for the Columbus Blue Jackets. He has an average of 3.12 goals against per game, allowing a total of 431 goals. Merzlikins has a quality start rate of 48.9% with 68 quality starts in his NHL career. In 139 games played, he has logged a total of 8,290 minutes. Merzlikins has a career record of 56-63-22 and has made 4,182 saves out of 4,613 shots, resulting in a save percentage of .907.

The Pick: Calgary Flames (-154)

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