Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Buffalo Sabres Prediction, Preview, and Odds

The Columbus Blue Jackets will go on the road and take on the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. Columbus has a record of 19-35-6. Buffalo has a record of 31-23-4. Both of these teams faced each other once this season with Buffalo winning the matchup. The puck drops at 7:30 PM EST.

Blue Jackets Lose Three Of Last Four

Columbus was a +260 underdog in their previous game and they lost 3-2 in overtime against the Minnesota Wild. Mathieu Oliver and Liam Foudy each scored a goal. Elvis Merzlikins stopped 41 out of 44 shots faced.

The offense has been struggling for the Jackets recently. Columbus scored three or fewer goals in seven of their last 10 games. They rank 30 in goals per game and 26 in shots per game. Johnny Gaudreau leads the team with 54 points. Patrik Laine has 38 points.

Defense and goaltending have been horrible for the Blue Jackets this season. They rank 30 in goals against per game and 30 in shots against per game. Elvis Merzlikins has a record of 6-15-2 with a 4.14 GAA and a .876 SV %. Joonas Korpisalo has a record of 11-11-3 with a 3.17 GAA and .913 SV%.

Columbus is last in the Metropolitan division and they will not make the playoffs.

Sabres Win Three Straight

Buffalo was a -115 favorite in their last game and they defeated the Washington Capitals 7-4. Dylan Cozens scored three goals and had an assist. Vinnie Hinostroza scored a goal and had an assist. Casey Mittelstadt and Jack Quinn had two assists. Jeff Skinner, Zemgus Girgensons, and Tage Thompson each scored a goal. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed four goals on 30 shots faced.

Buffalo has been excellent on offense this season. They rank second in goals per game and 11 in shots per game. The Sabres scored four or more goals in four of their last six games. Tage Thompson leads the team with 79 points. He has recorded one or more points in six straight games. Thompson ranks tied for fourth in points and is third in the league in goals. Alex Tuch has 62 points and Jeff Skinner has 59 points.

The defense and goaltending have been poor for the Sabres this season. They rank 24 in goals against per game and 25 in shots against per game. Craig Anderson has a record of 9-7-2 with a 2.70 GAA and .920 SV% on the season. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has a record of 15-8-2 with a 3.57 GAA and .893 SV%. Eric Comrie is 7-8-0 with a 3.59 GAA and .882 SV% on the year. Rasmus Dahlin has 62 points. He ranks second in points, third in goals, and tied for third in assists among all defensemen in the league.

Buffalo is fourth in the Atlantic division and they are currently one point away from a Wild Card spot. It is a six-team race between the Islanders, Penguins, Sabres, Red Wings, Panthers, and Capitals to grab the two Wild Card spots. Five points or less separate all six teams.

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Full-Game Side Bet

Rating:

In the only matchup between the two teams this season, the Sabres won the game 9-4 in Columbus. Buffalo has been excellent on offense this season. They rank second in goals per game and 11th in shots per game. The Sabres scored four or more goals in four of their last six games. Tage Thompson leads the team with 79 points. He has recorded one or more points in six straight games. Thompson ranks tied for fourth in points and is third in the league in goals. Rasmus Dahlin has 62 points. He ranks second in points, third in goals, and tied for third in assists among all defensemen in the league. The defense and goaltending have both been terrible for the Blue Jackets this season. They rank 30th in goals against per game and 30th in shots against per game. Columbus has been terrible on the road this season. The Blue Jackets have a 6-17-4 road record on the year. Buffalo is the much better team and the Sabres will win this matchup by two or more goals.

Bet the goal spread (-1.5) and take Buffalo.

Prediction: Buffalo Sabres (-1.5)

Full-Game Total Pick

Rating:

The defense and goaltending have both been terrible for the Blue Jackets this season. They rank 30th in goals against per game and 30th in shots against per game. Elvis Merzlikins has a 4.14 GAA and a .876 SV %. Joonas Korpisalo has a 3.17 GAA and .913 SV%. Buffalo has been excellent on offense this season. They rank second in goals per game and 11th in shots per game. The Sabres scored four or more goals in four of their last six games. Tage Thompson leads the team with 79 points. He has recorded one or more points in six straight games. Thompson ranks tied for fourth in points and is third in the league in goals. The over is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings between these two teams. Buffalo will score on Columbus and the over will hit in this contest.

Take the over, 6.5 goals.

Prediction: Over 6.5

Growing up, James was fascinated with watching sports, especially football, and basketball. This led to an interest in research and stats for fantasy sports, which quickly led to a successful career as a sports bettor. His passion has produced multiple tournament wins with generous earnings and he has combined that with his talented writing skills to join our team here at StatSalt. James graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Business and has used his overall knowledge of sports betting to make him one to follow each and every day.