Senators vs Sabres Prediction, Preview, Odds, Picks, Apr 13

How Motivated Will Sabres Be?

The Ottawa Senators are riding a two-game winning streak into their season-ending game with the Buffalo Sabres. While the season concludes for the Sens, the Sabres will have one more game to go after this.

The Sabres have had a positive campaign but it’s hard to gauge where their heads are at. In case you weren’t tracking the latest NHL news, they were recently eliminated from playoff contention. How fired up will they be for a game that essentially means nothing?

Sens Have Some Momentum After Upset Win

The Senators should be feeling good ahead of this road matchup with the Sabres despite being eliminated from the playoffs already. They were able to take down the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 at home on Monday night as they aim to end their season on a high note.

Those who bet online saw Claude Giroux break the 1,000-point mark (over the course of his career), which was a nice sentimental note.

Both Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle made sure before the game that they would do everything in their power to get him to this milestone, and it happened early.

The Senators might not have much to play for, but this is a rebuilding team that can finish the year on a three-game winning streak and 5-2-2 in their last nine games. It’s not a lot to go off of when handicapping the NHL odds but this young squad is still fighting.

Sabres’ Postseason Hopes Dashed

Buffalo was a long shot to make the playoffs as of Tuesday night but it was still a shot. Unfortunately, that opportunity is now gone with the Sabres getting blasted by the New Jersey Devils 6-2.

A lot of NHL betting handicappers were expecting a better effort from Buffalo. If they can’t do better with their season on the line, how can they be trusted when there’s nothing left to play for?

Buffalo obviously isn’t happy about their season ending in a few days but they still have two games to go and can make the most of them. It stings that the franchise will miss the playoffs for the 12th straight postseason, the longest drought in the league right now.

However, the team had generally been playing well before the loss. Even with it, they’ve still won seven of 10. With games against Buffalo and Columbus – games where they’ll be favored on the NHL lines – they have a great opportunity to finish on a high.

Senators vs Sabres Game Injuries

Senators vs Sabres Head-to-Head

Both teams beat each other 4-1 in their first two contests against one another. Then Ottawa beat Buffalo 3-1 in their third showdown.

Senators vs Sabres Game Information

• Game: Senators (39-35-7) vs Sabres (40-33-7)
• Location: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, NY
• Day/Time: Thursday, April 13, 7 p.m. ET
• Senators vs Sabres Live Stream: NHL.TV

Senators vs Sabres Betting Lines

Senators vs Sabres Picks and Prediction

If you’re thinking about sports bets here, roll with the over. The Sens have scored at least three goals in each meeting. Meanwhile, the Sabres are hot right now and should do enough offensively here too. Four of their last six have seen at least seven goals.

It is too tricky to pick a winner in a meaningless game. However, the over makes sense for your NHL picks as we should see goals.

Buffalo is listed at -135 in our Vegas lines. So, if you wager $100 on the Sabres, there’s a chance to win $74. Ottawa is +115 with a chance to win $115 on a $100 wager.

The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives the Sabres a 57.45% chance to win, with the Senators at 46.51%.