NHL: Florida Panthers vs. New Jersey Devils odds & pick
The Florida Panthers are in a tight spot on Monday night.
Just four months removed from losing in the Stanley Cup Final, the Cats are 0-2, banged up and now traveling to New Jersey to take on the high-flying Devils. It’s a long season and an 0-3 start isn’t a huge deal, but things can spiral quickly in the NHL and you know that Florida will be feeling some pressure to get off the blocks in Newark on Monday night.
New Jersey is a -185 favorite at the time of writing.
Panthers vs. Devils prediction: Analysis
You’d think that it would be pretty easy to diagnose Florida’s problems through the first two games. The Panthers are playing without two of their best defensemen — Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour — and have four new faces on a revamped blueline, so you’d think there would be some major red flags defensively. But in reality, the defense has been as strong as you could have hoped for through the first two contests considering the injuries.
Florida could also feel a bit unfortunate to not be sitting at 1-1 as they were the better team in a 2-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night, but the Cats weren’t able to build off that performance and struggled in 6-4 loss to the Jets.
Like the Panthers, it’s clear the Devils aren’t firing on all cylinders just yet. The Devils outlasted the Detroit Red Wings in a frenzied season-opener, but it was far from a virtuoso performance and New Jersey followed it up with a raggedy performance in a shootout loss to the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night.
It’s just two games into the season so there’s nothing to fret about with the Devils, but it does seem like the team is still trying to click into gear and, considering their all-action style, we’re unlikely to see a mistake-free game. The Devils thrive in chaos and aren’t going to be afraid of trading scoring chances, but that’s a dangerous game to play against the Panthers.
Florida’s defense will likely struggle to contain the Devils, but the Cats should be able to contribute to this Over 7, which is currently sitting at +105.
Panthers vs. Devils prediction: Pick
Over 7 (+105, DraftKings)
The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.
