Hockey Returns And So Does The Betting

Sabers vs. Capitals, 7:07 ET

After a day where all NHL teams were off, we now have 28 teams playing tonight. I'm a little confused about why there were no games yesterday, and there are no games tomorrow either. I get not playing on Thanksgiving, but Tuesday... why? If anyone knows the reason, feel free to let me know. Either way, tonight we have 14 games to choose from and I'm ready to put a play in on the game between the Sabers and Capitals.

Buffalo is not off to a great start to the season with an 8-9-1 record and 4-4-1 on the road. On the current road trip they are just 1-1 with both games finishing 3-2. Overall, the Sabers struggle on offense, scoring just 2.83 goals per game and getting off only 28 shots per game. They have been fairly strong in Power Play situations. They aren't racking up goals when they have the advantage, but defensively, they have held opponents to scores on just 15% of their opportunities. The issue for the Sabers has been consistency. Outside of Rasmus Dahlin, the team doesn't have much they can count on. Sure, Jeff Skinner has eight goals this season, but I wouldn't say his production has been off the charts. Tonight, they are likely putting Decon Levi in the net. He's been a below-average goalie for the Sabers, allowing 3.65 goals against per game and saving only around 88% of shot attempts. The good news for him is the Capitals aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut either. But he is only facing fewer than 30 attempts against him in most games and allowing a lot to get past him.

SUNRISE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: Rasmus Dahlin #26 lands on top of goaltender Craig Anderson #41 of the Buffalo Sabres after he made a save against the Florida Panthers at the FLA Live Arena on February 24, 2023 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

The Capitals started the season really slowly and looked like a team that was headed to the draft and continued to have no shot at the playoffs. Early in the season your record can be dramatically impacted by even a modest winning streak. The Capitals were just 5-4-2 a little more than two weeks ago. Now they've reeled off four straight wins and are 9-4-2. Did they turn the corner, or is this just a nice stretch where their record looks great because of how few games have been played? I talked about the Sabers struggling on offense, until this past stretch of four games, the Capitals have been the same, averaging just 2.47 goals per game. They've only scored over four goals once this season. Over their past five games they've scored three or four goals in all five of them. Darcy Kuemper is expected to start in this game in goal. He hasn't played since November 8th and has been below average this season. If he does come back, this is a good game because the Sabers shouldn't be able to get too many shots off on him.

I am going to take the under for this game. Neither team is excellent offensively, and their defenses may not be great, but they aren't terrible either. Although both goalies are not someone I'd want in net for a Game 7, I do think they could be in line for a reasonable night and able to stop the opponent. I'm going to take the under 6.5 in this one.

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