The 1-2 Jackets look a bet here as narrow outsiders against the Sabres on home ice.
Buffalo makes a quick trip across states after visiting the Penguins in Pittsburgh last night, losing 6-5 in a hard-fought overtime thriller.
Columbus, meanwhile, is coming off a narrow loss of their own to defending Cup champs on Wednesday, but on the plus side, they’ve still been one of the toughest teams to create scoring opportunities against, currently sitting 26th in shots against.
The Devils have been a maddening team to try and get a gauge on to start the season.
Sheldon Keefe’s team sits 4-2 atop the Metropolitan standings, and while they currently lead the league in goals and shots, they also rank first in shots against.
A trip to Ottawa after losing 2-4 to Carolina on Wednesday is a tough spot, especially with Brady Tkachuk starting the year red hot on the stat sheet.
The Sens’ left-winger is yet to find the back of the net, but he does lead the team in shots for, while he’s also registered eight assists and three goals in 14 career games against New Jersey.
Elsewhere, I could entertain Tim Stutzle to light the lamp.
He scored twice in as many games against the Sens during his rookie year and is off to a hot start this season with three on the board already.
The Stars are one of only two teams to remain undefeated through the first week of the season, but I think they face a tough matchup on Friday against a Caps team playing with a point to prove.
Washington owns a 1-1 record through just two games, and while it’s only a small sample size, they’ve already proven to be one of the more disciplined teams to start the year, currently ranked in the bottom five in power play opportunities.
Registering shots against the Caps has also proven difficult, so I think there’s a play to be made on the home team here at a good price.