by Chuck Sommers
Sunday, Feb 19, 2023
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: Prudential Center, Newark, NJ
Where to watch: MSGSN, TSN3
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Devils -130, Jets +110
FanDuel: Devils -130, Jets +110
BetMGM: Devils -130, Jets +110
Caesars: Devils -130, Jets +110
Season record
Jets: 34-20-1
Devils: 36-14-5
The All-Star break is over, the second half of the NHL season can officially begin, and we're bound for what should be a very exciting second half of the hockey season. Basketball and hockey are about to rule the roost in the sports betting world once the Super Bowl is done with, and we should all be very excited for what's to come. When the trade deadline hits and players switch teams, you know things are about to get hectic over these final 30 games or so. One way you can stay tuned with the action is following what our champion handicappers are doing in the world of the NHL. Look at ASA, Inc., reeling in a $6,750 profit off a 17-9-0 run. Al McMordie is also doing well on the ice with a 13-5-0 run and a net profit of $6,050. Scott Rickenbach has also been hanging strong with a lot of betting action, in what's been an unusual year, with a 24-18-0 run and reeling in $5,950. You know this action is going to be great now that games are back and a busy second half if on the horizon. All you need to do is head to our BEST BETS page at bigal.com to find out all of what we're trying to tell you. Make sure you're locked in at bigal.com and go to our Best Bets page to find out what our champion handicappers have to say in the world of the NHL!
Jets - Devils preview, prediction and analysis
The Winnipeg Jets will be playing the New Jersey Devils on Sunday, February 19 in Newark, New Jersey.
The Winnipeg Jets lost against the Columbus Blue Jackets last Thursday, February 16 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio with a score of 3-1. The Winnipeg Jets currently rank 2nd in the Central Division.
Kyle Connor scored, and David Rittich made 21 saves for the Jets (34-20-1), who had a three-game winning streak end.
"You go out there to win every single game," Winnipeg forward Nikolaj Ehlers said. "It doesn't matter who you go against, but it's definitely one we should have one."
Connor gave the Jets a 1-0 lead on the power play at 19:58 of the first period when he scored from the right dot off a pass from Blake Wheeler for his 25th goal of the season.
"Give their goalie credit, he played a good game," Winnipeg coach Rick Bowness said. "But the other point is there were times we had some Grade A's we missed the net on, and too many times he saw the puck and trapped the puck, so the greasy goals weren't going to be there in that period. But we played a really good period."
The Jets had a 12-2 advantage in shots in the first period, tying the Blue Jackets' season-low set in the first period against the San Jose Sharks on Jan. 21.
Former Blue Jackets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois had a short-handed breakaway stopped by Korpisalo at 17:20.
The Jets failed to score on three two-man advantages and were 1-for-7 on the power play. The Blue Jackets went 1-for-5.
"When you're on the power play, you always want to score, or at least get momentum," Ehlers said. "We got one, but it wasn't enough. We didn't hit the net enough. We didn't make it hard on their goalie."
The Winnipeg Jets have won five of their last 10 games.
The New Jersey Devils won against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, February 18 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a score of 5-2. The New Jersey Devils currently rank 2nd in the Metropolitan Division.
Nico Hischier scored two goals, including his 100th in the NHL, and had two assists for the New Jersey Devils.
It was the first four-point game for Hischier in 354 NHL games. He had not scored in his previous nine games and had one assist in his past seven.
"Just stick with it," said Hischier, the New Jersey captain. "Tried to still do something that could help the team win. …Sometimes they go in, sometimes they don't. Definitely a goal I'll never forget [to reach 100], that's for sure. It's something that no one's going to take away from me. So I'm pretty happy about it."
Jack Hughes had two assists after missing the previous four games with an upper-body injury, and Dawson Mercer had a goal and an assist for the Devils (36-14-5). Vitek Vanecek made 29 saves.
Evgeni Malkin put the Penguins ahead 1-0 on the power play at 3:33 of the first period, tapping in a pass from Rickard Rakell near the left post. Mercer tied it 1-1 at 4:53. A rebound off an initial backhand from Mercer went past Hischier, battling with Pittsburgh forward Jeff Carter at the left post, to Mercer for another backhand from just outside the crease.
Dougie Hamilton gave the Devils a 2-1 lead on the power play at 3:47 of the second period, scoring with a one-timer after Hischier carried the puck around the back of the net and fed him in the right face-off circle.
Hischier scored short-handed for his 100th goal to make it 3-1 at 8:25. After tapping the puck past Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang at the opposite blue line for a 2-on-1, Hischier took a backhand pass from Yegor Sharangovich for a wrist shot to the left of the net.
Jesper Bratt extended the lead to 4-1 at 8:39 of the third period on a one-timer off a pass from Hughes.
"Felt fine. Probably tired," Hughes said. "Not my best, but you know, you miss a week or two and we had the All-Star break too, so really that's one goal in pretty much two or three weeks. That's a good start and it's a really big win for our team."
Malkin cut it to 4-2 at 14:43 with a wrist shot from the top of the slot. Hischier scored into an empty net with 2:04 remaining for the 5-2 final.
"He's continued to work hard through the stretch where points weren't coming," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said of Hischier. "Even in [a 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday], opportunities were there but didn't go in. He's a guy we count on in every situation."
The New Jersey Devils have won seven of their last 10 games.
Prediction
The Jets have won six straight in New Jersey, but this is a much different Devils team this time around that should handle business. Devils 4, Jets 2
The Winnipeg Jets lost against the Columbus Blue Jackets last Thursday, February 16 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio with a score of 3-1. The Winnipeg Jets currently rank 2nd in the Central Division.
Kyle Connor scored, and David Rittich made 21 saves for the Jets (34-20-1), who had a three-game winning streak end.
"You go out there to win every single game," Winnipeg forward Nikolaj Ehlers said. "It doesn't matter who you go against, but it's definitely one we should have one."
Connor gave the Jets a 1-0 lead on the power play at 19:58 of the first period when he scored from the right dot off a pass from Blake Wheeler for his 25th goal of the season.
"Give their goalie credit, he played a good game," Winnipeg coach Rick Bowness said. "But the other point is there were times we had some Grade A's we missed the net on, and too many times he saw the puck and trapped the puck, so the greasy goals weren't going to be there in that period. But we played a really good period."
The Jets had a 12-2 advantage in shots in the first period, tying the Blue Jackets' season-low set in the first period against the San Jose Sharks on Jan. 21.
Former Blue Jackets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois had a short-handed breakaway stopped by Korpisalo at 17:20.
The Jets failed to score on three two-man advantages and were 1-for-7 on the power play. The Blue Jackets went 1-for-5.
"When you're on the power play, you always want to score, or at least get momentum," Ehlers said. "We got one, but it wasn't enough. We didn't hit the net enough. We didn't make it hard on their goalie."
The Winnipeg Jets have won five of their last 10 games.
The New Jersey Devils won against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, February 18 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a score of 5-2. The New Jersey Devils currently rank 2nd in the Metropolitan Division.
Nico Hischier scored two goals, including his 100th in the NHL, and had two assists for the New Jersey Devils.
It was the first four-point game for Hischier in 354 NHL games. He had not scored in his previous nine games and had one assist in his past seven.
"Just stick with it," said Hischier, the New Jersey captain. "Tried to still do something that could help the team win. …Sometimes they go in, sometimes they don't. Definitely a goal I'll never forget [to reach 100], that's for sure. It's something that no one's going to take away from me. So I'm pretty happy about it."
Jack Hughes had two assists after missing the previous four games with an upper-body injury, and Dawson Mercer had a goal and an assist for the Devils (36-14-5). Vitek Vanecek made 29 saves.
Evgeni Malkin put the Penguins ahead 1-0 on the power play at 3:33 of the first period, tapping in a pass from Rickard Rakell near the left post. Mercer tied it 1-1 at 4:53. A rebound off an initial backhand from Mercer went past Hischier, battling with Pittsburgh forward Jeff Carter at the left post, to Mercer for another backhand from just outside the crease.
Dougie Hamilton gave the Devils a 2-1 lead on the power play at 3:47 of the second period, scoring with a one-timer after Hischier carried the puck around the back of the net and fed him in the right face-off circle.
Hischier scored short-handed for his 100th goal to make it 3-1 at 8:25. After tapping the puck past Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang at the opposite blue line for a 2-on-1, Hischier took a backhand pass from Yegor Sharangovich for a wrist shot to the left of the net.
Jesper Bratt extended the lead to 4-1 at 8:39 of the third period on a one-timer off a pass from Hughes.
"Felt fine. Probably tired," Hughes said. "Not my best, but you know, you miss a week or two and we had the All-Star break too, so really that's one goal in pretty much two or three weeks. That's a good start and it's a really big win for our team."
Malkin cut it to 4-2 at 14:43 with a wrist shot from the top of the slot. Hischier scored into an empty net with 2:04 remaining for the 5-2 final.
"He's continued to work hard through the stretch where points weren't coming," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said of Hischier. "Even in [a 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday], opportunities were there but didn't go in. He's a guy we count on in every situation."
The New Jersey Devils have won seven of their last 10 games.
Prediction
The Jets have won six straight in New Jersey, but this is a much different Devils team this time around that should handle business. Devils 4, Jets 2
Betting trends
Jets have won 13 of the last 16 meetings.
Road team is 4-1 in the last five.
Favorite is 20-8 in the last 28 meetings.
Projected lines
Jets:
Cole Perfetti -- Mark Scheifele -- Blake Wheeler
Kyle Connor -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Nikolaj Ehlers
Morgan Barron -- Adam Lowry -- Mason Appleton
Saku Maenalanen -- Kevin Stenlund -- Sam Gagner
Josh Morrissey -- Neal Pionk
Brenden Dillon -- Dylan Samberg
Dylan DeMelo -- Nate Schmidt
Connor Hellebuyck
Cole Perfetti -- Mark Scheifele -- Blake Wheeler
Kyle Connor -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Nikolaj Ehlers
Morgan Barron -- Adam Lowry -- Mason Appleton
Saku Maenalanen -- Kevin Stenlund -- Sam Gagner
Josh Morrissey -- Neal Pionk
Brenden Dillon -- Dylan Samberg
Dylan DeMelo -- Nate Schmidt
Connor Hellebuyck
Devils:
Tomas Tatar -- Nico Hischier -- Dawson Mercer
Yegor Sharangovich -- Jack Hughes -- Jesper Bratt
Ondrej Palat -- Erik Haula -- Fabian Zetterlund
Miles Wood -- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Dougie Hamilton
Ryan Graves -- Damon Severson
Kevin Bahl -- John Marino
Vitek Vanecek
Tomas Tatar -- Nico Hischier -- Dawson Mercer
Yegor Sharangovich -- Jack Hughes -- Jesper Bratt
Ondrej Palat -- Erik Haula -- Fabian Zetterlund
Miles Wood -- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Dougie Hamilton
Ryan Graves -- Damon Severson
Kevin Bahl -- John Marino
Vitek Vanecek
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
