The Buffalo Sabres are off to a terrific start and face off on Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning, who after a deep run in last season’s playoffs have struggled out of the gate.
The Sabres are scoring at a much more rapid pace than their southern foes, but they will be likely road underdogs at Sportsbook in this NHL betting matchup.
Buffalo is getting big production from star left winger Thomas Vanek, and Ryan Miller is once again providing solid goaltending with three wins and an OT loss before taking the ice against Florida on Thursday.
Tampa Bay had lost five straight with two coming in overtime heading into Thursday, but it's not quite time to push the panic button. The Sabres have played the Lightning tough - winning seven of the last 10 meetings, including a 7-4 victory the last time in Tampa.
The history points to a Sabres victory and the strong start will tempt many bettors to wager on likely road underdog Buffalo in NHL betting at Sportsbook.
The Maple Leafs have played a lot of hockey this week, and face their arch rival Montreal for the second time this season in a busy Saturday of NHL betting action.
The Leafs shut out the Canadiens 2-0 on Sportsbook night in Toronto, but Montreal has home-ice advantage in this matchup. The Canadiens will be likely favorites at home at Sportsbook, but the Maple Leafs did beat them the last time in Montreal.
Eight of the last 10 matchups between Toronto and Montreal have sent UNDER bettors to the payout window in totals betting.
The lone NHL betting matchup at Sportsbook on Sunday has the Phoenix Coyotes in Anaheim to face the Ducks. Oddsmakers will likely tag the Ducks as favorites when the two meet for the first time this season.
The Coyotes defeated the Ducks in three of the last four head-to-head, and outscored Anaheim 11-4 in the last two victories. Phoenix could get a lot of attention on the NHL betting lines as a road underdog. Anaheim is off to a better start than Phoenix, and this could be a different outcome than recent encounters.
