Can the Buffalo Sabres Sweep the Season Series Against the Edmonton Oilers?

The Buffalo Sabres will be heading to Rogers Place on Thursday night to take on the Edmonton Oilers in a non-conference matchup. This will be the second and final regular season game between these two franchises as they faced off in Buffalo back on November 12 and the Sabres picked up a 3-2 win. The Sabres are seventh in the Atlantic Division (19-32-8, 46 points) while the Oilers are currently third in the Pacific Division (32-23-4, 68 points) at this point in the season. 

There seems to be a bit of a difference between these two teams so it will be a bit of an interesting matchup. Let’s look a bit closer into both the Sabres and the Oilers to figure out the best side to bet on for this game. 

The Edmonton Oilers’ Centers Could be Too Much to Handle

These offenses have been doing decently well this season as the Sabres are averaging 2.63 goals on 29.6 shot attempts while the Oilers are scoring 3.22 goals on 33.6 shots thus far. Buffalo is being led by right winger Tage Thompson, who is tied for 33rd in the NHL in goals as he has produced 42 points (23 goals, 19 assists) but has not recorded a single point in his previous three games. Compare that to the level that center Connor McDavid has been playing at for Edmonton as he is leading the sport in points, fourth in assists, and eighth in goals. He has scored 83 points (32 goals, 51 assists) while adding six points in his last five games. 

Dustin Tokarski has been in the net for the Sabres this season and has struggled as he is just 5-9-4 with 3.26 goals given up with a 90.2 save percentage. The Edmonton Oilers have goaltender Mikko Koskinen inside of the goal and has been struggling a bit as well; he has a 21-9-3 record but a 90.6 save percentage with 2.98 goals allowed right now. As a team defensively, Buffalo is giving up 3.54 goals on 34.1 shot attempts while Edmonton is allowing 3.17 goals on 31.8 shots thus far. 

Buffalo Sabres at Edmonton Oilers Betting Prediction

These offenses as of late are very close to one another as the Sabres are averaging 2.8 goals in their previous five games while the Oilers are scoring 2.8 goals in their last four games. Both goalies are struggling this season, as we highlighted earlier, and these teams are as close to one another as you would want if you are a Sabres fan. This covers us as well if the game manages to go to overtime.

Buffalo is 32-27 against the spread this season while Edmonton is currently 26-33 against the spread this year so go with the Buffalo Sabres getting a goal and a half on the road to cover the puck line.

* All odds provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.