The NHL betting action continues Thursday, December 16, 2021, with the Eastern Conference battle at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, so we bring you the best Bruins vs. Islanders betting pick and odds.
Boston and New York open their three-game regular-season series. The Bruins are listed as -127 road favorites on WynnBet Sportsbook, while the Islanders are +115 moneyline underdogs with a total of 5.5 goals.
The Bruins’ iffy form goes on
The Boston Bruins (14-9-2) have been pretty much hit-or-miss lately. They’ve won five of their previous 11 games overall, while the under has hit eight times in that span. Boston sits at the fifth spot of the Atlantic Division standings, one point behind Detroit and ten behind the third-placed Tampa Bay.
The Bruins are coming off a 4-1 home loss to the Vegas Golden Knights this past Tuesday. They allowed three goals in the final seven minutes of the 1st period, while Patrice Bergeron scored the consolation goal at the start of the 3rd period.
Jeremy Swayman guarded the cage against the Golden Knights and fell to 7-5-2 on the season after yielding four goals on just 25 shots. Linus Ullmark should patrol the crease Thursday against the Islanders, and he’s 7-4-0 with a 2.56 GAA and a .921 save percentage. Boston ranks 20th in the NHL in goals scored per game (2.76) and eighth in goals allowed per contest (2.60).
The Islanders aim for their second straight home win    Â
The New York Islanders (7-12-5) are having a nightmare season because of huge COVID-19 issues and a 13-game road trip to start their campaign. They finally look healthy and ready to roll, though center Mathew Barzal (G5, A12) was placed on the COVID-19 list last Tuesday.
The Islanders have won two of their last four games, outlasting Ottawa 5-3 and New Jersey 4-2 in the process. New York is coming off a 2-1 road loss at the Detroit Wings this past Tuesday. Anders Lee scored his eighth goal of the season, while Ilya Sorokin posted 37 saves.
Sorokin has guarded the cage in three of the last four contests. He’s 7-7-4 with a 2.47 GAA and a .926 save percentage. The Islanders are surrendering 2.92 goals per game (19th in the NHL) while tallying only 2.13 in a return (tied-30th).
Trends:
Boston:
- 1-6 in the last seven road games against the Islanders
NY Islanders:
- 4-1 in the last five games against the Bruins
Boston Bruins vs. New York Islanders Pick
The Bruins will probably miss wingers Brad Marchand and Craig Smith and center Patrice Bergeron due to COVID-19. Marchand and Bergeron have combined for 50 points so far this season, so their absence would be a massive blow for the Bruins.
On the other side, Mathew Barzal will be missed, for sure, but the Islanders should have enough firepower to outlast the short-handed Bruins. New York will lean on its defense to shut down the Bruins, who’ll be a different team without their top scorers.
Pick: Take New York Islanders at +115
The Total:
The under is 7-1 in the Bruins’ last eight games overall. On the other side, the over is 4-2 in the Islanders’ last six outings at any location, but I would stick with Boston’s betting trend. Without Bergeron and Marchand, the Bruins will have to rely on their stout defense even more, while the Islanders love to be physical and take things slowly.
Boston has allowed more than a couple of goals only twice in its last eight contests. Both Bruins and Islanders are in the top half of the league when it comes to penalty killing, so we should see a low-scoring affair.
Pick: Go under 5.5 goals at -125
