Boston Bruins at Buffalo Sabres odds, picks and prediction
The Boston Bruins (27-12-6) look to complete a three-game mid-April sweep of the Buffalo Sabres (12-28-7) Friday at KeyBank Center. Puck drop will be at 7 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Bruins-Sabres odds and lines, with NHL picks and predictions.
The Bruins won the first two games of this mid-week set by a combined score of 7-1, including a 5-1 rout Thursday. They lead the season series 5-0 and remain motivated while sitting fourth in the competitive East Division.
The Sabres are 4-6 over their last 10 games and are still buried in eighth in the East. They've fallen to 5-16-4 on home ice with the back-to-back losses in this series.
Bruins at Sabres: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports' betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:10 p.m. ET.
- Money line : Bruins -300 (bet $300 to win $100) | Sabres +250 (bet $100 to win $250)
- Against the spread/ATS : Bruins -1.5 (-115) | Sabres +1.5 (-105)
- Over/Under : 5.5 (O: +100 | U: -120)
Bruins at Sabres: Projected starting goalies
Tuukka Rask (11-4-2, .916 SV%, 2.22 GAA) vs. Ukko-Pekka Luukonen (0-0-0)
Rask was off Thursday, but he stopped all 32 shots he faced in a shutout in Game 1 of this week's set. It was the former Vezina Trophy winner's first shutout of the season and his third straight win since returning from injury.
Luukonen, the Sabres' second-round pick of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, makes his first NHL start. The 22-year-old was 7-5-2 with a .888 save percentage and 3.60 goals against average through 14 games in the AHL.
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Bruins at Sabres: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Bruins 3, Sabres 1
Money line (ML)
Even in his NHL debut, Luukonen provides more hope for the Sabres than they've been provided by any of their four starting goaltenders to date this season. Still, the highly motivated Bruins (-300) will complete the sweep before these teams reunite in Boston next week.
The -300 tag just isn't worth the investment. PASS and look to the spread.
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Against the spread (ATS)
The BRUINS -1.5 (-115) should be backed to win by at least 2 goals, as they did both Tuesday and Thursday.
Boston is 10th in the NHL in Corsi percentage since April 1 and the Sabres are second-to-last at a woeful 43.60% of the total shot attempts.
Over/Under (O/U)
The UNDER 5.5 (-120) is a strong bet with a rested Rask between the pipes for the B's. The 14-year veteran has been sharp since rejoining the lineup and will pad his stats against the Sabres once again.
Luukonen also provides a new test for the Bruins, and they shouldn't be able to run up the score against the rookie.
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