2023 NHL Friday Matchups Odds, Predictions & Analisys Games
Sportsbooks Scooped Up Thursday Night, Fav's Won Big

NHL betting lines offer an eight-game schedule filled with plenty of chances for the player to stick it to the book. Let’s start our NHL Friday matchups odds preview by heading to Dallas, where the New Jersey Devils (31-13-4, 66 points) take on the Central Division leading Dallas Stars (28-13-9, 65 points) in tonight’s premiere game of the night.
We’ll dive into that game from a betting perspective in addition to the Vegas Golden Knights (29-17-3, 61 points) continuing their road trip at Madison Square Garden when they take on the New York Rangers (26-14-8, 60 points). Then we’ll finish off our NHL Friday matchups odds preview with a glance at the Calgary Flame (23-17-9, 55 points) at the Seattle Kraken (28-14-5, 61 points).
Must-Watch Television
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This is another match-up that could be a Stanley Cup preview with the New Jersey Devils who are ranked just behind the Dallas Stars and Boston Bruins in our latest power ratings.
The Dallas Stars lead the Winnipeg Jets by two points in the Central, while the Devils are trying to keep pace with the Carolina Hurricanes, trailing by two points, in the Metro Division.
This will be the last game before the all-star break. Dallas has dropped two straight games in overtime to the Buffalo Sabres and Carolina, adding to their 3-9 record in extra sessions.
That’s bad news in some ways for the Stars against the Devils who have played in four straight overtimes until last night’s 6-4 loss to the Nashville Predators. Goaltending will be a discussion point with Mackenzie Blackwood as the listed goaltender but he started last night, so it may be Vitek Vanecek getting the call in this one.
For Dallas, it wouldn’t surprise us to see Scott Wedgewood in the net to give him some time before the all-star break. Make sure to check social media later this morning to see which goaltenders are the first ones off the ice at the morning skate.
On most line services they have Blackwood matched up against Oettinger, so we’ll go with that to reflect on current betting patterns that show the public predictably jumping on Dallas Stars.
The line is almost a consensus -145 in favor of the Stars after opening -135. It’s difficult to go against one of the best defensive teams in hockey (2.6 GAA) and one that may have a small chip on their shoulder after dropping three of their last five games. Take the Stars but wait a couple of hours to see if the New York betting market has any effect on giving Dallas bettors a more favorable number.
The standings show that the Vegas Golden Knights have been a first-place team since the beginning of the NHL season, but people who cover the team know that this team has been playing keep-away since their 13-3 start. Since Vegas is a game under .500 as they continue another season of a significant presence on the NHL injuries report. With two games in hand, the Seattle Kraken are the new leaders by percentage points in the Pacific Division.
The last team the Knights need to see right now is the New York Rangers, who are coached by Gerard Gallant who brought VGK to the Stanley Cup Final in their first year of existence. You can bet Gallant always has this game circled. In addition, there are still some that played under Gallant giving him an NHL player tendency advantage.
With Vegas being a “public team”, betting patterns are a bit divided and the consensus number keeps getting pushed down from -160 to -157, and it could fall further.
Early betting patterns have shown money coming in on the under, which is going to be our focus with a clear side to jump on. Our recommendation is to back the over 6 -105. Although neither team have a tendency to lose games on special teams, we think the intensity level will be a little more than typical with special teams playing a major role in this game going over.
Ice Chips
Once again, we’ll be involved with a total that shouldn’t fluctuate much during the day despite early wagering that suggests the ‘sharps’ are on the over with 91% of the early money thinking this will be a high-scoring affair.
The Kraken is in first place in the Pacific Division with two games in hand over the Vegas Golden Knights, even though they both have 61 points. The Calgary Flames, who have lost three of their last five games, will be without defensemen Chris Tanev again who is suffering from an upper-body injury.
To hear Flames head coach Darryl Sutter talk, he is clearly not happy with how his team is playing defensively, going as far as to insinuate that his veterans are not providing the leadership on their backend that they are expected to.
Bettors know this is a kick in the can for the Flames and they’ll respond with a better defensive effort tonight. Take the under in this one.
Wait For the Highlights
Our NHL Friday matchups odds column wouldn’t be complete without giving some love to those who need it the most. Break up the Columbus Blue Jackets who have not been beaten in regulation in three straight games. You can bet that will cause the public to take the plus money but a sharper way to bet this is to go under the total.
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