Devils vs Panthers Hockey Odds
The New Jersey Devils will make the trip down to the Sunshine State for a visit with the Florida Panthers on Friday. New Jersey comes to town having won five of its last seven games, while Florida has lost three in a row and eight of its last 10 games.
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New Jersey Devils (29-24-13) at Florida Panthers (24-35-7)
Date: Friday, March 14, 2014
Time: 7:30 PM ET
Venue: BB&T Center
City: Sunrise, Florida
O/U Odds: 5
Money Line: New Jersey -137, Florida +126
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Winning hasn’t exactly been commonplace for the Panthers of late. The teams enjoyed a nice little boost with the injection of returning goaltender Roberto Luongo into the team’s lineup, but they’ve lost three straight games since his shutout of Buffalo. Luongo got the night off on Thursday, which will leave him well rested for Friday’s affair.
It was Dan Ellis who got the nod for the Panthers in Thursday’s matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He stopped 23 of 28 shots in a 5-4 loss. A positive takeaway from the game for the Panthers was their ability to find the back of the net, which had been a problem for the team in recent weeks.
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Center Brandon Pirri had a goal and an assist, while fellow center Nick Bjugstad had a pair of helpers. Top defenseman Brian Campbell had an assist in the game and led the team with a plus-2 rating.
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While wins have been few and far between for the Panthers of late, the Devils have enjoyed the month of March, using their hot play to climb back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture. The Devils are 5-2-0 since the Olympic break, scoring 4.0 goals per game in that span, tops in the Eastern Conference.
A reason for the Panthers’ decision to rest Luongo on Thursday could be that the team is looking to set up a showdown between Luongo and former backup Cory Schneider, who is the confirmed starter for the Devils on Friday night. Schneider has lost the team’s starting job to Martin Brodeur, and in his last outing, he allowed seven goals in a loss at Detroit. In his last seven starts, Schneider has a 2.84 GAA, though he is 2-0-0 in his career against Florida, and the Devils are 5-0-1 in the last six meetings between the teams, allowing just 11 goals in those contests.
While New Jersey is certainly the side in better form entering Friday, Florida has always been a tough place to play, and with the lookahead factor present with a game in Tampa Bay on tap for Saturday, this could be a game that gets away from them. Additionally, Luongo could steal another one for the Panthers against a Devils team that has had trouble finding the back of the net.
The Devils are 3-14 in their last 17 games played on a Friday, while the home team is 4-0 in the last four meetings between these teams.
The play: Florida +126
