The lone hockey game on New Year’s Day is between the New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings.
The pregame narrative: The Kings are one of the league’s premium home teams and I’m backing them against the Devils on Wednesday. Additionally, I like the under between two tough defensive sides.
Check out my Devils vs. Kings best bets.
Devils vs. Kings best bets
Go to full NHL betting markets.
Best bet: Under 5.5 goals (+100)
The best place to start is with each team’s over/under records:
- New Jersey: 14-24-2
- Los Angeles: 12-21-2
As you can see, the Devils and Kings have gone under their projected totals in over 60% of their games this season.
Los Angeles concedes the fewest shots on target per game (24.6) while giving up the fifth-fewest goals (2.6). New Jersey matches that by allowing the third-fewest shots and second-fewest goals (2.5).
Neither team makes many mistakes, leading to minimal scoring chances for the opposition.
I expect another calculated approach from both sides in this New Year’s Day contest.
Key stat: When the Devils and Kings met on Dec. 12, the game finished 3-1 with a total of 40 shots on net.
Quick pick
Kings moneyline (-112): New Jersey got the best of L.A. in the first meeting, winning 3-1, but I believe home ice is a huge advantage here.
The Kings are 12-2 at home and haven’t lost at Crypto.com Arena since Nov. 20. They have wins over the Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets during this run.
That list makes up four of the top seven teams in the Western Conference.
The Devils bring a similar level of competition, sitting second in the East, but they’ve played a league-high 40 games and their 12-7 away record is nothing to write home about.
They had a favourable schedule in December, playing only five away games. The Devils went 2-3 and lost three straight with the most recent defeat coming last night to the Anaheim Ducks.
That’s not a great look. And with fatigue being an added factor for the Devils, I love this spot for the Kings.
Picks made at 9:28 a.m. ET on 01/01/2025.
Spencer is a true sports junkie. A graduate of the Sports Journalism program at Centennial College, he first joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2023. He is now a contributing writer. He loves finding the edge to bet on in all sports but has a deep passion for the NBA and UFC. Previous stops include Sportsnet.