We are loving the action throughout this impressive NHL season so far. As we move towards the mid way point in the season, each division’s ladder is starting to take shape. Every single win or loss can have a significant impact on where each team will finish at the end of the season, so it is important that you don’t miss any of the action!
Here at SportsTips, we are just as keen on the NHL as you are! We spend each and every day going through the best games and previewing them for you. Our experts offer up their free NHL picks, which means that you not only get enjoyment out of watching some intriguing games, but also make extra cash while doing so!
Look below to find our free NHL picks, as we preview the four games on today’s schedule.
Philadelphia Flyers @ New Jersey Devils – 7.00PM ET
The Philadelphia Flyers and the New Jersey Devils face off against each other in one of the first games on Wednesday night. The Flyers’ struggles have continued in December, as they have now lost nine games in a row, which brings their season record to 8-11-4. The Devils are also on a losing streak, not as bad as the Flyers however, they have lost four games in a row.
Tony Battalio
The Flyers struggled throughout the month of November and it has started to make its way into the month of December as well. Philadelphia is currently on a nine game losing streak as they prepare to head to New Jersey to play the Devils in a Metropolitan Division match up. They find themselves in seventh place in the division, ahead of only the New York Islanders. They will be looking to find a solution to their problems quickly, because if they don’t they may be out of playoff contention by the month of March.
The New Jersey Devils have not fared much better this season as they are in sixth place in the Metropolitan Division, only one spot ahead of the Flyers prior to this game. Much like the Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey is also on a losing streak, although it is much shorter at only four games for now. As for the result of this game, I look for the Devils to pick up the win over a struggling Flyers team that just can’t seem to put it together yet.
Tony’s NHL Pick: New Jersey Devils (+126)
Go On the Road with @Enterprise and Keith Yandle, who was mic’d up in his return to Sunrise, FL for a matchup with the Panthers. pic.twitter.com/jPUxtcWtY9
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) December 7, 2021
Michael Lantz
The New Jersey Devils have hit some bumps in the road: they’ve lost four straight games, including some blowout losses to the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets, and a shootout loss to the lowly Ottawa Senators. They’ll look to go back to their winning ways against the last team they were victorious against—the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Flyers have been a sinking ship: they have lost nine games in a row, sit at seventh in the Metropolitan Division, and just fired head coach Alain Vigneault. While their defense has given up seven goals in consecutive games, they at least scored five in their 5-7 defeat to the Colorado Avalanche on Monday. They got two goals from captain Claude Giroux, but they can’t rely on this. Girous is set to become a free agent after the season, and with this Flyers team now appearing to be in rebuild mode, Giroux will unlikely stick around for much longer. They need younger players to start picking it up fast, if they want to avoid complete embarrassment.
Meanwhile, the Devils, despite being in the midst of a skid, are getting some nice production from younger players. Guys like Jesper Bratt are showing that the Devils have a promising future, despite their current skid. It’s just very hard to pick a Flyers team for anything right now. Their losing-streak will have to end eventually, but against who? Sure it could happen against another team like the Devils who’ve been dropping games, but nothing the Flyers have done lately has me comfortable picking them in any way right now.
Michael’s NHL Pick: New Jersey Devils (-152)
Colorado Avalanche @ New York Rangers – 7.00PM ET
The Colorado Avalanche end their road trip in New York when they take on the Rangers. The Avalanche have had a bit of a mixed bag so far in December, winning two of their four games, and this brings their season record to 13-7-2. The Rangers are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they got the win over the Blackhawks, 6-2, which takes their winning streak to seven.
Tony Battalio
The New York Rangers will be playing the second game of a back to back on Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. It will be a quick one game home stand for the Rangers. They come into the game with a record of 16-4-3 on the year as they have been performing well above expectations. If the Rangers can keep this level of play up they will make a serious case as a Stanley Cup contender, which in my opinion the East is lacking at the moment, as most of the favorites are playing in the Western Conference.
The Colorado Avalanche were one of those previously mentioned favorites prior to the season beginning. However due to a rough start to the year they have looked more like an average playoff team rather than one of the league’s contenders. They come into this game still above the .500 mark with a record of 13-7-2 on the year and they still have plenty of time for improvement. As for the result of this game, I have the New York Rangers picking up the victory at home.
Tony’s NHL Pick: New York Rangers(+132)
Michael Lantz
This could end up being the best game of the night as the always thrilling Colorado Avalanche head to Madison Square Garden to take on a New York Rangers team that’s ready to hang with the league’s best. Colorado has had their ups and downs as of late. After superstar Nathan MacKinnon went down with injury, the team went on an explosive six-game win streak and would win seven of eight games in his absence. Then, when he returned in a big matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team fell 3-8; they bounced back against the Canadiens 4-1; then gave up six goals in a 5-6 loss to the terrible Ottawa Senators. Luckily their offense came to life on Monday as they beat a struggling Flyers team 7-5, but their defense is still a major question right now.
On Wednesday they’ll face a New York Rangers team that’s 17-4-3, and in the midst of a seven-game win streak. They now sit at second in the Metropolitan Division, and can give some big thanks to defender Adam Fox, who has played great on both sides of the puck making him an early favorite to repeat as the Norris Trophy winner. They’ll hope he can help shut down this Avalanche attack that consists of high profile scorers including Mackinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Nazem Kadri. I think the Rangers will use their home ice advantage to beat this Avalanche team that doesn’t seem to be playing at their best right now.
Michael’s NHL Pick: New York Rangers (+132)
Boston Bruins @ Vancouver Canucks – 9.00PM ET
The Boston Bruins travel to Vancouver to take on the Canucks in the second last game on Wednesday night. The Bruins are looking to bounce back from a tough 2-3 overtime loss to the Lighting last time out, which has brought their season record to 12-8-1. The Canucks have won two of their last three games, with wins over the Senators and Kings, bringing their season record to 9-15-2.
Tony Battalio
The Boston Bruins are having a bit of a rough patch at the moment. They have lost three of their last five games dating back to the last week of November. Losses to the Detroit Red Wings, the New York Rangers, and the Tampa Bay Lightning have negated victories over the Vancouver Canucks and Nashville Predators. Now for the second time in 4 games they get another crack at beating the Canucks and regaining some more momentum. They are currently 12-8-1 coming into the game and desperately need to string some wins together.
The Vancouver Canucks have been one of worst teams in the league as they currently next to last in the NHLs Western Conference, ahead of only the Arizona Coyotes. Overall they are the fourth worst team in the league ahead of a few Eastern Conference teams. They come into this game with a record of 9-15-2 on the year. As for the result of this game, I look for the Boston Bruins to pick up another win over the Canucks this time on the road.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-137)
“Just from watching his teams in the past, they always played a pretty good brand of hockey…Every where he went, he had good teams.”
🗣 Quinn Hughes on new Head Coach Bruce Boudreau pic.twitter.com/woeu2KZOe6
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) December 7, 2021
Michael Lantz
In a rematch of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks face off for the second time this season. Their first matchup took place on November 28th, as the Bruins squeezed out a 3-2 win in Boston. That was right in the middle of the Canucks being in full breakdown mode. Since that game, they fired their coach and general manager and are now coached by Bruce Boudreau. Sometimes it can take a bit to adapt to a new coach’s system, but the Canucks appeared ready to embrace the change as they won their first game of their new era on Sunday night against the Kings, 4-0. Now, they’ll look to keep the good times going as they face a Boston Bruins team hanging onto dear life in the Eastern Conference race.
The Bruins are 12-8-1, and have gone winless in their last three. They’ve looked fine on defense, but their offense has averaged under two goals per game during this current skid. In fact their best scorer over the last couple of games has been a defender—Brandon Carlo. The Bruins have missed Brad Marchand during this period, as the star forward has been out with a suspension. His presence should help liven things up for the offense. I’ll pick them to end their skid in Vancouver.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Boston Bruins (-137)
Dallas Stars @ Vegas Golden Knights – 10.00PM ET
The Dallas Stars start a three game road trip in Vegas, when they take on the Golden Knights, who are in the middle of a four game homestand. The Stars are one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now, as they are currently on a seven game winning streak, which has brought their season record up to 13-7-2. The Golden Knights have won two games in a row, outscoring their opponents 10-3 in those two games, and their season record currently stands at 14-10-0.
Tony Battalio
The Dallas Stars come into this game with a record of 13-7-2 on the year as they have seemingly recovered from their slump in early November. They are currently on a seven game winning streak and have won nine of their last ten games dating back to the middle/ end of the month of November. A win would likely move them into second place in the Central Division behind only the Minnesota Wild, which is who their last loss is too.
As for the Las Vegas Golden Knights, they come into this game with a record of 14-10. They are currently on a two game winning streak. This game against Dallas is the second of a four game home stand that includes visits from Philadelphia, and Minnesota so they will look to stack wins heading into the high profiling game with the Wild. As for the result of this game, I have the Dallas Stars coming away with the victory over Vegas.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Dallas Stars (+118)
Michael Lantz
The Dallas Stars might be the hottest team in the NHL—they’ve won seven straight and while still only sixth in the Central Division, are looking like a legitimate threat going forward. They’ll face another team that had a rough start to the season in the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas were Stanley Cup favorites when the season started, but were hit with numerous injuries in the beginning of the season, leaving them toward the middle of the Pacific Division. Luckily stars like Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty have returned from injury and the Golden Knights are starting to thrive.
They blew out a bad Arizona Coyotes team 7-1 on Friday, and then followed that up with a massive in-division win against the first place Calgary Flames, as Vegas sent a warning sign to the Alberta team that their lead is not safe. They’ll look to pick up consecutive wins against impressive opponents as they face a Stars team that has been getting help from both the veterans (Joe Pavelski and Jamie Benn) and the up-and-comers (Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz). This balance between young and old should continue to help the Stars succeed, but I think their win streak comes to an end on Wednesday night as they face a Golden knights team that’s slowly getting back to full-strength, which means back to Stanley Cup contention.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (-142)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
