Devils vs Flyers Prediction, Pick & Odds – Sunday Afternoon Hockey

• The Devils are -148 moneyline favorites on the road versus the Flyers on Sunday Afternoon Hockey
• New Jersey leads the East in goals against
• See the Devils vs Flyers prediction, pick and odds, below

A pair of struggling Eastern Conference foes face-off on Sunday, as the New Jersey Devils (33-25-6) battle the Philadelphia Flyers (27-29-8). Both teams enter in terrible form, riding respective three-game losing streaks. Online sportsbooks have a bit more faith that New Jersey can snap its funk, pegging them as road chalk in the NHL odds.

Puck drop is scheduled for 1pm ET at the Wells Fargo Center, with TNT and truTV providing the broadcast coverage.

Devils vs Flyers Prediction

My analysis for this matchup is going to focus on the offensive struggles of both teams. I’ll start with the Devils, who are mired in a major goal-scoring drought.

Over the last five games, New Jersey has scored six total times. They’re fresh off a humiliating 6-1 defeat to the Jets, in which they generated only 23 shots. Yes, they’re dealing with injuries, most notably to Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton, but this regression was going on long before the former went down.

New Jersey has been held to two goals or less in regulation 18 times over the last 26 games. They’ve produced an expected goals total north of 3 only 12 times during that stretch, so it’s hard to argue they’re simply getting unlucky. To make matters worse, their other offensive threats outside Hughes aren’t living up to their billing.

Nico Hischier is on pace for his lowest points total in four seasons. Timo Meier’s shooting percentage is down four percent from a season ago, while Jesper Bratt has only two points in his last five contests.

New Jersey enters play clinging to third place in the Metropolitan standings, and would be a cross-off in the Stanley Cup odds if not for its stingy defense. The Devils lead the East in goals against. Jacob Markstrom is fourth in GAA, and boasts his best save percentage (.907) in three seasons. New Jersey is fifth in expected goals against, and above average in high-danger chances allowed, just behind Philadelphia.

The Flyers latest loss was a 4-1 defeat to the Kraken. That gives them 11 losses in their last 16 contests, and marked the ninth time during that stretch they failed to exceed two goals in regulation. Philadelphia ranks below league average in expected goals for, and is lacking offensive difference makers.

Travis Knoecny and Matvei Michkov are their only 20-goal scorers. Owen Tippet will likely join them soon, but that’s not a trio of names opposing teams fear.

Devils vs Flyers Pick

• Under 5.5 (+100)

Philly’s lacklustre offense, and the Devils stingy defense, along with their injuries, has me leaning under 5.5 goals for my best bet. The Flyers goaltending has been underwhelming to say the least this season, but they have kept New Jersey to two or fewer goals in two of three meetings.

Philadelphia does an excellent job of limiting high-danger chances at one end, while their powerplay is anemic at the other. The Flyers have the fifth-worst powerplay in the NHL, while New Jersey is a top-four PK unit.

New Jersey Devils vs Philadelphia Flyers Odds

The best price we can get on under 5.5 in the Devils vs Flyers odds, is +100 at Caesars. That’s an attractive bet in my book, given the way these two teams are playing. New Jersey games are 39-23-2 to the under this season, which is the second-highest under percentage in the league.

As for the outright numbers, New Jersey is a -148 moneyline favorite, with Philadelphia coming back as +124 underdogs. Per the NHL public betting trends, the Devils are -1.5 on the puck line, but have covered in only 34% of their outings this season.

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Odds as of March 8 at Caesars. Check out SBD’s Caesars Sportsbook review to see the available sign-up bonuses.