NHL odds, picks and bets for Saturday

The New Jersey Devils will be thrilled with the way they started the 2024-25 NHL season.

The Devils took an early lead over the Buffalo Sabers and held it without much fuss en route to a 4-1 victory in Prague.

Considering how much of a disaster New Jersey was last year – especially on defense – such a clinical victory was exactly the first step the Devils needed.

New Jersey will want to beat former coach Lindy Ruff and the Sabers on Saturday morning in Prague. As of this writing, the Devils are a -164 favorite.

Devils vs. Sabers – odds and picks

No one should overreact to what we saw on the first day of the new season, but there wasn’t really anything to make a fuss about.

The Devils were sharp from the beginning, took the lead and kept it.

Buffalo was out of rhythm early in the game, but the Sabers settled down and couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities they created against Jacob Markstrom. Fine margins.

Devon Levi #27 of the Buffalo Sabers defends the net during practice for the NHL Global Series Czechia 2024 on September 30, 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic. NHLI via Getty Images

The one aspect of the game that really stood out was Buffalo’s defensive play.

The Sabers did a good job of limiting the Devils, a team everyone expected to be an offensive ball team this season, with only a few risky scoring opportunities in 5-on-5 situations.

Buffalo lost three goals and had a few breakdowns, but overall it looked better than bad in its own zone.

Are you betting on the NHL?

The Sabers closed at +124 heading into Friday’s game and hadn’t done anything to justify a move in either direction, so going +134 with a better goaltending matchup (Devon Levi vs. Jake Allen) seems like a reasonable choice.

Bet: Sabers +130 or better