ESPN's NHL preview for Thursday's slate features 22 teams in action, led by the first regular-season meeting of 2026-27 between the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers, the so-called Battle of the Hudson. The Devils are favored at -148 with an over/under of 6.5. The teams enter the matchup with similar scoring leaders: Alexis Lafreniere (2020) has 10 points, while Jack Hughes (2019) has eight. The Devils won two of three meetings in 2025-26, and all four games between the clubs will be played by the end of December.
Elsewhere, the Buffalo Sabres visit the Toronto Maple Leafs in a rivalry game where Toronto is a -118 favorite. The Sabres are chasing a second straight postseason appearance, and the Leafs are among the teams competing with them for a playoff spot. The Tampa Bay Lightning (-230) host the Seattle Kraken, whose third-place standing in the Pacific and 120-point pace have raised questions about their staying power.
The Florida Panthers are heavy -298 favorites against the Vancouver Canucks, a matchup expected to produce plenty of goals given both teams' offensive tendencies. The New York Islanders face the Ottawa Senators in a game featuring two standout goaltenders, Ottawa's Linus Ullmark (5-0-0, 1.27 GAA, .948 save percentage) and New York's Ilya Sorokin (3-2-0, 1.81, .934).
The Philadelphia Flyers and Detroit Red Wings both sit in the bottom third of the league in goals against per game, and the Winnipeg Jets visit the Chicago Blackhawks with Connor Bedard back on the ice.
Source: ESPN NHL · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing