Boston Bruins at New York Rangers Betting Preview

In a battle of first against worst, the first-place Boston Bruins (8-1-2) will head to the Big Apple for a pair of games against the last-place New York Rangers (4-5-2). While their records and places in the standings are far apart, these two teams are actually closer than you’d think.
Starting with Boston, the Bruins have won three in a row and seven of their last eight. Their last two wins came against the Flyers, who at 18 points is tied with Boston for first place in the East Division.
Although they dropped their last game 2-0 to the Islanders, the Rangers had previously won three out of their last four, including back-to-back wins against the Penguins and Capitals. A win on Wednesday would elevate New York into a tie for fourth place.
Here is a closer look at Boston and New York heading into their first matchup of the season Wednesday night.
By the Numbers
When it comes to offense, the Bruins have an advantage, albeit not a huge one. Boston is averaging 3.09 goals to New York’s 2.64 goals. Both teams are shooting the puck at fairly-high amounts, about 32 times a game, but the Bruins have a significantly-better shooting percentage and power-play percentage. Another big difference is in the faceoff circle, where Boston’s faceoff win rate is the best in the league while New York is the second-worst.
Defensively, the Bruins allow just 2.18 goals per game, the second-fewest in hockey, on a league-low 23.5 shots. But the Rangers have held their own as well, ranking inside the top-10 with 2.64 goals allowed and about 28 shots allowed. Both teams also have good penalty kills, with New York averaging less time in the penalty box.
Bruins Betting Preview
A good Bruins team became great when David Pastrnak re-entered the fold. Pastrnak, who had a league-leading 48 goals last season, already has five goals and three assists despite missing the first seven games of the season to recover from an injury. He has registered a point in all four games he has played and is well on his way to being one of the team’s points leaders yet again.
Longtime veterans Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand have each been very good this season. The two of them are tied for the team-lead in points with 15, as Marchand has a team-high seven goals while Bergeron leads with nine assists. Defenseman Charlie McAvoy is the other member of the team currently in double-figures in points, registering nine helpers as well to go with a single goal. Veteran David Krejci is another with nine assists, while other contributors like Nick Ritchie and Craig Smith are scoring goals in their first full seasons in Boston.
In the net, look for Tuukka Rask to draw the start on Wednesday. The combo of him and Jaroslav Halak has been greatly effective, with Rask drawing the bulk of the work. The Finnish vet is 5-1-1 in his seven starts with a 2.36 GAA and .898 save percentage.
Rangers Preview
Few free agent signings have paid off, as well as when the Rangers signed Artemi Panarin in the summer of 2019. Panarin rewarded the team with finishing last season as a Hart Trophy finalist and is now making a huge impact once again. The 29-year old has five goals and 10 assists, leading the team in both, putting together a point total almost double that of the next-highest player on the team.
That next-highest player is Pavel Buchnevich, who, at three goals and five assists, hopes to build off of last season’s career-best effort. A pair of young defensemen have stepped up for New York; Adam Fox and K’Andre Miller. Fox is third on the team with seven points, six of them coming via assists, while Miller has just four points but a team-leading +7 plus/minus. Others to watch include Ryan Strome, who just had a four-game point streak snapped on Monday, as well as top picks Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere, who have three goals between them.
The Rangers have also had a decent timeshare in net but will opt for the lesser-used goalie on Wednesday. Alexandar Georgiev will draw the start over Igor Shesterkin, who has started seven games to Georgiev’s four. The 24-year old Georgiev has gone 1-2-1 with a 3.27 GAA and a .885 save percentage.
Prediction
The Rangers have seemed to bounce back from an awful start, but they will face a tough test Wednesday night against the Bruins. All three of Boston’s losses have come by a single goal, as their defense and goaltending make it very difficult to get much of anything going. Perhaps when New York has had their young guys get some more experience later on in the season, and the offense improves, they’ll be able to challenge more great teams. But this is a game Boston should be able to handle with relative ease.
Pick: Bruins -160