The Oilers will play their first road game when they kick off a two-game trip against the Predators in Nashville on Thursday.
Oilers vs. Predators Odds
- Edmonton Oilers Moneyline: -115
- Nashville Predators Moneyline: -105
- Puck Line: Oilers -1.5 (+200), Predators +1.5 (-250)
- Game Total: 6.5 (Over -105, Under -115)
Odds courtesy of Sports Interaction.
Matchup
Edmonton has owned this matchup, going 10-2 straight up against Nashville since 2018-19, but Nashville has won two of the last four meetings. That said, Edmonton went 2-1 straight up against the Predators in 2023-24 by a combined score of 12-5.
Both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have dominated the Predators in their career. Draisaitl has scored more points per game (1.62) versus Nashville than any team other than the Kraken, while McDavid has put up more points per game (1.82) against the Predators than any other Western Conference team. Meanwhile, Juuse Saros has a 3-5-1 record, with a goals against average of 3.06 and a save percentage of .916 against the Oilers in his career.
Check out Daily Faceoff to get updates regarding the line combinations and goaltenders for today’s game.
Handicapping the Predators (0-3 SU, 1-2 ATS, 2-1 O/U)
Nashville was projected to be a 100-point team this season by the betting market after a busy offseason. The Predators added Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei in free agency, and signed star goaltender Juuse Saros to a massive eight-year contract extension.
I mean, the team put up 99 points last season and finished sixth in expected goals percentage and eighth in shot attempt percentage at five-on-five. Adding Stamkos and Marchessault, who both scored 40 goals last season, and Skjei, who is a quality defender, surely would improve a team that finished 10th in scoring last season, but the trio has combined for just three points in three games.
However, Nashville has stumbled out of the gate, starting the season 0-3 and being outscored 14-6. No team has scored fewer five-on-five goals per 60 minutes, as the Predators have just three in three games, and only one team has allowed more goals per 60. The low point, so far, came on Tuesday, when the Predators were defeated 7-3 by Seattle on home ice.
As head coach Andrew Brunette put it, there’s a lot of summer hockey in Nashville’s game right now as they have been trying to play fire-wagon hockey. If they try that against the Oilers, we could see fireworks, but the coach suggests the team will be looking to find its identity on Tuesday.
Handicapping the Oilers (1-3 SU, 0-4 ATS, 2-1-1 O/U)
Opening the season 0-3 wasn’t ideal, but after securing their first victory with an overtime win over the Flyers on Tuesday.
Edmonton can get back to .500 with a couple of road wins against Nashville and Dallas to close out the week, but that’ll be easier said than done. Sure, Nashville hasn’t been good this season, and they’ve had a tough time against the Oilers historically, but the Predators will be as motivated as they are desperate on Tuesday.
That said, the Oilers are currently ranked as the best team in shot percentage and the fourth-best team in expected goals percentage at five-on-five, and goaltender Stuart Skinner has improved each game. Skinner had a bad game against Winnipeg to open the season, but so did the rest of the team. He then played well versus Calgary, albeit in a losing effort, but his last outing was his best. Not to mention, the team had a lot more fight in its game on Tuesday.
However, from a betting perspective, the Oilers were not a good bet on the road last season. They did win more than half of their road games, but just barely, going 21-18-2. Yes, that’s about a 51 percent win rate, but their odds suggested they would win closer to 60 percent of their road games. If a bettor had bet one unit on Edmonton to win all 41 road games last season, they’d have lost more than six units.
My best bet
There are several ways that fans and bettors can try to capitalize on the fact that Edmonton’s top stars have dominated the Predators in recent seasons.
Leon Draisaitl Anytime Goal (+175)
Some sportsbooks have Draisaitl’s anytime goal prop listed as short as +110 or +125, but Sports Interaction is offering +175. That’s an attractive price given how much success he’s had against Nashville in his career. Draisaitl has 25 goals and 42 points in just 26 career games vs Nashville. McDavid is also worth considering at +155 odds, but there’s a bit more incentive to back Draisaitl here.
Over 6.5 Goals (-105)
This matchup has produced goals more often than not over the past three seasons and change. In fact, seven out of the last 10 meetings between these two teams have featured at least seven goals. There’s always a chance that Skinner and/or Saros could steal a game and keep the scoring down, but given how loose both of these teams have been playing to start the season, I’m willing to bet that neither of them lock things down defensively.
