NHL predictions, odds: Rangers vs. Sharks, Islanders vs. Canucks picks, best bets Thursday

The Rangers and Islanders will look to bounce back from respective losses as they take on more manageable competition Thursday night.

San Jose Sharks vs. New York Rangers prediction

(7 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Nobody can figure out how to stop the Jets this season, who moved 15-1-0 with a record-breaking victory at MSG on Tuesday.

It’s fair to excuse the Rangers for that loss, but it’s a little concerning that they are just 2-3-0 versus teams currently holding a playoff position this season.

The Rangers are 7-1-1 versus teams currently outside of the playoff position and have done well as heavy favorites this season.

At -425 odds Thursday, they are the largest betting favorite they have been this season by a wide margin.

After taking steps forward defensively last season and doing a better job insulating Igor Shesterkin, they have struggled to suppress high-danger chances against quality opponents.

While Shesterkin took some heat for his performance Tuesday, it’s clear after rewatching the goals that only Kyle Connor’s marker late in the second was ever supposed to be saved.

Perhaps it was foolish to think a matchup versus Winnipeg was the time for the Rangers to clean things up defensively. 

All of their post-game sentiments once again echoed the need to tighten things up in their own zone though, and this matchup provides a far better opportunity to do exactly that.

Over the last five games the Sharks have generated only 2.31 xGF/60.

They have scored only 2.35 goals per game this season, which is the second-lowest mark in the NHL.

San Jose has played to a solid 5-4-1 record over the last 10 games and has looked to be a far more organized side defensively in that span.

Those 10 games have averaged just 5.66 combined goals and, on average, Sharks games project to be fairly low-event moving forward.

We should see the Rangers able to limit the Sharks quality chances in this matchup, and Shesterkin should make life tough for a Sharks team that lacks quality finishers.

San Jose has been playing better in front of goal though, and I don’t believe the Rangers will contribute enough to for this game to get past it’s high total of 6.5.

At -122 odds (FanDuel), I see value backing this matchup to stay under 6.5 goals. I also see value with a sprinkle on Shesterkin to record a shutout at +575 (bet365).

Best Bets: Under 6.5 (-122, FanDuel) | Shesterkin to record shutout (+575, bet365)

New York Islanders vs. Vancouver Canucks prediction

(10 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

The Islanders put together another performance to be proud of Tuesday night in Edmonton.

They were a deserving loser in the end, but considering the quality of opponent and pieces missing from their lineup, earning a single point is far from a bad result.

In the time that top forward Mathew Barzal and Adam Pelech have been sidelined, the Islanders have gone 3-1-2.

Veteran forwards such as Kyle Palmieri and Anders Lee have elevated their play, and rookies Maxim Tsyplakov and Isiah George are benefitting from increased usages.

The Canucks have played to a 7-2-1 record over the last 10 games and hold a 52.31% expected goal share in that span.

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Six of those wins came versus teams expected to miss the playoffs though, and they are just 1-2-1 in games versus playoff teams in that span.

For the time being the Canucks looks to be slightly overvalued, and their play versus good teams hasn’t been overly convincing.

Their second defensive pairing of Tyler Myers and Carson Soucy has been an obvious concern and should be a clear flaw relative to other supposed Cup Contenders this season.

With Brock Boeser and Dakota Joshua sidelined their offensive core isn’t all that deep, and the Islanders should be able to insulate their netminder better than we have seen in recent matchups versus teams like New Jersey and Edmonton.

At +150 odds, there is value fading a Canucks side which looks overvalued right now as they face-off against an Isles’ side that has been highly competitive of late.

Best Bet: New York Islanders ML (+150, bet365) | Play to +145

Why Trust New York Post Betting

Nicholas Martin handicaps the NHL, MLB and NFL for the New York Post. He strives to include relevant game notes in articles to help bettors come to their own conclusions, but is also up 180 units himself on verified picks in a sports betting app. You can find Nick on X @nickm_hockey.