Devils vs Penguins

Sidney Crosby’s current heater, with 47 points in 41 games and a seven-game point streak driving Pittsburgh’s five-game winning run, makes the Penguins side of this near pick’em moneyline far more attractive than New Jersey’s tonight. Pittsburgh has outscored opponents 25-12 during this streak, is 11-8-4 in its last 23 against the Devils, and now likely gets Evgeni Malkin back into an already rolling top-six, while depth pieces like Rutger McGroarty and Caleb Jones remain out but don’t move the needle as much. On the other side, the Devils limp in off a 9-0 humiliation on Long Island, are 2-5-1 over their past eight and have only six wins in their last 19, even as key names like Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Timo Meier and Dougie Hamilton are all listed on the active ESPN roster. Midseason stakes are real here: at game 44 for New Jersey and 42 for Pittsburgh, this is a four-point swing in a tight Eastern Conference bubble race, and recent projections have the Penguins edging back toward a playoff spot while the Devils trend the wrong way. Add in Crosby’s lifetime 97 points in 90 games against New Jersey and home-ice at PPG Paints Arena, and laying -118 on Pittsburgh’s moneyline grades out as an A- pick in terms of both win probability and modest value at this price point. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 08/01/2026 09:42am

With the total sitting at 6, the recent form profile leans slightly toward the Over despite New Jersey’s scoring funk, which makes Over 6 at -125 a B-grade play. Pittsburgh’s offense has exploded for 25 goals over its five-game winning streak and is now adding Malkin back into a forward group that already features Crosby, Rickard Rakell, Jake Guentzel and Erik Karlsson driving pace from the back end, while the Devils have bled chances and are fresh off conceding nine in a game where Jacob Markstrom was shelled and the team looked fragile after early goals against. New Jersey’s attack has underperformed its talent lately, but an active core of Hughes, Hischier, Bratt and Meier should still generate pushback against a Penguins team that is playing faster and more aggressively at five-on-five, especially with Simon Nemec expected to return and help transition the puck. Fatigue and urgency also favor offense: the Devils are in the middle of a four-game road swing trying to stop a slide that’s imperiling their playoff odds, while the rested Penguins are at home with confidence to press for separation late, increasing the chances of an empty-net scenario. Given all of that, a 4-3 or 5-2 type script feels slightly more likely than a grindy under, so Over 6 at this price earns a B for being reasonably likely to hit, even if the juice trims the overall value. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 08/01/2026 09:42am

The Penguins at -1.5 for 220 on the puckline are a higher-variance but intriguing B- play, keyed by current trajectory, matchup edges and late-game dynamics. Pittsburgh has three straight home wins and five in a row overall, with multiple multi-goal victories in that span, and their recent ability to pile on late—as seen in the comeback and OT win against Columbus—pairs well with a Devils group that has been conceding first far too often, now 2-5-1 in its last eight and coming off that 9-0 no-show against the Islanders. With Crosby in MVP-level form, Malkin stepping back into the lineup, and the core all confirmed on ESPN’s active roster, the Penguins’ top six and power play present a much more stable scoring engine than a Devils side still trying to re-integrate pieces like Nemec and Dadonov and searching for structure after repeated defensive breakdowns. At midseason, with Pittsburgh pushing to solidify a playoff spot and New Jersey slipping toward the outside of the bubble, the Devils are more likely to chase the game and pull Markstrom early if they’re down late—exactly the script that opens the door for an empty-net cover on -1.5. Because winning by margin in the NHL is inherently volatile and New Jersey still has enough top-end talent to keep things tight, this puckline sits at a B-: attractive plus-money value if you already like the Penguins moneyline, but sized more as a secondary sprinkle than a primary wager. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 08/01/2026 09:42am