Devils vs Kraken

New Jersey rides into Climate Pledge on a three-game road heater Flames, Oilers, Canucks and wins in five of its last six overall, while Seattle has dropped two of its last three at home and continues to wrestle with inconsistent scoring. The Devils are banged up on the wings and blue line with Luke Hughes, Stefan Noesen, Marc McLaughlin and Zack MacEwen all sidelined, but their core of Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier remains intact, whereas the Kraken are missing depth forwards Ben Meyers, Max McCormick and goalie Matt Murray yet still have their main skaters available. Historically this matchup has tilted heavily toward New Jersey: the Devils are 7-2 all-time against Seattle and have taken three straight this season and last, each by a single goal, with regular contributions from Kraken-killers like Ondrej Palat and Dawson Mercer. With both teams past the 50-game mark and sitting on the playoff bubble, New Jersey’s chance to pull within a point of a spot adds urgency, and their strong recent road form plus sustained success against this opponent gives them a slight but clear edge even in a tough building. I’m backing New Jersey Devils -125 on the moneyline with a grade of B+, reflecting a solid probability edge but only moderate monetary value given road variance and Seattle’s defensive profile. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 25/01/2026 09:22

Given the Devils’ recent surge has come from tightened road structure and low-event wins 2-1, 2-1, 5-4 while the Kraken’s last three have all landed between five and seven goals with two losses at home, recent form points toward another grind rather than a track meet. Injuries on both sides remove some puck-moving and depth scoring—New Jersey is without Luke Hughes and multiple bottom-six wingers, while Seattle is missing Meyers, McCormick and a depth goalie—leaving the main offensive weapons to work against fairly intact defensive corps. The head-to-head history is extremely under-friendly, with seven of nine meetings staying under the total and the last four all finishing with five goals or fewer including 3-2 and 3-1 scorelines, which fits how these rosters match up today. Season-long numbers underline the same story: the Devils are around 2.6 goals for and just over 3.0 against per game, while the Kraken sit in the league’s lower tier of offense but near the top in fewest goals allowed, and Seattle has given up only slightly more goals than New Jersey has scored despite playing one fewer game. Layer on an early local start, a defensively structured Kraken team, and playoff-bubble pressure that tends to shorten benches and slow pace, and Under 5.5 at 100 looks like the best angle on the board, earning an A- grade thanks to strong trend support at a fair price. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 25/01/2026 09:22

Even while New Jersey has largely owned this series, the games themselves have been razor-thin, with eight of nine all-time meetings decided by a single goal or requiring overtime or a shootout, including three consecutive 3-2 Devils wins over the past two seasons.covers.com The Devils come in hot but short-handed—missing Luke Hughes and several depth wingers—which raises their reliance on the top six and makes it harder to build multi-goal separation, while Seattle’s injury list is mostly limited to depth pieces and a backup netminder, keeping their main defensive core and goaltending tandem intact.espn.com Key names on both sides have consistently driven close games in this matchup: New Jersey’s Hughes–Hischier–Bratt group and clutch scorers like Palat and Mercer have found ways to edge Seattle, but the Kraken’s Matty Beniers–Jared McCann–Jordan Eberle trio and a blue line led by Vince Dunn, Adam Larsson and Brandon Montour, backed by Joey Daccord and Philipp Grubauer, have generally kept the shot share and goals against under control, especially at Climate Pledge.950kjr.iheart.com With both teams hovering just outside the playoff cut line and every point crucial, Seattle is highly incentivized to play for at least overtime at home, which further increases the likelihood of another one-goal result, so I’m taking Seattle Kraken +1.5 at -225 on the puckline with a B grade—high win probability but capped monetary upside due to the heavy juice. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 25/01/2026 09:22