New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers

With the Rangers riding a three-game losing streak and the Panthers coming in off a single loss that followed a stretch of nine wins in their previous twelve, the momentum edge still leans toward the home side despite a modest skid. Florida’s major concern is Matthew Tkachuk sitting on injured reserve with a groin issue, but Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand and Carter Verhaeghe are all active on the current roster, giving Paul Maurice enough high-end firepower to attack a New York team that has been bleeding goals lately. On the other bench, the Rangers are relatively healthy in their core group—Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck, Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin are all active—but they’re missing depth pieces like Conor Sheary and Adam Edstrom, which hurts their five-on-five balance. Historically, Panarin has produced extremely well against Florida, while Bobrovsky owns a long track record of success against the Rangers and has been especially strong over his last 10 head-to-head meetings, and Shesterkin struggled versus the Panthers last season even as his overall career record against them sits around .500. Given Florida’s slight points edge, home-ice advantage, and superior overall form since early December, I project the Panthers closer to a -155 favorite than the current -140, creating a small but real edge on the moneyline; still, Tkachuk’s absence and the Rangers’ road competence keep this from elite status, so I grade Florida -140 as a B recommendation. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 02/01/2026 09:25

The total at 5.5 is sitting right on the fault line between Florida’s higher-event profile and a Rangers team that has been more middling offensively, but several indicators nudge this matchup toward the Over despite one major injury to Florida’s top six. The Panthers have scored and conceded well north of three goals per game on average through their first 39 contests, and their home splits plus a lethal first power-play unit with Barkov and Reinhart tend to push pace, while the Rangers’ recent three-game skid has featured leaky defensive play even with Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick both healthy on the current roster. Shesterkin’s numbers against the Panthers last season were poor, and even though his career record versus Florida is close to even, his recent form in this building suggests Florida can do its part on the scoreboard, while Panarin’s historically strong production against the Panthers and an intact New York power play give the visitors multiple paths to two or three goals. Tkachuk’s absence does trim some expected offense, but with Florida’s depth scoring from players like Marchand and Verhaeghe and the Rangers’ need to open up a bit to snap their losing streak in a tight Eastern playoff race around the midway mark of the schedule, my projection lands closer to 6.1 total goals; at -115 there’s moderate value toward the Over, tempered by the possibility of a goaltending duel, so I grade Over 5.5 -115 as a B-. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 02/01/2026 09:25

The puckline market is heavily shaded toward a tight game, and given the context it’s easy to see why: the Panthers own only a small points edge on New York and are just 2 goals better in differential, the Rangers are on a three-game skid but boast a strong road record, and both sides are built around elite goaltending with Bobrovsky and Shesterkin active and healthy on their current depth charts. Florida’s biggest weapon, Tkachuk, is out, which increases the likelihood that many of their wins come via low-scoring, one-goal margins behind structure and special teams rather than pure offensive overwhelm, while the Rangers still have Panarin, Zibanejad and Fox driving play and have historically been competitive against Bobrovsky even if his career record versus them is positive. With the Panthers’ recent form built on grinding, defensively sound wins and the Rangers desperate for standings points in a congested Metropolitan playoff chase, I expect New York to sell out to keep this within one late, even if Florida ultimately protects home ice; that makes Rangers +1.5 appealing from a probability standpoint but the -220 price tag severely limits the long-term return, so I grade this puckline angle as a C+ rather than something stronger. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 02/01/2026 09:25