Welcome back to NHL Predictions, January 23rd edition! Each day, the Last Word on Hockey team will break down every game and give our NHL predictions for each game. This is the early game slate of NHL Predictions. Be sure and check out the late games of NHL Predictions too.
NHL Predictions
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Head-to-head: Tampa Bay 1-0 Columbus
With the 2020-21 season officially on its way, the Tampa Bay Lightning find themselves facing off against a familiar foe in the Columbus Blue Jackets. After playing each other in back-to-back opening rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the ‘Bolts’ lately have the upper hand. Despite losing Nikita Kucherov for the regular season, the Lightning is still producing at a high rate. Through their first three games, the team is ninth in goals for and first in goals-against. With Steven Stamkos, Anthony Cirelli, and Brayden Point leading the charge offensively, Andrei Vasilevskiy is holding down the fort on the back end. The Lightning already look poised for another run at the Stanley Cup.
Facing off against Tampa Bay in back-to-back nights, the Blue Jackets come into tonight’s game tied for second place within the Discover Central Division. After a heartbreaking overtime loss the night before, the Blue Jackets will surely be itching for a win. With even more tension building between Pierre-Luc Dubois and the organization, it will be interesting to see how John Tortorella uses his star-forward during tonight’s game. If the Blue Jackets do not find a way to turn things around quickly during the shortened season, they could find themselves at the bottom, looking up in the blink of an eye.
Prediction: Tampa wins 2-0
Montreal Canadiens vs. Vancouver Canucks
Head-to-head: Montreal 1-1 Vancouver
Moving along with our NHL predictions, the Montreal Canadiens versus the Vancouver Canucks series has been an exciting one. During the first two games played against each other, the teams combined for 21 goals. Now that the two teams are facing off again tonight, all eyes will be on Tyler Toffoli to continue his scoring ways. Within the past two games against the Canucks, Toffoli has recorded five goals and one assist for six total points. With everyone contributing night in and night out, the Canadiens prove why they belong at the top of the standings.
That said, it is imperative that the Canucks tighten up their defensive play. With these defensive struggles, the decision to let Jakob Markstrom leave in free agency looks like a bad one. Braden Holtby and Thatcher Demko, both need to improve between the pipes after the Habs scored 11 goals in the past two games. While the players in front of them keep them in the game, their netminders do not seem up for the task. As the season continues, Vancouver’s defensive play must improve to stand a chance within the Scotia North Division.
Prediction: 4-2 Montreal
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins
Head-to-head: Flyers 0-1 Bruins
Just two days after these teams faced off against each other, the Boston Bruins will battle with the Philadelphia Flyers for the second time this season. After struggling to find the back of the net, the Bruins turned things around with a 5-4 shootout win over the Flyers. As we look at tonight’s match-up, the Bruins seem to be turning things around. With Ondrej Kase and David Pastrnak both sidelined for the foreseeable future, the Bruins have got to find a way to score. While it may not be pretty, sometimes the ‘ugly’ games are when the Bruins play at their best.
On the other side of the ice, the Flyers come into tonight’s game seeking payback. As the first-place team in the MassMutual East Division, Philadelphia is considered a Stanley Cup contender. With some of the Flyer’s top guys in Kevin Hayes and Travis Konecny contributing every night, the team looks to get back to their winning ways as they continue to dominate the East.
Prediction: 3-1 Philadelphia
