New York Islanders at Buffalo Sabres 5/3/21 - NHL Picks & Predictions

The New York Islanders enter this game 31-15-5 on the year sitting in 3rd place in the east. New York doesn't have the strongest of offenses ranking 18th in the NHL with 2.80 goals on 28.65 shots per game. Mathew Barzal leads the Islanders in points on the year with 41, while Nick Leddy boasts a team high 27 assists . Brock Nelson has the most goals on the team with 16.

The Islanders are a defensive minded team ranked 2nd in the NHL allowing 2.24 goals per game on 28.08 shots per game. The Islanders are also a top 5 team in the league against the power play allowing a success rate of 16.13% on the year.

The Buffalo Sabres are having a terrible year coming into this game at 13-32-7 on the year after losing 4 consecutive games played. The Sabres are one of the worst offensive teams in the NHL ranking 28th on the year with 2.42 goals on 28.25 shots per game. Sam Reinhart leads the Sabres offense in points and goals on the year, while  Rasmus Dahlin leads the team with 18 assists.

Buffalo is the second worst defensive team in the NHL which is a direct result of the poor record on the year. The Sabres allow 3.56 goals on an NHL worst 33.62 shots per game. The Sabres have allowed 4.8 goals per game over the last 5 games played, while giving up 5 goals per game in the current 4 game skid.