Notch is back again with his winners. Maybe his tips will help you with some tough decisions on your Saturday ticket. 

Buffalo at NY Rangers   1:00 PM EST

After a successful stretch of 6 games in 9 nights, the Sabres welcomed 2 full days off between games.  Miller is leading the hottest team in the league back into the top half of the Eastern Conference.  In games that don’t start at 7:00 or 7:30 Buffalo has a record of 3-4 and has been outscored 25-20 in those games.  The Rangers won the only other game between these two foes this year by a score of 2-1.  The Blueshirts are well rested as they haven’t played for 6 days.  With 41 million dollars in his wallet, this will be the first game for Henrik Lundqvist.
Buffalo – V

Boston at Toronto  

Boston will be looking to improve on their decent road record of 15-11-2.  They will also try to win their 4^th game out of 5 against Toronto this year; which would guarantee at least a split in the full season series.  Tim Thomas played great in his last game, stoning Pittsburgh on Wednesday after having some rough games previously.  Toronto is in a freefall and once again, all of Canada will get to see the 2^nd worst team in the league (on paper).

Boston – V+

Philadelphia at Montreal

This is the 1^st game of a back-to-back, home-and-home series, so expect a physical tone to be set early.  Philly has lost 5 in a row after winning the previous 5 games.  They have struggled with the Canadians this year going 0-2 while being outscored 9-3.  Montreal enjoys playing against Atlantic Division teams going 8-4-1 this year.  Will Philly take to many penalties trying to play physical and will the Habs powerplay continue to take advantage of their opportunities?  Carey Price will start in goal.

Montreal – H+

New Jersey at Ottawa

This is the 2^nd half of a home-and-home, but with 2 days in between games; you sort of lose the hate for each other.  New Jersey won two nights ago, to tighten the season series at 2-1 in Ottawa’s’ favor.  With the Senators two new addition via the trade market, they are searching for some chemistry.  With 2 full days of practice under their belts, you should expect a smoother game by the Sens. 

Ottawa – H+

Atlanta at NY Islanders

Both teams are struggling lately.  This will be the Thrashers 3^rd game in 4 nights.  Atlanta has already beaten the Isles in their only 2 meetings so far this year.  Although the Islanders have been struggling lately they may have turned the corner winning their last 2 games.  And also despite their 2 losses to the Thrash, Ted Nolans team is 6-4-3 against the Southeast division teams.

NY Islanders – H

Florida at Carolina

This season series is 3-2 for Carolina.  Florida is one of the more consistent teams in the league; they have never won or lost more than 4 games in a row.  With a 2 game losing streak going they face a depressed divisional rival.  The Hurricanes are winners of their last two games, but have to find a way to overcome the loss of Captain Rod Brind’Amour.  Cam Ward is 4-1 lifetime against Florida.

Florida – V

Washington at Tampa Bay

This will be the 3^rd game in 4 nights for Washington.  The Caps have a 3-2 lead in the series so far against Tampa Bay.  This is a big game within the weak Southeast division for both teams.  The Lightning are coming on strong of late, with some big road wins.  Can they parlay that success into some home wins and continue to climb into the playoff race?

Washington – V

St. Louis at Nashville

Legace was on fire in his last game stopping 38 of 39 shots against Colorado.  He has had some big games against Nashville as well.  The Blues won the first 3 games in the season series before losing the next 2.  The Preds have an amazing divisional record of 11-6-4 this year.

Nashville – H

Los Angeles at Phoenix
This will be the Kings first home game since January 24^th.  Having missed Valentines Day and coupling that with the “honey do” list; the Kings may be in trouble here.  On top of that, they are only home for this game before heading out again.  Phoenix has won all 4 games against LA this year by a combined score of 16-4.

Phoenix – H+

Edmonton at Vancouver
I sure am glad I traded Luongo and got JS Giguere in return on Dec 12^th.  I was laughed at in the Experts Pool for not shopping the Canucks netminder.  I didn’t want to shop him because I only wanted one goalie in return.  Without defense in front of you, the best goaltender in the world has been horrible the last two months. 

Edmonton in a shootout – T

My Proline Ticket
Boston – V+

Ottawa – H+

Florida – V

Make your own picks, and have a look at the picks of our members, right here in the DobberHockey forum!