The NHL season continues to roll along. Yes, the NHL on Thursday night checks in with 11 games. Our focus will be on the big tile between the Florida Panthers and New Jersey Devils. That one gets underway at approximately 7:00 pm ET. Panthers vs Devils bets seek to continue our early season roll of good fortune.
Yes, the slate offers some intriguing contests. Now, keep in mind again there will be four games on Friday. Remember last Friday had zero contests. That drove fans, pundits, and bettors crazy. So many games on Thursday and Saturday and then zip. Having a little bit of balance helps anyway. On the other hand, we are only a little over a week into the games that count.
The 2025-2026 NHL season continues to be a wild adventure. Our goal is to try and make life a little easier for the bettors out there. October gets highlighted by a good deal of chaos and yes, unexpected results. It often gets us into a rhythm, so to speak.
Do not forget all the best Vegas Stanley Cup odds for 2025-26. Now, let us start with the moneyline for this tilt at the Prudential Center. It might even feel a little like hockey weather tonight. Anyway, it is time to get into the picks.
Panthers vs Devils bets face off with the moneyline. Paul Maurice and Sheldon Keefe know one thing rings true in this early part of the season. Injuries have already wreaked havoc. Simply, Florida and New Jersey are feeling the pain. The Panthers are without several players including Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov. Tkachuk is out until almost the Winter Olympics. Barkov is out the entire season.
Florida is almost missing several depth players but so is New Jersey. The Devils also will be without their starting goaltender (Jacob Markstrom) for several weeks due to a lower body injury. Worse, New Jersey’s backup, Jake Allen, should start on Thursday but do not assume anything yet. Nico Daws was called up from Utica and might get the start.
The big worry for the Florida Panthers is trying to manage the load of some of their best players remaining Thankfully the schedule so far has not been too overbearing. Sergei Bobrovsky is projected to start in net for Florida and he has 20 wins in 30 starts versus the Devils with a 2.54 goals against average and .916 save percentage.
The Panthers may need to score some goals to defeat one of the more talented teams in the Eastern Conference. With New Jersey also knowing they might need to turn up the offense, this makes for the potential of a surprisingly entertaining contest on Thursday night. Take the Panthers on the moneyline on the road to snap a two game losing skid.
The Panthers, Devils, and some props are next. Like we mentioned above, both teams are a bit of a mess. Ironically, Paul Maurice talked about this after Florida won their second Stanley Cup. Little did he know how many injuries there would be. As for New Jersey, Jack Hughes has missed significant time in four of his previous six full seasons. The Devils’ injury list is getting extensive as well.
On paper, both of these teams were contenders to win the Stanley Cup this season. Florida, after all, is the two time defending champ. New Jersey has made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons with an entertaining offensive style that captivates their fans. Both teams are above .500 at this point but again it is so early. Florida and New Jersey have had to alter their style of play to cope with the injuries.
Panthers vs Devils bets ponder several possible props from game to player. Can Sergei Bobrovsky continue his mastery of the Devils? Who will start in net for New Jersey? What else may happen? Yes, these two teams do not like each other. Florida still has Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, and Brad Marchand among others. New Jersey still has the Dougie Hamilton/Luke Hughes duo.
Alas, we will dig into more props below but let’s avoid the goalie shutout prop. Both teams are scoring here. Florida might win coming from behind and that comes in at +330 via Bovada. Florida’s team total of Over 3.5 goals has ballooned to +185. The Panthers are 0-2 on the road and want to notch a win. They will be desperate.
So, speaking of a few more bets, it is amazing that it actually feels a little like hockey weather in mid October. Temperatures in New Jersey were barely above freezing early Thursday morning. Anyway, the race to three goals tilts to the Panthers at +190. The Devils may score first but the Panthers could get the last laugh.
Florida even without Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov are dangerous here. Again, the Panthers lost to the Philadelphia Flyers and Detroit Red Wings by a combined score of 9-3. Their urgency level will be as high as New Jersey’s which is why more goals are expected.
Anytime goal scorer features some solid candidates. Brad Marchand is now at +215 (three goals already). Jack Hughes has not scored in three games and a tally from him is at +150 (highest so far). A longer shot might be Artemi Gritsyuk. The Russian has adapted well to life in New Jersey and has quite a shot (+425 via Bovada).
Updated NHL online Vegas odds keep changing. Do not forget the Vegas betting site bonuses too. Good luck!
