New York Rangers vs Buffalo Sabres Prediction, 10/9/2025 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: New York Rangers vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: Thursday, October 9, 2025

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: MSG Network

Odds/Point Spread: Rangers (-275) Sabres (+220)

The Buffalo Sabres (36-39-7 last season) will go up against the New York Rangers (39-36-7 last year) at KeyBank Center on Thursday. The line on this contest has the Rangers at -275 and the Sabres are opening at +220. The over/under comes in at 6.5.

The New York Rangers were on the winning side of the scoreboard with a 4-0 win against the Lightning in their previous game. New York garnered 6 penalty mins in this contest. The Rangers had a good offensive output in this victory. Additionally, they had 1 power play attempt but weren't able to make the most of that try. In the game, they were able to notch a goal on 4 out of the 22 shots they attempted.

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New York Rangers opponents had 239 power play opportunities (10th in pro hockey) and scored 47 goals in those chances. The Rangers had 2,451 shots attempted against them and had a save percentage of .896. New York tried 2,344 shots and held a shot percentage of 10.9%. When playing at even strength, the Rangers let the opposition score 208 goals while scoring 218. New York accounted for 210 power play opportunities and added 37 goals out of those attempts, giving them a rate of 17.62%. For last year, they recorded 85 points and their points % was .518. Concerning their goal scoring prowess, the New York Rangers notched 255 goals (12th in professional hockey) for the previous season and conceded 255.

Patrolling the crease for the game will be Igor Shesterkin. Shesterkin has participated in 274 matchups throughout his professional hockey career. He has a win-loss record of 162-88-22 and he has gotten the start in 269 games. Opponents have racked up 670 goals versus Shesterkin in his NHL career and his goals against average per game is 3.20. Shesterkin has had 8,109 shot attempts taken against him and has recorded 7,439 saves. His save percentage currently sits at .917 during his 12,573 mins in the crease. During his career on the ice, Shesterkin has 168 quality starts and his percentage for quality starts is .625.

When they were on the ice last, Buffalo faced the Flyers in an outing where the Sabres earned a win by a mark of 5-4. They had 1 power play chance in this matchup but weren't able to notch a goal. The Sabres notched 5 goals out of the 31 shots on goal they were seeking.

Last year, the Buffalo Sabres earned a total of 265 goals, 79 points, and a points percentage of .482. They permitted 287 goals to be scored by of a combination of 230 goals at even strength and 57 goals while they had less men on the ice. The Sabres had 222 goals at even strength and 43 goals (23rd in pro hockey) while on the power play. They had a total of 229 chances on the power play and they have earned a power play rate of 18.78%. Buffalo has tried 2,278 shots (20th in professional hockey) and accumulated a shot percentage of 11.63%, while allowing the other team 2,368 shots. They earned a penalty kill rate of 76.35% on their opposition's 241 power play opportunities, and their save percentage came in at 87.9%.

On the other side of the ice you will find Alex Lyon in net. Teams are averaging 3.96 goals per game and he has yielded 303 goals overall. Lyon's quality start percentage comes out to 51.0% and he has 51 quality starts in his career. He got the starting nod in 100 contests and has played for a total of 4,589 minutes. Lyon holds a lifetime mark of 51-38-11 and has played in 113 games. He is sitting with 2,784 saves out of 3,087 shots taken, which gives him a save percentage of .902.

Who will win tonight's NHL game against the spread or moneyline?

Guy's Pick: Take Buffalo (+220)

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