NHL Wednesday best bets: Bruins to rebound vs. Panthers

The NHL is back in full swing following a dark, action-free night. While there's plenty of value on the board, I see the highest reward in backing the top two teams in the Eastern Conference.

Let's take a closer look.

The Bruins' loss was disappointing last time out. They blew a lead in the final five seconds of the game before losing to the Lightning in overtime.

I expect them to get things back on track Wednesday night against the Panthers.

These Bruins are elite. They're fantastic at five-on-five, their power play ranks in the top 10 in goals per minute, and their penalty kill is the league's best. Oh, and they have two of the league leaders in Goals Saved Above Expected.

It takes a near-perfect effort to beat Boston and, even then, it's very difficult. There's a reason the Bruins have only dropped one game in regulation.

On the flip side, I've been impressed with the Panthers this season, and getting Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour back from injuries will only raise their ceiling.

Having said that, they're expected to be without Aleksander Barkov in the short term. It's hard to overstate how important he is to the Panthers. Barkov averages more than a point per game while driving play and logging a ton of minutes in every situation. He leads the entire NHL with an average Game Score of 1.87.

The Bruins, fresh off an ugly loss, aren't a team you want to run into without your captain.

Bet: Bruins (-115)

The Penguins are a top-heavy team when it comes to generating offense. The top of their lineup is dynamic and productive while the bottom lacks creativity and is essentially in place only to try and prevent goals.

That kind of roster construction can work when everyone is healthy. Injuries are inevitable, though, and the Penguins have run into a few of them.

Rickard Rakell has shockingly not found the back of the net this season - but it's not for a lack of opportunities. He's piled up 46 scoring chances, which ties him with Evgeni Malkin for fourth on the team. He's now sidelined long-term with an injury.

Bryan Rust has produced slightly under a point per game. Sidney Crosby is the only Penguin with more goals than Rust, while Jake Guentzel is the lone man ahead of him in terms of chances. Rust didn't skate this morning, though, and there's a real possibility he'll miss Wednesday's game as well.

Playing without Rakell alone would be problematic. If Rust is out as well, it could be a crucial loss against a Rangers club playing lights out defensively.

Boston is the only team better than Pittsburgh at limiting goals against. But New York is also in the top portion of the league in terms of shot and chance suppression.

I think the Rangers are a tier or two above the Penguins - especially the bruised version. Rust not playing would be preferable, but I see an edge in backing the Rangers on Wednesday regardless.

Bet: Rangers (-115)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ToddCordell.

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