NHL Rangers vs Islanders Picks and Odds | February 25, 2025

One of the best rivalries in sports, even though some may disagree. The New York Islanders will host the New York Rangers tonight at UBS Arena. These 2 teams met back in early November and the Rangers won by a score of 5-2. Let’s get into the Rangers vs Islanders picks.

The Islanders are 25-24-7 this season and are 6th in the Metro Division. They are 13-12-2 at home this season and 8-5-2 in divisional play. Including before the 4 Nations break, the Isles are on a 3-game losing streak.

We’re in pretty much the same scenario for the Islanders and that’s that they cannot find the back of the net. They rank 12th in shots on goal, but 26th for goals scored per game. Their penalty kill is horrible and worst in the league.

On defense, they are middle of the pack. Ranking 14th for goals allowed and 15th for shots on goal allowed per game isn’t the worst. What is the worst is their penalty kill. If they could improve their special teams, this team could see a huge boost.

Goaltender Ilya Sorokin is expected in net. He is 20-17-4 this season with a 2.72 GAA and a .906 save percentage. Sorokin is 0-3-2 in his last 5 games vs the Rangers, so he better be ready.

Rangers look to build on win over Penguins on Sunday

New York Rangers winger Artemi Panarin celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal.

This Rangers team has been struggling to a lot of people’s surprise. They are 28-25-4 this season and are 5th in the Metro. This team is pretty much split right down the middle for home and away records. In divisional matchups, they’re 8-9-0.

New York just had a nice win over the Penguins on Sunday afternoon. They had been 5-5-0 in their last 10 games going into the 4 Nations break. The Rangers sent numerous guys to the tournament, so they should return after sitting out.

The team is known for its offense that has been kind of lost this season. They have managed ok, ranking 14th in the league for goals scored and 9th in the league for shots on goal per game.

Defense is where the problem lies for this team. They rank 21st in goals allowed and 29th in shots on goal allowed per game. New York commits over 4 penalties per game but have the 4th best penalty kill in the league to back it up.

Goalie Igor Shesterkin is expected in net. He is 19-20-2 this season with a 2.98 GAA and a .903 save percentage. The Islanders better get their stuff together vs Shesterkin because he owns them, going 4-10 in his last 5 vs them. Let’s check out the odds and get into the picks.

New York Rangers vs New York Islanders Betting Odds and Game Information

Rangers vs Islanders Betting Odds

Puck Line

New York Rangers -1.5 (+210)
New York Islanders +1.5 (-265)

Moneyline

New York Rangers -114
New York Islanders -105

Totals

Over 5.5 (-130)
Under 5.5 (+106)

Odds courtesy of BetOnline – Get 50% up to $1000 on your first deposit

Rangers vs Islanders Game Information

Venue: UBS Arena, Elmont, NY
Date: Tuesday February 25, 2025
Puck Drop: 7:30pm EST
TV: MSGSN, MSG

New York Rangers vs New York Islanders Prediction and Picks

New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin makes a pad save.

Rangers vs Islanders Picks and Predictions: New York Rangers Moneyline (-114) Get 50% up to $1000 Deposit on BetOnline for this pick

The Islanders didn’t look that great the other night vs Dallas. They made a comeback for a minute there but were out played all game. I was honestly surprised they were able to get 3 passed Oettinger.

That’s going to the be the difference here. Both have great goalies who pose a threat, but one has much better success lately vs the other. We’re backing the Rangers here because the Isles play wasn’t great, and the Rangers own Sorokin right now.

Sorokin’s saves line should be around 26-28 and we’ll be taking the over. I think the Rangers get at least 30 on net and probably over 35 shots. Looking at the history of the past 5 games of each goalie vs their opponent, one common trend was lots of goals. I lean the over 5.5 goal for that reason as well.

For a player prop, I like for Chris Kreider to get 3 or more shots on goal which should be priced around -125t to -135. He hit his shots earlier this season and also scored a goal, which I’ll be taking for +250. Kreider tends to be an Islander killer.