New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers Prediction 1/2/2026 Today’s NHL Picks

The New York Rangers and the Florida Panthers meet Friday in NHL action from LoanDepot Park. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a New York Rangers vs. Florida Panthers prediction.

New York Rangers Recap

The New York Rangers come into this game looking to bounce back from a 6-3 loss at the hands of the Washington Capitals last time out to sit at 19-18-5 this season. After this game, the Rangers will head home for a game against the Utah Mammoth.

Rangers Lose 3 In A Row

Artemi Panarin has 41 points with 14 goals and 27 assists while Adam Fox has 28 points with 24 assists. JT Miller has 22 points with 10 goals and 12 assists while Will Cuylle has 23 points with 10 goals and 13 assists and Mika Zibanejad has 30 points with 12 goals and 18 assists. Alexis Lafreniere also has 20 points with 12 assists as well this season. Igor Shesterkin has gone 16-12-4 with a 2.51 GAA and a .910 save percentage while Jonathan Quick is 3-6-1 with a 2.11 GAA and a .924 save percentage in goal for the Rangers so far this season.

Florida Panthers Recap

The Florida Panthers come into this game looking to shake off a 3-2 OT loss at the hands of Montreal last time out to sit at 21-15-3 this season. After this game, Florida will head home for a game against the Colorado Avalanche.

Panthers Alternate Wins & Losses In 6 Straight

Brad Marchand leads the Panthers with 45 points including a team-high 23 goals and 22 assists while Anton Lundell has 31 points with 13 goals and 18 assists. Sam Reinhart’s chipped in 43 points with 22 goals and 21 assists while Seth Jones has 24 points with 6 goals and 18 assists and Sam Bennett has 29 points with 13 goals and 16 assists. Carter Verhaeghe has 28 points with 11 goals and 17 assists and Evan Rodrigues has 19 points with 8 goals and 11 assists. Mackie Samoskevich has 18 points with 4 goals and 14 assists. Sergei Bobrovsky’s gone 17-9-1 with a 2.80 GAA and an .888 save percentage while Daniil Tarasov has gone 4-6-2 with a 2.96 GAA and an .899 save percentage so far this season.

New York Rangers @ Florida Panthers Betting Trends: January 2, 2026

Why the Florida Panthers will win

• The Panthers have won seven of their last eight games against Metropolitan Division opponents.
• The Rangers have lost four of their last five games.
• The Panthers have covered the puck line in each of their last four games against Metropolitan Division opponents.
• The Panthers have won the third period in each of their last five games against Metropolitan Division opponents.

Why the New York Rangers will win

• The Rangers have won each of their last four games as underdogs against Atlantic Division opponents.
• The Panthers have lost six of their last nine games as home favorites against opponents on a losing streak.
• The Rangers have covered the puck line in each of their last nine road games against Atlantic Division opponents.
• The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last eight Friday games as home favorites.
• The Rangers have won the second period in each of their last four road games against Atlantic Division opponents.

Total Goals Facts

• Each of the Rangers’ last eight road games against the Panthers following a road loss have gone OVER the total goals line.
• Seven of the Panthers’ last eight games after coming off overtime have gone OVER the total goals line.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in each of the Rangers’ last five road games against Atlantic Division opponents.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in 16 of the Panthers’ last 17 home games against the Rangers.

Florida Panthers Player Prop Facts

• Sam Reinhart has scored the last goal in each of the Panthers’ last three home games against Metropolitan Division opponents.
• Brad Marchand has scored a goal in each of the Panthers’ last four home games against Eastern Conference opponents.
• Brad Marchand has recorded at least one assist in seven of his last eight home appearances against the Rangers.
• Sam Reinhart ranks T2nd in the league for Game Winning Goals (5) this season.

New York Rangers Player Prop Facts

• Artemi Panarin has scored a goal in four of the Rangers’ last five road games against Atlantic Division opponents.
• Artemi Panarin has recorded at least one assist in each of the Rangers’ last eight games as road underdogs against Eastern Conference opponents.
• Adam Fox has recorded an assist in each of his last seven appearances – longest active streak in the league.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Florida Panthers rank 6th in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (82.84%).
• The Florida Panthers rank 4th in the league for Period 3 goals scored per game this season (1.26).
• The New York Rangers rank 31st in the league for goals per game this season (2.55).
• The New York Rangers rank 7th in the league for goals against per game this season (2.76).

New York Rangers vs. Florida Panthers Prediction

I’m on the under here. Why we’re playing a winter classic in the Miami Marlins’ ballpark is beyond me but it is what it is. These winter classic games are games I target for unders because I don’t trust the ice surface and especially in Miami, where sure, it’s going to be 63 at puck drop, but science lesson, ice melts and gets murky at 32 degrees, so this surface can get messy and mushy in a hurry and I don’t trust it for goals in this game. Give me the under here.

Chris Ruffolo's Pick: Under 5.5