After a 124-103 home loss to Miami on Wednesday, the Boston Celtics are eager to bounce back and avoid back-to-back home defeats—something they’ve avoided so far this season. Despite a stellar 32-7 record on the road, the Celtics’ home performance (24-13) is crucial as they gear up to host the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. Jaylen Brown, playing through a bone bruise in his right knee, led Boston with a team-high 24 points in the loss to Miami. “We were on the road for 10, 12 days,” Brown explained. “First game back off a long road trip is always tough. I’ve had to come to grips with not feeling my normal self, but that doesn’t mean I can’t still make

The Avalanche and Blue Jackets are set to face off at 7:30 ET on ESPN+. The Blue Jackets will host the game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH. The Avalanche come into this non-conference matchup favored by -1.5 goals. The over/under line currently sits at 6.5 goals. With a 5-2 loss to the Predators, the Avalanche’s record now stands at 46-27-4. Colorado took the lead early in the second period, but Nashville responded with five unanswered goals. The Avalanche were underdogs on the puck line, and the total of 7 goals surpassed the pre-game line of 6.5. Both of Colorado’s goals came from different players. Cale Makar scored first, at 17:06 in the second period, and Nathan MacKinnon added another

As the Edmonton Oilers continue to push toward the playoffs, they’ll do so without their captain once again when they face the last-place San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. Connor McDavid remains sidelined with a lower-body injury, and while he returned to practice in a non-contact jersey this week, he won’t be suiting up just yet. While McDavid’s absence is notable, the Oilers aren’t short on firepower thanks to Leon Draisaitl, who’s picked up the slack in commanding fashion. Draisaitl has stepped up when the Oilers needed him most. After missing some time himself, he returned with a bang, netting two goals and an assist in a 3-2 OT win against Calgary last Saturday. That performance included his 50th goal

The Jets and Golden Knights are set to face off at 10:00 ET on ESPN+. The Golden Knights will host the game at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV. The over/under for this game is set at 5.5 goals, and the Golden Knights are the -1.5 goal favorites against the Jets in a Western conference matchup. With a 7-4 win over the Lightning, the Jets moved to 51-20-4 on the season. Winnipeg covered the puck line as -1.5 goal favorites, and the total of 11 goals easily surpassed the pre-game line of 6.5. The Jets fell behind 2-0 early, but seven different players found the net to help them rally for the win. Winnipeg scored their final two goals with