NHL Weekend Preview - Must See Matchups

Lost in the craziness of playoff baseball, college football, and NFL Week 5 is the start of the NHL season. Hockey betting doesn't get any better than this weekend's slate, which features some must-see matchups.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Toronto Maple Leafs

The defending Stanley Cup champs are hoping to avoid a hangover from last season's success. Pittsburgh Penguins opened with two impressive wins but dropped a 3-0 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes on Wednesday night. The Penguins couldn't stay out of trouble, giving the Coyotes nine power plays in which they scored twice. Pittsburgh faces the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night, which will undoubtedly be a physical battle.

Toronto Maple Leafs got some bad news regarding its always troublesome goaltending situation. Prized rookie goalie Jonas Gustavsson will be out for at least a week with an injured groin suffered in his NHL debut, a 2-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators. That leaves Toronto with Vesa Toskala, who has been brutal in his first two games. Toskala has given up seven goals on 35 shots and will be backed up by Joey MacDonald, who was called up to the big club Thursday.

Washington Capitals at Detroit Red Wings

The Capitals' high-powered offense has lived up to its billing, scoring five goals a night through its first three games of the season. But Washington Capitals has issues on the other side of the blueline. The Capitals’ defense is allowing more than 30 shots against per game and goaltender Semyon Varlamov has struggled because of it. He has a 5.11 GAA and was pulled in the second period of his start against Philadelphia on Tuesday.

The Detroit Red Wings look nothing like the best team in the Western Conference. Detroit dropped its opening two games heading into Thursday's huge showdown with the Chicago Blackhawks. The Red Wings' biggest issue appears to be their inability to hold on to leads. In the two games in Sweden, Detroit gave up two-goal leads to the St. Louis Blues. Head coach Mike Babcock is still juggling his lines try to fill holes left by offseason departures and injuries.

Anaheim Ducks at New York Rangers

Sunday, the Anaheim Ducks bring their struggles to the Big Apple. The Ducks will be coming off tough games in Boston and Philadelphia before facing the Rangers on Sunday. Anaheim was one of the best road teams in the West last season, posting a 22-15-0-3 record. However, this is a team trying to switch identities after losing players like Chris Pronger and Francois Beauchemin.

The New York Rangers rebounded from an opening night loss to the Penguins with two 5-2 victories over Ottawa and New Jersey. Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist appears to be picking up where he left off in 2008-09, posting a 2.35 GAA and a .924 save percentage heading into Thursday's game in Washington. Lundqvist was solid in his two games against the Ducks last year. He led New York to 4-2 and 3-1 victories.