In the NHL, rest can be the deciding factor between victory and defeat. For hockey bettors, understanding how strength of schedule impacts team performance is just as crucial as tracking stats. That’s why every week, we dive into the upcoming matchups to uncover rest-related edges and potential schedule traps.

The table below shows how home-ice advantage was affected by rest last season:

Rest Diff	Games	Home Win %	Implied Odds
Home >	373	59.0%	55.9%
Home =	690	53.8%	55.0%
Home <	249	47.8%	50.8%

Data from the 2023-24 NHL regular season.

Here’s how rest has affected home-ice advantage this season:

Rest Diff	Games	Home Win %	Implied Odds
Home >	105	61.0%	64.6%
Home =	166	53.6%	57.5%
Home <	61	45.9%	52.9%

Data from the 2024-25 NHL regular season.

Monday, November 25th

The week starts strong with 11 games, and every team is somewhat rested. Utah and Toronto were the only teams in action Sunday, ensuring no club enters Monday on a back-to-back. Several matchups feature teams playing on equal rest, making it a more straightforward day for evaluating performance based solely on talent and matchups. However, keep an eye on teams like Vegas and Dallas, navigating four games in six days—a potential fatigue factor.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
	1	COL	TBL	1
	1	WSH	FLA	1
	1	NSH	NJD	1
	1	STL	NYR	1
4/6	1	VGK	PHI	1
	1	DAL	CAR	1	4/6
	1	CGY	OTT	1
	1	DET	NYI	1
3/4	1	WPG	MIN	1
	1	SEA	ANA	2
	1	LAK	SJS	1	4/6

Tuesday, November 26th

Utah concludes its four-game Eastern Conference road trip in Montreal, where the Canadiens will have had two days’ rest. Boston and Vancouver will also be well-rested when they face off in Boston, but this marks the first game of back-to-backs for Montreal, Boston, and Vancouver.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
	2	VAN	BOS	2
3/4	1	UTA	MTL	2

Wednesday, November 27th

With 30 of the league’s 32 teams in action, Wednesday is the busiest day of the week. Montreal, Boston, and Vancouver play the second game of their back-to-back sets. Boston faces the Islanders, who will have had one day off, while Montreal and Vancouver face opponents with three days’ rest.

Buffalo and Chicago hold two-day rest advantages at home against Minnesota and Dallas, respectively, while Toronto has a one-day edge visiting Florida. All other games feature evenly rested teams.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
	1	MIN	BUF	3
	1	STL	NJD	1
	1	NYR	CAR	1
	1	CGY	DET	1
	1	WSH	TBL	1
	2	TOR	FLA	1
2/2	0	BOS	NYI	1
2/2	0	VAN	PIT	3
2/2	0	MTL	CBJ	3
	1	PHI	NSH	1
	1	DAL	CHI	3
	1	VGK	COL	1
4/6	1	WPG	LAK	1
	1	ANA	SEA	1
	1	OTT	SJS	1

Friday, November 29th

After no games on Thursday due to American Thanksgiving, Friday features 14 matchups—more than Saturday’s 12, which is unusual. Edmonton returns from a five-day break to face Utah, which will have had two days off after its road trip. This should give the Oilers time to get healthy. Boston and Vancouver play their third game in four days, while all other teams have had one day off.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
	1	NYR	PHI	1
	1	CHI	MIN	1
3/4	1	VAN	BUF	1
	1	NJD	DET	1
	1	NYI	WSH	1
	1	FLA	CAR	1
	1	CGY	CBJ	1
	1	TBL	NSH	1
	1	LAK	ANA	1
	1	SEA	SJS	1
	1	PIT	BOS	1	3/4
	1	COL	DAL	1
	1	WPG	VGK	1
	5	EDM	UTA	2

Saturday, November 30th

Of the 24 teams in action Saturday, 20 will have also played Friday, setting the stage for potential surprises. Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and St. Louis will enjoy two-day rest advantages over their opponents, who will be playing back-to-back. So far this season, home teams are 36-19 (65.45 percent) in games where the road team played the previous day, while road teams are 12-13 (48 percent) against tired home teams.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
	2	MTL	NYR	0	2/2
2/2	0	CAR	FLA	0	2/2
	2	TOR	TBL	0	2/2
2/2	0	WSH	NJD	0	2/2
2/2	0	CGY	PIT	0	2/2
2/2	0	PHI	STL	2
	2	OTT	LAK	0	2/2
2/2	0	BUF	NYI	0	2/2
2/2	0	NSH	MIN	0	2/2
2/2	0	EDM	COL	0	2/2
2/2	0	UTA	VGK	0	2/2
2/2	0	SJS	SEA	0	2/2

Sunday, December 1st

Sunday features five games, with two teams playing on the second half of back-to-backs. The Canadiens face the Bruins after playing the New York Rangers on Saturday, while Boston will be in its fourth game in six days.

Ottawa continues its California road trip, traveling to Anaheim to face the Ducks after Friday’s game against the Kings. Vancouver will also play its fourth game in six days when it visits Detroit to take on the Red Wings. No teams will enter Sunday with more than one day off.

Other	Rest Days	Visitor	Home	Rest Days	Other
4/6	1	VAN	DET	1
2/2	0	MTL	BOS	1	4/6
	1	CBJ	CHI	1
	1	WPG	DAL	1
2/2	0	OTT	ANA	1