Double loser for me last night on the NHL Playoffs, as the Bruins beat Florida 5-1, losing me 3.49 units. Tonight we have Game 2 of Rangers/Canes and the Avs/Stars series begins out West. Let’s bounce back!
Game 2 – Rangers vs. Hurricanes (7:00)
Game 1 of this series was pretty solid to watch. The Rangers got out to a 3-1 lead in the first period, and held onto it the rest of the game, as they got the 4-3 win in a game they were out 25-23. Igor Shesterkin was fantastic in that game and led them to the win at home in MSG. I still think this is going to be a really solid, competitive series with both teams trading wins and likely taking it seven games. I do like Carolina to win this series, as they’re my Cup Finals pick out of the East, and I like the Canes to bounce back from Game 1’s loss with a win on the road tonight to take a tied series back to Raleigh. I’ll take them here for a unit. I like the under again here even though Game 1 went over, and I’ll take the under for half a unit.
Game 1 – Stars vs. Avalanche (9:30)
As I broke this series down in depth in my series preview blog, this second round series in the Central Division between the Stars and the Avalanche should be spectacular. Both of these teams had fantastic years, and continued to impress in the first round as the Stars took down the Golden Knights in seven games and the Avs beating Winnipeg in five. I think just as I expected for the first round matchups for both of these teams, I think this series is going to be awesome. The Stars are my pick to win the Cup, which I said before the playoffs start in saying that the winner of Vegas vs. Stars would be my Cup pick. They’re a deep, well rounded team that don’t really have a flaw, playing fantastic hockey on both ends of the ice. I have a four unit future on them, and I’m letting that ride. The Avs scare me though. That offense, especially the top line, is one of the best in hockey alongside the Oilers. Like they showed against the best goalie in the league in the first round, they can expose any defense and win games by scoring five goals. I thought the poor goaltending and lack of depth would cause issues for Colorado in the first round against the Jets, but they proved me wrong as Georgiev was great in Game 2-5 against Winnipeg. I think this ends up being a close series that goes six or seven games. I’d still slightly lean the more well rounded Stars win, but I’m definitely not doubling down here. I was going to bet the series to go over 5.5 games, but at -192, I think the better move is just playing it game by game. I’d lean the Stars win Game 1 tonight at home, with the Avs having the rust of not playing for a week, but not enough to bet on it. I’d expect the games in this series to trend over. In the four regular season games between these teams the over 6.5 went 3-1, with the fourth game hitting six goals in a 5-1 Avs blowout win. Avs games trended over in the regular season, with the over going 51-34-2 in their games. The total in Stars games went 44-44-1. Four of Colorado’s five playoff games in the first round hit the over. In the Stars’ first round against Vegas, that series did trend under, with the over just hitting twice in seven games. I do like the over though tonight, which I’ll take at the alternate 6 line for a unit in Game 1.
Game Bets
1u Hurricanes ML (-120)
.5u Hurricanes/Rangers under 5.5 (-114)
1u Stars/Avalanche over 6 (-132)
Series Bets
2u Hurricanes/Rangers over 5.5 games (-188)
2u Panthers to win series (-190)
Futures
4u Dallas Stars – Stanley Cup Champions (+850)
3u Carolina Hurricanes – Stanley Cup Champions (+650)
Regular Season Record: 599-527-12 (-95.22 units)
Round 1 Record: 61-44 (+24.2 units)
Round 2 Record: 0-3 (-4.59 units)
Futures Record: 0-1 (-4 units)
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A Town's Zone 