I couldn’t be more existed for the Stanley Cup Playoffs to begin in the NHL, with the puck dropping on two great series in the Central Division to start it off tonight! Let’s start hot with some wins!
Jets vs. Blues (6:00)
In a fun series to start the playoffs, we have the President’s Trophy winning Winnipeg Jets facing the second Wild Card team in the West, the Blues, who were the hottest team in the NHL after the 4 Nations break. As I broke down in depth in my blog previewing this series between the series, I feel like the Blues have the ability to make some magic and win a series or two under Monty, but Winnipeg’s still the far better team here. I considered betting on the Blues to win the series, but I don’t think it’s worth it at +160. So I’ll stay off a side to win this series and just play it game by game. I do like this series to go at least six games though, which I’ll take for 2 units. I’d expect the games in this series to stay under, with two good defenses, two stellar goaltenders and the Blues not generating much in offensive chances. The under went 3-1 in the games between these teams this season, with the one that went over hitting with just 28 seconds left in regulation. Both of these teams trended under this season, with Jets games going 46-33-3 to the under and the under in St. Louis games going 40-36-6. I’ll start with the under tonight in Game 1 for half a unit, laying the kind of high -155. Even though I think St. Louis could win the series, a series doesn’t really start until you lose on home ice. I do think the Jets win tonight at home in the whiteout to start the playoffs and tonight I’ll take them in regulation for half a unit.
Stars vs. Avalanche (8:30)
I’m expecting this to be the best series of the first round in the West as the #2 Dallas Stars face the #3 Colorado Avalanche. Both of these teams have been fantastic this year, and it’s one of the series that makes it disappointing that the NHL hasn’t gone back to the 1-8 seeding since it’s a shame that one of these teams will be eliminated in the first round. To add to the dramatics of this series, the biggest storyline is Mikko Rantanen facing his former team after getting traded twice this season, first from the Avs to the Hurricanes earlier in the year, and then to the Stars at the deadline. I think the winner of this series goes on to beat the winner of the Jets vs. Blues series and advance to the Western Conference Finals. I don’t see the Stars winning the Cup, although it wouldn’t really be a huge shock if they did, while the Avs would be my second pick to lift Lord Stanley after Vegas, who I think they meet in the Western Conference Finals. In my blog breaking down the series in depth, I said that while I do think the Stars are very good, I think the Avalanche are the better team here and especially without Robertson, and with the way the Stars limped into the playoffs, I like the Avs to win this series, in a close series I think probably goes to seven games. I think the better underlying numbers defensively and the star power offensively lead to a Colorado win. I’ll also lay the -172 on the series to go at least six games for 1.5 units. Expecting the Avalanche to win the series, I think they start it with a win here tonight on the road, and I’ll take them for a unit. I think the totals in this game are pretty close to a toss up. The over hit in all three games between these teams this season, all high scoring games that averaged eight goals per game. On the year, totals in Avs games went 39-39-4 while the Stars trended under, with the under going 41-34-7 this year. I’ll lay off the totals in Game 1 and see how the series plays out.
Game Bets
.5u Jets in regulation (-125)
.5u Jets/Blues under 5.5 (-155)
1u Avalanche ML (-155)
Series Bets
2u Jets/Blues over 5.5 games (-168)
2u Avalanche to win series (-155)
1.5u Avalanche/Stars over 5.5 games (-172)
Futures
2u Vegas Golden Knights to win the Stanley Cup (+1800)
Records
Regular Season: 567-497-14 (-58.18 units)
Round 1: 0-0 (0 units)
Please follow me:
Instagram: @atownszone
Twitter: @atownszone
If you like the site and my work, share it with your friends!
… and tell Dave Portnoy to hire me at Barstool…
A Town's Zone 