Last night on a pretty meaningless NHL slate, I went 2-3 to lose 1.64 units. Tonight the Eastern Conference wraps up the regular season with only one of these six games mattering in the West. Keeping it very light tonight, let’s win!
Again, just like yesterday, I’m staying off all the meaningless games, who knows who plays and if they do play, who gets minutes. Lot of guys resting for playoff teams and the teams missing the playoffs don’t care anymore.
Sabres vs. Stars (7:00)
My Sabres are preparing to host the Bruins in the first round on Saturday while the Stars will have home ice over the Wild when they start the first round this weekend. This game means nothing to either team, so I’ll lay off it.
Lightning vs. Rangers (7:00)
The Lightning will be facing the Canadiens to start the playoffs on Sunday (something’s already scheduled in their arena so looks like they’ll be a Sunday start). The Rangers have been awful this year and were the first team in the East to be eliminated from playoff contention. I’ll lay off this game.
Panthers vs. Red Wings (7:00)
Boring matchup of disappointment here with both of these teams missing the playoffs. The Panthers just had way too many injuries to contend this year, seemingly with every star player in their lineup missing time this year. They’ll be right back to being a Cup contender again next season to build on their dynasty of three straight Eastern Conference Championships and back to back Stanley Cups. The Red Wings on the other hand now hold the longest playoff drought in the NHL with my Sabres finally making the postseason for the first time in 15 years. They crumbled it away in March and April. I’d slightly lean Detroit wins here on the road and the over, but not enough to bet this last game of the season. I’ll stay off it completely.
Senators vs. Maple Leafs (7:30)
The only meaning to this game is the rivalry to the Battle of Ontario, so I could see it being a bit more fun for this regular season finale, but it’s not a great game. The Senators will head to Carolina to play the Hurricanes in the first round, as the second Wild Card in the East. The Leafs just can’t wait for this season from hell to be over for them. I’ll lay off this game completely.
Blackhawks vs. Sharks (8:30)
The Blackhawks were horrible this year, finishing the season with the second best odds at winning the lottery to get Gavin McKenna first overall. My guess is that Gary gets them to win the lottery over Vancouver and pair him up with Connor Bedard to be Chicago’s next Kane and Toews for the future. The Sharks had a good year on the back of an incredible sophomore season for Macklin Celebrini but still came up short and missed the playoffs, getting eliminated from contention this past weekend. I like San Jose to finish the season on a high note with a win here on the road and it’s cheap enough that I’ll take them for half a unit. I considered parlaying the moneyline with Celebrini to get a point, but that just takes it from -125 to even money, so I’ll just lay the moneyline.
Golden Knights vs. Kraken (10:00)
The only game that matters tonight for this pretty lousy matchup in the Pacific Division. The Golden Knights can clinch the Pacific Division with a point tonight, getting home ice in the Fortress through the first two rounds of the playoffs and locking in a meeting with the Mammoth in the first round. Vegas has been on a tear since hiring John Tortorella as their new head coach, going 6-0-1 in their last seven games after firing Bruce Cassidy. They’re now 38-26-17, with home ice in the first round already clinched, two points ahead of the Oilers (who have the tiebreaker of regulation wins over them going into their last game tomorrow). The Kraken have been terrible this year, with a 34-35-11 record, playing pretty lousy on both ends of the ice for the second half of the season after starting the year playing well defensively but horrible offensively. Somehow though, Seattle’s 3-0 this season against the Knights, winning 2-1 in overtime at home in the first week of the season, 3-2 on the road in January, and then 4-3 in a shootout last Thursday. I like Vegas to clinch first in the Pacific tonight and avoid the season sweep with a win at home to close out the regular season. The moneyline is way too expensive at -300, but I’ll lay the -180 on them to finish it off in regulation for a unit. The total’s a complete toss up to me. I’ll also play a player prop parlay on Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, and Mitch Marner to each get a point for half a unit. I considered also taking Pavel Dorofeyev, who for the second straight season leads them in goals to get a point individually, but I don’t think it’s worth the -175.
Bets
.5u Sharks ML (-125)
1u Golden Knights in regulation (-180)
.5u parlay: Jack Eichel/Mark Stone/Mitch Marner 1+ point each (-110)
Record: 931-1036-2 (-105.08 units)
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