Patrick Pellegrini
NHL
Show Bio
Five NHL playoff games are scheduled for Monday and our hockey expert has identified the three best bets of the day and included them in a three-team mega parlay. Be sure to check out our picks for all five of Monday’s NHL matchups as well.
But right now, let’s break down our three-team mega parlay:
Toronto Maple Leafs -1.5 (+160)
Florida Panthers (-105)
Vegas Golden Knights -1.5 (+150)
Parlay odds: +1169
Toronto Maple Leafs -1.5 over Montreal Canadiens (+160)
The Toronto Maple Leafs were without their captain, John Tavares, for Game 2 but that didn’t stop them from putting on a dominant performance on Saturday night. The Leafs won the game 5-1 as the series will now head to Montreal tied at one game apiece. Toronto outshot the Canadiens 34-23 as they carried the play for most of the game. The Leafs were able to draw six consecutive power plays and were able to cash in on two of those opportunities. Auston Matthews had a great game, picking up a goal and two assists.
Look for Toronto to carry this momentum into Game 3 and come away with another puck-line win. The Maple Leafs have owned the Canadiens this year, winning seven of the ten matchups in the regular season.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Montreal Canadiens.
Florida Panthers over Tampa Bay Lightning (-105)
The Florida Panthers will have their backs up against the wall in Game 5 as they face elimination against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday. The Lightning took Game 4 6-2 on Saturday, but the Panthers played much better than the final score would indicate. Unfortunately for them, Sergei Bobrovsky had a poor performance in goal, allowing five goals on just 14 shots. Expect coach Joel Quenneville to go back to Chris Driedger in net for Game 5. Driedger was the better goalie all season and probably should have been the starting goalie for the Panthers in this series all along.
The Panthers had no issues creating scoring chances and even outshot the Lightning 41-26. A deeper look into the advanced statistics showed the Panthers had 7.4 Expected Goals vs the Lightning’s 2.61. Florida will benefit from home ice in this game as the series heads back to the BB&T Center. The Panthers were a very impressive 20-5-3 at home while the Lightning were a mediocre 15-10-3 on the road. The Panthers will have up to 75 percent fan capacity for this one and should be able to find a way to extend their season by another game.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Florida Panthers.
Vegas Golden Knights -1.5 over Minnesota Wild (+150)
The Vegas Golden Knights have looked unstoppable in their last three victories over the Minnesota Wild. On Monday night the Knights will look to wrap up the series as they head back home to Vegas for Game 5. The Knights have outscored the Wild by an incredible 12-4 margin through the first four games. The most impressive part of their game is certainly their defense as Minnesota has failed to average more than one goal per game.
Marc-Andre Fleury is playing some of the best hockey of his Hall of Fame career. Through four games Fleury is 3-1 with a 1.00 GAA a .953 SV% and one shutout. Vegas has also been able to generate an average of three goals per game offensively, which has resulted in all three of their wins this series covering the -1.5 puck line. Take the Knights on the puck line as they put away the Wild and look towards the matchup against the Avalanche that everyone is waiting to see.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Minnesota Wild vs. Vegas Golden Knights.
Pickswise is the home of free NHL picks and predictions. Make sure to also check out our NHL parlays, NHL best bets, and NHL props tabs for free plays all season long.
