Ryan Hodges
NHL
Show Bio
The first two games of each series has provided a little bit of everything. Fans have been treated to a lot of goals, penalties, fights, hat tricks, controversial calls, shutouts, overtime wins, a maximum fine, and a suspension for good measure. With all opponents just getting more and more acquainted, all we can do is buckle up and enjoy it! Why not make the night even more entertaining with some action?
If you are looking to combine some picks from these games, check out these three parlay picks that have +1035 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Carolina Hurricanes ML (+110) over Boston Bruins
Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5 (+195) over Toronto Maple Leafs
St. Louis Blues ML (-120) over Minnesota Wild
Parlay odds: +1035
Carolina Hurricanes (+110) over Boston Bruins
Carolina has just bullied Boston throughout the regular season and now in the playoffs. The Hurricanes have now beat Boston in 5 straight games and outscored them 26-4. They have proven time and time again that they are a bad matchup for the Bruins. In this game, Carolina gets plus money. You read that correctly. Carolina with plus money against a team it dominated is too good of value to pass up. Even though they are on the road in Boston, the ‘Canes won’t be rattled. They won both games at TD Garden this season by a combined score of 13-1. They should be just fine in a road barn even in the playoffs.
Jeremy Swayman gets the call in net for Boston in attempt to change up some mojo. This will be Swayman’s first career playoff start which could bode well for Carolina. Sure, Swayman could come out and pitch a shutout like Ville Husso did on Monday in his first career playoff start. But unlike Husso against Minnesota, Swayman has not been as good against Carolina. Swayman lost his only start against against Carolina this season and lost his last and only start in almost 2 weeks. Carolina is too good and is playing too well against Boston to pass this up. Especially with plus money and facing a goalie making his playoff debut.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Carolina Hurricanes vs Boston Bruins
Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5 (+195) over Toronto Maple Leafs
The Lightning looked like a shell of their back-to-back Stanley Cup-winning selves in Game 1. But boy oh boy did they bounce back in Game 2? Any questions after the series opener were promptly answered and put to rest in game 2. The Lightning snapped out of it and now return home to Amalie Arena where they have won 9 of their last 12 home playoff games. The regular season series was split 2-2, with Tampa Bay outscoring Toronto 16-12 and both of the Lightning wins were by 2+ goals. They kept that trend going with their playoff win over Toronto being by 2 goals. The Lightning played well against Toronto, they have the playoff pedigree, they have snapped out of it, and now have home ice advantage in the last 5 games of the series if necessary.
Toronto has arguably the most pressure of the 16 teams in the playoffs to advance to the second round. This isn’t to say they won’t win the series. But in this first game in Tampa on Friday night, it will flat out be an uphill battle. Tampa outscored opponents by an average of 2.08 goals at home in last year’s playoffs. The Lightning have big-time home-ice advantage in this one. They will look to do what they do at home. In Game 4 Toronto may get any road jitters out of its system and should fare better. But Game 3 looks great for the home team.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Toronto Maple Leafs vs Tampa Bay Lightning
St. Louis Blues (-120) over Minnesota Wild
The Wild wanted to forget about their 4-goal, Game 1 loss in a hurry and bounce back with a win. That’s exactly the situation in which the Blues now find themselves. St. Louis took advantage of special teams in game 1 and Minnesota took advantage of special teams in Game 2. With these teams now having a better understanding of how the games will be officiated, penalties may go down a little. Especially if each team knows they will get burned if they take too many penalties.
The Blues were the 5th-least penalized team in the NHL this season and Minnesota was the 3rd-most penalized team in the league. Craig Berube will have their game cleaned up and more disciplined. Prior to game 81 of the regular season, St. Louis had not lost a game in regulation in a month. The Blues usually bounce back strong and now have home ice in a best-of-5 situation. Their streak of having the Wild’s number has been well documented. They have proven more than enough that they are a bad matchup for Minnesota. They will likely come out buzzing and primed to beat Minnesota for the 14th time in 17 games.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Minnesota Wild vs St. Louis Blues
Pickswise is the home of free NHL Picks and NHL Predictions. Check back for our daily NHL Best Bets, including our favorite NHL Prop Bets.
