NHL Picks

The New York Rangers and Washington Capitals lace up for a pivotal Game 3 in their Metropolitan Division playoff round. New York, as expected, has gained a 2-0 series lead and has outscored Washington 8-4. The Capitals played much better in Game 2 and are now on home ice, but will it be enough to earn a win with their backs against the wall? We are about to find out.

It is very difficult to go against the Rangers, as they do so much right and are a very deep team. However, Washington is basically playing for its playoff life — so I expect a good push. On home ice in front of a proud building of fans, the Capitals should be fully filled with energy to give them something to cheer for. The early part of the game is crucial, because if the Caps can jump out to a quick lead New York could be on its heels. Plus, captain Alex Ovechkin has been extremely quiet with just one shot in 2 games and he is not the type of player to go down without a fight. All it will take to keep this one close is hard work, and I believe this Capitals roster can produce that. Not many teams sweep a series 4-0 these days, as the league is full of parity, so I’ll take Washington to get a win in Game 3.

Capitals ML at +145 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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After 2 games the total results are tied at 1-1 with one over and one under. In Game 3 I expect to see another over. Washington scored 3 goals on just 25 shots on the Rangers, so if it can generate more pressure on home ice there is no reason why it can’t score multiple times. This is true even with Alex Ovechkin struggling. As for the Rangers, they have had no trouble scoring against middling defenses in Washington — so they should also keep going offensively with the hot hand. Combined, these teams are likely to give us a high-scoring game.

Over 5.5 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

This first-round Western Conference playoff series between the Vancouver Canucks and Nashville Predators heads to Nashville, and the series is all tied up. Vancouver had all the momentum in Game 1, but Nashville quickly scooped it back in Game 2. The tide seems to be shifting in the series, so this contest will be extremely important to see who jumps to a 2-1 series lead.

With starting goaltender Thatcher Demko being injured, this really changes the outlook of the Canucks. It was seen right away in Game 2, as they gave up 4 goals while scoring just 1. Unfortunately for Vancouver, I see this trend continuing. Nashville was the hottest team in the league exiting the regular season and has continued its swagger. Returning home for the next 2 games is huge, and the Predators know they have a very good chance at continuing a special run. Pressure is rising in Vancouver following an extremely strong season, so the Canucks have to show what makes their team so strong. As far as Game 3 goes, I’ll take the gritty Predators to earn a 2-1 series lead.

Predators ML at -110 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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When looking at the game totals, I expect to see lots of goals. As mentioned before, star goaltender Thatcher Demko is injured — leaving the spotlight on backup goaltender Casey DeSmith. DeSmith is a competent player but will likely be subject to multiple goals against. On the other side, Vancouver will frantically be trying to regain the series lead and should score more than 1 goal, which was scored in the last game. Goals should be flying back and forth.

Over 5.5 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

The Winnipeg Jets travel to Colorado to take on the Avalanche in Game 3 of the Western Conference playoffs. Colorado comes home with the series tied at 1-1 and is hoping to keep home-ice advantage. The Avalanche scored 11 goals in 2 games, but they also gave up 9. There’s no question that they are a good team, but they need to have solid goaltending if they intend on making a long playoff run.

Connor Hellebuyck is an elite goalie, but he needs to bring his game to another level. He has faced a ton of shots in this series, but that isn’t an excuse for the numbers of goals he has given up. It’s only 2 games, but Colorado was the highest-scoring team on home ice so the task doesn’t get any easier. The money line is inflated and for good reason. I do think the Avalanche can come away with the win and I also like their chances of covering the puck line. We might need an empty-net goal for this to hit, but I’m willing to take the chance.

Avalanche -1.5 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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The total for this game opened at 6.5 and should stay at that number as we approach puck drop. We have seen a healthy amount of goals in this series, but that doesn’t mean we are going to see another 13 goal outburst. Winnipeg was one of the best defensive teams on home ice, but so far this series Hellebuyck just hasn’t been able to keep the puck out of his own net. It’s not all his fault — the team in front of him is giving up way too many shots — and now the Jets have to deal with a Colorado team that finished 1st in goals on home ice.

Nathan MacKinnon has put up video-game numbers on home ice and no one has been able to slow him down. He is a dynamic player who can take over a game at any moment. Colorado can now get the matchup it wants, so expect MacKinnon to have even more space to operate. The real question mark here is Alexandar Georgiev. We know he hasn’t been good this season, but he rebounded nicely last game and did have better numbers at home. It’s still hard to trust him because of just how poorly he can play. Either goalie could steal this game, but considering how things have gone so far I will take the slight edge on the over.

Over 6.5 available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number.

The Edmonton Oilers travel to Los Angeles to take on the Kings in Game 3 of the Western Conference playoffs. Los Angeles secured a 5-4 overtime victory in the last game to steal home-ice advantage and is hoping to keep things rolling tonight. The Kings have given up 11 goals in 2 games, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is winning hockey games and they came back home with a positive result. Edmonton is going to score goals — there’s no question about that — but for L.A. it’s all about limiting Connor McDavid.

He has 6 points in 2 games, but 5 games in the 1st one. He’s an elite hockey player who you just hope you can contain. He’s been unstoppable on home ice, but things are different when he goes on the road. He scored just 9 goals on the season when he wasn’t at home, which may not be a concern, but it’s way down from his home numbers. Anze Kopitar and Philipp Danault are 2 very good 2-way centers who can keep up with the best players in the world. They have the advantage in this game and will need to play as a team to keep McDavid at bay. If you can prevent him from doing what he does best, then you can slow everyone else on his line down. It may not be easy, but I believe the Kings can come away with a win.

Kings ML at +120 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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We have seen a healthy amount of goals in the first 2 games and that shouldn’t change tonight. Edmonton isn’t as dominant on the road as it is on home ice, but when you have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on your team, anything is possible. The Kings are going to do everything possible to slow both down, but you can’t stop them — you can only hope to contain them.

One thing that was very apparent in the first 2 games is Los Angeles’ ability to get to loose pucks and generate shots on goal. The Kings scored 9 goals in those games. This is a team that is big and physical, but it also has a ton of skilled players who can find the back of the net. We know the Oilers aren’t elite on the back end and Stuart Skinner is vulnerable at times, so we aren’t just hoping for the Oilers to score all the goals tonight. The game might start off slow, but I expect things to open up as things progress. We also know both teams are able to score on the powerplay. There is enough firepower on both sides for this game to be another high-scoring affair.

Over 6.5 available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number or better.