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The Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens will collide in an absolutely critical Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Thursday night in Buffalo. Heading back south of the border, this best-of-7 set is all tied up 2-2 following Buffalo’s 3-2 victory in Game 4. I think the momentum will continue, so my Canadiens vs Sabres pick is the home team on the money line.

Having dropped Game 2 and Game 3 to fall behind 2-1, Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff made a change in net from Alex Lyon to Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen on Tuesday. It proved to be the perfect touch, as Luukkonen stopped 20 of 30 shots. Buffalo as a whole delivered a much cleaner performance, providing UPL with much more help than it did for Lyon in the previous 2 outings. The effort was not exactly anything new for Luukkonen. Even though he struggled a bit in 2 starts against the Bruins in Round 1, the 27-year-old Finn compiled a 22-9-3 regular-season record with a 2.52 goals-against average and .910 save percentage as the Sabres compiled the second-most points in the East behind only Carolina. It’s also worth noting that Buffalo took care of business in Montreal on Tuesday despite putting just 20 shots on Dobes. If the Sabres can generate just a little bit more in the offensive zone, it should once again be enough help for Luukkonen.

Canadiens vs Sabres Game 5 prediction: Buffalo Sabres ML (-118) available at time of publishing. Playable to -125.

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It is time for Game 6 between the Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights. This has been an absolute dog fight of a series, and with both teams going back and forth, the Golden Knights now sit 1 win away from the Western Conference Finals. Can Anaheim stave off elimination? Here is our expert Ducks vs. Golden Knights prediction for a critical contest.

Vegas has owned Anaheim in many facets of the game during the series, including their power play operating over 30% and winning nearly 56% of faceoffs. In the playoffs overall, they own the third-highest goals per game average (3.55) and a penalty kill near 90% (87.9%). When they have found success during these playoffs, it is clear it comes from an excellent structure and a well-balanced game, as opposed to luck and run-and-gun.

A key part to this success is being led by head coach John Tortarella, who is extremely well-versed in the playoffs with a Stanley Cup and over 130 games of playoff coaching experience. While Anaheim is beaming with potential and talent, their impressive run will come to an end. Vegas boasts a deep, talented and experienced roster that should be able to put this over the finish line, even on the road — where they have posted a winning record in the playoffs (3-2). For our Golden Knights vs. Ducks prediction, we are siding with the hot hand in Vegas to close out the series.

Golden Knights vs Ducks Game 6 prediction: Vegas ML (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -125.

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