Two teams held on in different ways on Thursday night. Washington and Edmonton both built two-goal leads. Meanwhile, the Capitals held on for a 3-1 win. Edmonton had to do some extra overtime work to get away with a 5-4 win.
It is time to examine what bets may be on tap for Friday! Please note that TNT provides the on-air coverage in the United States. In Canada, the games are featured on Sportsnet, CBC, and TVAS.
What About Bob Against Toronto?
The Toronto Maple Leafs played smart and held off the Florida Panthers for a second straight time on Wednesday night. With the scene shifting to South Florida, can the Maple Leafs win on the road like they did versus Ottawa? However, a bigger question for Florida might be what about Bob, as in Sergei Bobrovsky?
Sergei Bobrovsky and Joseph Woll are again the expected goalies. Woll made the saves he needed to in Game 2 while Bobrovsky probably wishes he had a couple of goals back. That is the nature of how Bobrovsky plays. He is a streaky goaltender, a Stanley Cup-winning goaltender and two-time Vezina Trophy winner.
Here is the problem. Florida has a habit of dropping games at home. The Panthers lost Game 3 to Tampa Bay. Last year, the Panthers lost at least one home game in every round except Round 1 versus the Lightning.
The Maple Leafs’ best players keep stepping up, and Max Pacioretty has been a thorn in Florida’s side in the two games. Can Florida lift their goaltending and win a game? Covering the spread is not their concern (0-2 in this round).
The key for Florida is avoiding multiple lapses. Second-period miscues on Wednesday proved fatal. It is time for Sergei Bobrovsky and the Panthers to step up, or they may step right out. Bobrovsky may need to make more than 22 saves to get this victory.
Best Bet: Sergei Bobrovsky Over 21.5 saves at -135 via DraftKings.
Dallas And Winnipeg With Bunch Scoring
Winnipeg opened the scoring in Game 1 on Wednesday night, only to watch Mikko Rantanen do the same thing he did to Colorado. Rantanen scored three straight goals as Dallas ultimately held on to a 3-2 victory. The Dallas winger now has 14 points in his last four games. What’s even crazier is that Rantanen has only tallied points in one period for three consecutive contests.
Jake Oettinger held the fort, making key stops late in the third period on Wednesday. Mark Scheifele’s return has to be noted here, though. Scheifele did score a goal with seven shots on goal, and he does have seven points in 3+ home games for Winnipeg in the postseason. This may not be on the level of Rantanen, but it’s still excellent.
Also, Scheifele racks up shots and scoring chances. The center could rack up two or more goals (+1100 via BetMGM). Again, that shot total is still in positive territory. If that was not enough, Scheifele is also +1100 to score the first goal.
Winnipeg must win the game, and the captains must lead. Expect a big effort from Mark Scheifele in Game 2.
Our Bet: Mark Schiefele Over 2.5 shots (+130 via DraftKings).
A Friday Night Opens Up
The first 20 minutes of any game are critical—at least, they are supposed to be. Dallas and Jake Oettinger kept Winnipeg off the board in game 1. The rest is history. What happens in Game 2 to start Friday night?
With plenty of scoring options and shots, we turn to the saves. Does the pace start high again? Game 1 saw 25 combined shots in 20 minutes and no goals. Game 2 expects to see at least one goal in the opening 20 minutes, if not more.
Winnipeg projects to come out with more intensity and urgency. Expect the shot differential to be higher than in Game 1 as the Jets’ offense makes Oettinger work early and often.
Top First Period Prop: Jake Oettinger 10+ first-period saves (+140 via FanDuel).
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