Somehow the Avalanche special teams could not come through when they needed and Marc-Andre Fleury’s legendary play lives on. He goes head-to-head against arguably the best goaltender in the league over the past decade+ in this next match-up; it will be most interesting! The Islanders depth allowed them to push onward, even as they continue play without Anders Lee.
Note we pointed out that the CAR/TAM under trend was very apparent last year during the regular season; it carried itself into the series as the under rang true 4 times out of 5 games.
Bolts vs. Islanders:
You win cups with what the Bolts bring to the table. Goaltending, special teams and line-up depth. After 11 games, the Bolts only have 4 players without any point and GWG’s from six different players. Their PP is hot and Vasilevskiy has been solid with a save percentage second to Price (0.935 vs. 0.934). Their tweak move of getting David Savard for depth has really shored up their defense and this line-up is solid in talent and role expertise.
The Islanders will bring some added depth to the table while missing on Anders Lee goal scoring talent. They will need to come up with solid PK play to get past this round. Our pick for the cup winner was the Bolts and if anything the first two rounds have bolstered that expectation. The Islanders will put up a valiant effort, but I get a sense that the Bolts are just getting started and will again look to cruise in this round.
Golden Knights vs. Canadiens:
Do we read anything into this 1-5 SU record that VGK has against the Habs all-time? Of note, they were all high scoring affairs, 5-1 on the over. The Habs may be without Petry in game 1 and that could be important for their offense, but I feel that Gustafsson is ready to step things up and L3/L4 for the Habs will contribute.
This is going to be a lot different gameplay wise for the Knights (vs. Wild/Avs) and I find that will be quite interesting to see. The Habs represent a team that’s very similar to the Stars team (which Perry was on) that beat the Knights last year in the bubble playoffs. With the Habs winning games and carrying this streak into the conference final, I firmly believe they have a real shot at winning the series.
Good Bets?
From a betting perspective, I think value betting is opportune. Bet365 has the Habs to win the series at +425. And the series handicap +1.5 games at +175 odds.
NHL Playoffs Picks – Conference Finals
0.5u – Montreal Series Winner +425
0.5u – Montreal Series Handicap +1.5 games +175
Playoffs Picks Record: 4-2 +2.63 units
Stanley Cup Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning +750
Picks Log
Round 1: 1.5u CAR -1.5 games to win series -130 – Win +1.15u
Round 1: 1u NYI +130 – Win +1.3u
Round 1: 1u BOS+COL -103 – Win +0.97u
Round 1: 0.5u MIN +215 – Loss -0.5u
Round 2: 1u – BOS + COL series win parlay -100 – Loss -1u
Round 2: 0.5u Tampa -1.5 games series win +141 – Win +0.71u
