Category Archives: NHL
Free NHL Playoffs Picks: Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins Pick Game 4
 Philadelphia Flyers (0-3) |
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 Boston Bruins (3-0) |
Does this look familiar, Philly? The Philadelphia Flyers are in a 3-0 series hole against the Boston Bruins in the second round of the playoffs for the second straight season. However, the B’s will look to eradicate last year’s issues on Friday night once and for all at home by taking care of any ideas of a comeback in Game 4 in NHL playoffs betting action.
The Flyers just don’t have a goaltender that can be trusted right now. It’s anyone’s guess whether it’ll Brian Boucher, Sergei Bobrovsky, Michael Leighton, Ron Hextall, or any of the goalies during the Broad Street Bullies era that takes the ice on Friday night for Head Coach Peter Laviolette, but almost one thing is for certain. Whomever that starting goalie is will be getting the hook at some point along the way. All three of Bobrovsky, Boucher, and Leighton have GAAs above 3.00 in the playoffs, and it is truly a remarkable happening that Philly is even still in the postseason with stats like that. Of course, not all hope is lost due to the fact that this is an offense that can drop five or six goals on anyone that it runs across. Daniels Briere and James Van Riemsdyk both have seven goal in the postseason, and Claude Giroux has 11 assists to lead the league in that category. The power play has already produced seven goals in the playoffs, and the team is doing a great job of keeping up, all things considered.
We keep saying how important closing this series out quickly is for the Bruins, and the argument could be made that this is the most important Game 4 for a team up 3-0 in a series in the history of the league after last year’s debacle from up 3-0. The more we see out of Boston, the more that we think it will be alright in this series, as the stars are really starting to align. Zdeno Chara scored twice, once 30 ticks into the game and once just over a minute away from the death in the 5-1 win on Wednesday night. David Krejci also scored just over a minute into the game, putting the Flyers in that 2-0 hole that they would never be able to recover from. Of course, the man of the hour is Tim Thomas. Thomas was the one man that had nothing to do with blowing that 3-0 series lead, as he sat on the bench and watched as Tuukka Rask was lit up seemingly night after night. Thomas stopped 37 of the 38 shots that he faced in Game 3, and he really is looking like the most dominating goaltender in the league once again.
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In another season, in another situation, with any two different teams, and perhaps we would be making different NHL picks. However, we just have to go with the Bruins, and we aren’t afraid to play them on the puck line. There is no way that the B’s are going to miss out on this chance to take out the brooms and bust them over the Flyers’ heads after last year, and that’s exactly what will happen at the TD Garden on Friday night.
Free Hockey Pick: Boston Bruins
NHL Playoffs Picks: Vancouver Canucks vs. Nashville Predators Game 4 Free Pick
 Vancouver Canucks (2-1) |
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 Nashville Predators (1-2) |
Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals goes off on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena, and here at Fastline Sports, we’re making our Stanley Cup picks on the duel between the Nashville Predators and the Vancouver Canucks.
Vancouver really hasn’t flexed its muscles yet in this series, which has to be considered awfully scary for the hosts. The Canucks haven’t gotten much out of either Daniel Sedin or Henrik Sedin, though the man of the hour from Game 3, Ryan Kesler did enough to carry the weight of all three of them. Kesler not only scored two goals and had an assist, but he also drew the penalty in overtime that set up his game winner just 40 seconds later. Roberto Luongo hasn’t been absolutely stellar, but his numbers are solid from this series. His defense has only allowed him to face more than 30 shots on goal once in this series, and he hasn’t allowed more than two goals in any of the three games. We know if he keeps up like this, having won three of his last four starts and having not been beaten in regulation since Game 5 against the Chicago Blackhawks, the rest of the NHL is in a heck of a lot of trouble. Luongo has allowed just six goals on his last 141 shots since getting yanked from Game 5 in the conference quarterfinals.
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Pekka Rinne is doing absolutely everything his can in this series, short of standing on his head, but the bottom line is that he isn’t the problem. The offense is a huge concern right now for the Predators, just like it was during the mass majority of the regular season. The difference is that Mike Fisher has just more or less disappeared over the course of this series, and it seems like the only shot that we have seen of him is one where he is sitting in the penalty box and the “Green Men” in the Vancouver crowd are shoving a picture of his wife, Carrie Underwood in a Canucks jersey in his face. Of course, Luongo has been great, but when push comes to shove, four goals in three games just isn’t enough to get the job done, especially for a team that really did play some tremendous hockey offensively in the first round against the Anaheim Ducks. The good news is that the Predators have only lost 10 games at home in regulation this year, so if you’re looking to back this team on the puck line, there is definitely something to say about that.
Nashville certainly isn’t the better team in this series, but there is no doubt that it has put forth the effort to be up 3-0 in it. The Predators just need to find a tad bit more offense in their arsenal… maybe just two goals will do on Thursday night. Regardless, they have to at least put more pressure on Luongo than is on Rinne on the other end of the ice. Do that, and there will be an upset brewing in Game 4.
Free Hockey Pick: Nashville Predators
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NHL Playoffs Betting: Washington Capitals vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Game 4 Pick
 Washington Capitals (0-3) |
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 Tampa Bay Lightning (3-0) |
The No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference is on the ropes, and if the Washington Capitals don’t make for successful Stanley Cup picks on Wednesday night at the St. Pete Times Forum against the Tampa Bay Lightning, their season will come to a crashing defeat.
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The second period was about all that the Capitals had to rant and rave about on Tuesday night. Alexander Ovechkin looked like a man on a mission in that period, striking on a two man advantage late in the period and creating the chance on the first Washington goal of the game less than a minute into the second stanza. Still, by game’s end, Ovie was more or less just skating around on the ice, and he really didn’t look all that interested. It is clear that the Capitals, at least right now, are not the better team in this series, and unless there is an absolutely dramatic turnaround of epic proportions, this series is over with. There really isn’t much that Michal Neuvirth could be doing to help out his team, as his defense is really putting him in some bad spots. Sure, the Caps have outshot the Lightning in all three games in this series (what else is new… Pittsburgh did it in all seven against the Bolts as well), but the boys in white, blue, and black have just figured out how to create the best opportunities of this series, and it is certainly paying off in the form of a 3-0 series lead.
It’s really all coming together right now for the Lightning. Sure, the stars that we are used to seeing like Vincent LeCavalier, Martin St. Louis, and Steven Stamkos have come together to have a huge series, and the goal by Stamkos five minutes into the third period was one of the best that you’ll ever see in this league. However, it is men like Steve Downie, Sean Bergenheim, and Nate Thompson that are really winning this series for the Lightning. All three were on the stat sheet on Tuesday night, and all three played absolutely remarkable games for Head Coach Guy Boucher. Thompson not only created the final goal of the game to set up Ryan Malone, but he was also the clutch defender that was continually knocking the puck down the ice in the last two minutes of the game with the Washington net empty. Thompson was fantastic in the faceoff circle, winning 11 of the 18 draws that he had on the day, and when push came to shove, he was truly the MVP of the game in spite of the fact that Bergenheim was award with top star honors.
This series is over with. Washington looks shell shocked right now. It’d be nice to think that the Caps could get off the mat and force this series back to DC, but we just don’t see it, especially just one night after getting downed in such brutal fashion. Tampa Bay finishes off the sweep on Wednesday night and busts out the brooms for just the second time in team history.
NHL Free Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning
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Free Hockey Picks: Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins Pick Game 3
Philadelphia Flyers (0-2) |
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Boston Bruins (2-0) |
The Eastern Conference has absolutely belonged to the lower seeded teams at this juncture of the playoffs, as they are a combined 5-0 thus far in the conference semis. NHL betting fans of the Boston Bruins will hope that continues on Wednesday night, as they are back at TD Garden for the first time in a week since that dramatic Game 7 overtime victory. They’ll take on the Philadelphia Flyers.
Head Coach Peter Laviolette has a lot of explaining to do right now with his Flyers, and there is no doubt whatsoever that no one from the City of Brotherly Love has any desire whatsoever to get back in the saddle from an 0-3 hole for a second straight season in spite of the fact that the feat was pulled off last season. There have been a ton of problems in net all postseason, yet the man of the hour still seems to be Brian Boucher for now. Boucher, in spite of his hand injury suffered in Game 2, will be in the pipes for this one, but we know that Sergei Bobrovsky is going to have to be armed and ready to come in at a moment’s notice due to how quickly Laviolette has had his finger on the panic button with the man he is keeping between the pipes. Things are still awfully up in the air for Jeff Carter and Chris Pronger. Neither man played in Game 2, but this is a significantly different situation with team virtually in a must win spot.
You can bet that Tim Thomas is going to want to step up and put his foot on the throats of the Flyers without relenting this season, especially after watching is cohort Tuukka Rask blow that 3-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Thomas wasn’t truly remarkable in the first four and a half periods of this series, allowing five goals in that stretch. And then, he turned back into the Tim Thomas that we have all grown to love. The eventual Vezina Trophy winner stopped 22 shots in the third period alone, and when push came to shove, he was clean in his last 46 shots faced on the day. Philly ripped off 54 attempts at his cage, and he had to fend off four power plays as well. The offense continues to do enough to win in the playoffs, something that a lot of the best teams in the Eastern Conference can’t say. David Krejci was basically MIA over the course of the first round series against the Montreal Canadiens, but he has had his hands in five of the 10 goals scored by the boys in black and gold over the course of these two games. Krejci has three goals, including the overtime winner on Monday night, and he has two assists as well.
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Still, we just don’t think that Boston has that killer instinct in it to put the Flyers away. Philly is going to fight and fight hard to get this series back to the City of Brotherly Love, and we think that it will at least accomplish that on this roadie. That being said, we’ve got to roll with the visitors at plus odds.
Free Hockey Pick: Philadelphia Flyers
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NHL Playoffs Picks: Washington Capitals vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Game 3 Free Pick
Washington Capitals (0-2) |
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Tampa Bay Lightning (2-0) |
The top seed in the Eastern Conference is in a heck of a lot of trouble in NHL playoffs betting action on Tuesday night, as the Washington Capitals are basically in a do or die situation against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the St. Pete Times Forum after losing the first two games of this series at the Verizon Center.
Things just haven’t bounced the Caps’ way in the first two games of this series, and that was really demonstrated by the fact that the game winning goal in overtime for Tampa Bay came off of a pass that covered about 70% of the ice before finding its intended target. What’s scary for the Washington faithful is just how well this team has played historically against the Lightning and how badly things are going right now. The Capitals were 19-5 in their previous 24 meetings with their divisional rivals, which almost takes away from the fact that Tampa Bay is just 2-10 in its last 12 home dates with Washington as well. The good news though, is that Alexander Ovechkin is really starting to come alive. Simply put, Ovie scored a stunner on Sunday night in our nation’s capitol, finding pay dirt with six skaters on the ice with just 1:08 to go to give Washington all of the momentum going into the OT period. Still, Michal Neuvirth, not really at his own fault, allowed the game winner and has dropped to 0-2 in this series. The Capitals know that they need to get better play out of their defense and their goaltending though, as six conceded goals in two games (though one was in an empty net) just isn’t going to cut it at this point in the playoffs.
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Of course, what the Capitals are probably learning right now, is that the power of Ovie by himself isn’t going to be able to stop the forces that the Lightning have to deal with. All of the big boys have had their hands in on goals in this series, as Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos, and Vincent LeCavalier have lit the lamp and have had their hands in on assists. St. Louis and LeCavalier are playing out of their skulls right now, just like they did when the Lightning won their only Stanley Cup in team history a handful of years ago. LeCavalier sent the DC crowd home in awe after his remarkable game winner on Sunday night, but the vet also opened up the scoring with a power play goal right at the tail end of the first period. The hero is still Dwayne Roloson, though. He might be 41 years old, but there is clearly nothing that Roli can’t do right now, as he is stopping virtually everything that comes his way. Not bad for a grandpa of the sport and a man that is facing more shots each and every game than his opponents are.
Tampa Bay is going to be thrilled to be back on its home ice, but it just isn’t going to be able to really put the clamps on this series once and for all. The Bolts are great, and they might be able to slip out the door from their own arena with a 3-1 series lead, but the Caps aren’t going to die here. Without Pavel Kubina and Simon Gagne in the lineup, Tampa Bay won’t be able to hold Washington off.
Free Hockey Pick: Washington Capitals
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NHL Playoffs Betting: Vancouver Canucks vs. Nashville Predators Game 3 Pick
Vancouver Canucks (1-1) |
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Nashville Predators (1-1) |
In the first round of the playoffs, the Nashville Predators split the first two games on the road to win their first series in team history. They hope that history repeats itself starting on Tuesday night in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals in NHL betting action now that they have split at Rogers Arena against the Vancouver Canucks.
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Vancouver’s offense has just seemingly disappeared in these playoffs, especially of late, and that’s something that really has to be concerning for those backing it on the NHL odds. Daniel Sedin scored 104 points in the regular season, while Henrik Sedin had 94 and Ryan Kesler had 73. Sure, those three are three of the four top scorers on the team this postseason, but the three have combined for just one assist between them in this series thus far. In fact, the Canucks, who averaged well over three goals per game in the regular season and had some moments of sheer brilliance against the Chicago Blackhawks, have only netted two goals in almost eight periods of hockey. The only real star has been Roberto Luongo, a man that was a true goat in the Great White North until he was able to win Game 7 against the defending champs just around a week ago. Luongo has only allowed two goals as well in this series, but his problem was that the second one he allowed proved to be a game winner in double OT. Still, there’s nothing for him to be ashamed of, especially after watching a barrage of shots come his way in Game 2.
It’s been a weird postseason for the Predators. After ranking just No. 22 or worse in every major offensive category this season, no one really expected them to be able to score goals in bunches. However, they did just that against the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the playoffs, scoring at least three goals in all six games of that series. However, on the flip side of the coin, Pekka Rinne really struggled in that series, posting a GAA of over 3.00, which is awful for a man that had a 2.12 GAA in the regular season and led the third ranked ‘D’ in the land. Now though, the likes of Mike Fisher and Joel Ward, men that were alive and kicking in the first series in the playoffs have been silenced, but it is Rinne that is once again carrying the team to victory. Rinne has been flat out awesome in this series, and he is truly deserving of a pair of wins. If Nashville can give him any support whatsoever, this becomes a very, very winnable series.
We just don’t know where that offense is coming from for the Predators. We know that Vancouver can explode against anyone in the league, and that includes Rinne and the Nashville defenders. There’s a reason that the No. 1 seed in the West is favored on the NHL Playoffs odds in this game, even on the road.
NHL Free Pick: Vancouver Canucks
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NHL Playoffs Betting: Detroit Red Wings vs. San Jose Sharks Game 2 Pick
 Detroit Red Wings (0-1) |
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 San Jose Sharks (1-0) |
The San Jose Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings really fought tooth and nail in Game 1 in NHL betting action in the Western Conference Semifinals. First blood went to San Jose, but Detroit is almost certainly going to be out in force to try to level this series.
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The Red Wings really had everything going against them in the first game of this series, and they have to be wondering if things are going to even themselves out at some point. The team ended up taking seven penalties resulting in six power plays, including a four minute double minor in overtime thanks to the high sticking call against Justin Abdelkader. In fact, every power play in the second period, third period, and overtime went against Detroit, and it was a miracle that the team only ended up conceding one goal on those man advantages. Nicklas Lidstrom was able to continue his rock solid postseason by scoring a goal at the 9:30 mark of the first period to open up the scoring, but the rest of the offense just wasn’t there in the latter periods due to the lack of chances. Henrik Zetterberg came back to the lineup for the first time in almost a month. He had three shots on goal and was a +1 in the +/- category, but he really didn’t have that much of an effect on the game. Jimmy Howard did a yeoman’s job in the pipes, stopping 44 of the 46 shots that he faced in the game.
The Sharks really would have been crippled had they not taken Game 1 after taking almost double the shots on net that Detroit had. Things really could have gotten ugly when that four minutes of power play time passed in overtime without a goal, but it didn’t take all that much longer before little used Benn Ferriero made himself a hero on the Gold Coast. Ferriero scored his first playoff goal of his career at the 7:03 mark. It was only his sixth total goal of the season and the eighth of his career. This was his first playoff game as well, as his only other appearance on the roster for San Jose since February came in one of the last games of the regular season against the Phoenix Coyotes. Of course, it also helped that Ferriero ended up on a line with Logan Couture and Dan Boyle, both of which logged assists on the game winner. The first goal of the game for the Sharks came at the 10:22 mark of the third period, as Joe Pavelski lit the lamp on the power play with help from Joe Thornton and Boyle. Antti Niemi had a nice, easy game in net for San Jose, stopping 24 of the 25 shots that he faced in the game. He only faced one shot on net in the entire OT period.
The Sharks have proven to the Wings that they are going to put up a fight, but we know if the penalties start getting called the other way, San Jose is going to be in some trouble. A cagey, veteran Detroit team is going to get back in the win column in Game 2 when push comes to shove.
NHL Free Pick: Detroit Red Wings
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NHL Playoffs Picks: Boston Bruins vs. Philadelphia Flyers Game 1 Free Pick
Boston Bruins (0-0) |
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Philadelphia Flyers (0-0) |
The final second round series of the playoffs will get underway on Saturday afternoon in a nationally televised NHL betting battle between the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers in the City of Brotherly Love.
The Bruins really had to fight their butts off all the way into overtime of the seventh and decisive game against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night, and they have to be thrilled merely to have survived such a challenge. Think this team doesn’t know how to win close games? The final four games of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals were separated by one goal, and three of the four went into overtime. All three that went into OT were ended with goals by the men in black, white, and gold. You wouldn’t think that the Bruins would really have that many men that have put up such great numbers in the playoffs, but that’s just not how it is. Patrice Bergeron has two goals and five assists in the postseason, while Chris Kelly has three goals and three assists. Nathan Horton joins him as the co-leader on the team in goals with three. Amazingly, the B’s made it through the first round of the postseason with getting just two assists from Milan Lucic, just one assist from Zdeno Chara, and only one goal from David Krejci.
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The Flyers might not have gotten much out of their ailing superstar, Chris Pronger in their opening round series with the Buffalo Sabres, but they were certainly able to general enough scoring from their well rounded bunch to get the job done. The real hero was Danny Briere, who scored a whopping six goals in the round. Of course, James Van Riemsdyk had four goals, while Ville Leino had three to chip in to boot. Still, six goals in a seven game set in the playoffs is darn impressive. Briere wouldn’t have been able to do all of that work without Claude Giroux, who had eight assists in the seven games and a goal of his own. Mike Richards, Andrej Meszaros, and Kris Versteeg all had five points in this series, while a host of others had three. The real questions come in net, where Brian Boucher, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Michael Leighton all took their shot against the Sabres. Boucher is the one that is going to inevitably get the most playing time, but no matter who is in net, all three will have one eye on the bench at all times, as Head Coach Peter Laviolette has had no problem yanking anyone who is struggling.
The Flyers have a lot of talent without a heck of a lot of doubt, but the end result in all of this is going to be a brutal series with a lot of wins by both teams on the road and at home. Boston seems to be in better form right now, and we’ll stick with the B’s to take Game 1.
Free Hockey Pick: Boston Bruins
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NHL Playoffs Picks: Detroit Red Wings vs. San Jose Sharks Game 1 Free Pick
Detroit Red Wings (0-0) |
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San Jose Sharks (0-0) |
Last season, the San Jose Sharks were able to knock the Detroit Red Wings out of the playoffs at this juncture in just five games. This year, the NHL betting festivities will probably be significantly tighter, starting with Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Friday night.
The Red Wings definitely have a long, long memory over how they crashed out of the postseason last year. They only had one good game in that entire series, a 7-1 win at home after the series was basically over at 3-0 San Jose, and their defense was definitely to blame. Jimmy Howard allowed 12 goals over the course of the first three games of this series last year, spoiling the effort for an offense that scored nine goals in those same three outings. The best news that the Wings are going to get for this series is that Henrik Zetterberg is going to be back in the lineup. Zetterberg probably would’ve been ready for the end of the series against the Phoenix Coyotes if he was needed, but since the series ended in a sweep, he ended up with a lot of much needed time off to make sure that he is really in game shape. Consider this… Zetterberg was the top point man on an offense that scored 3.1 goals per game this year, which was No. 2 in the league. Even scarier: The Wings scored 18 goals in four games against Phoenix without Zetterberg in the fold.
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It’s been a long, long time coming for the Sharks to really compete for the Stanley Cup, and though it seems as though they have been close every single season, this year, they look like a team that has the heart of a champion. San Jose won three overtime games against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs, and though that series wasn’t expected to go anywhere near six games, it certainly was the type of series that gives you some confidence going forward into the next set as the competition gets harder and harder. If Antti Niemi ever figures it out in net, the Sharks are going to be brutally dangerous. This is a team that scored just a boatload of goals against a fantastic defensive team and a tremendous goaltender in Jonathan Quick. Niemi might not have put up the greatest numbers in the world, but he was able to find ways to win games both in regulation and in OT, and even backup goalie, Antero Niittymaki has to have some confidence as well for his role in winning Game 3 in that crazy 6-5 OT comeback triumph.
These two teams look like mirror images of each other, and if this really holds true over the course of this series, home ice advantage really could be key. It could be a wild one, but when push comes to shove, this series will open up with a ‘W’ for the hosts.
Free Hockey Pick: San Jose Sharks
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Free Hockey Picks: Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Washington Capitals Pick Game 1
Tampa Bay Lightning (0-0) |
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Washington Capitals (0-0) |
Southeast Division rivals will meet in a huge Eastern Conference Semifinals clash on Friday night in Game 1 of the NHL betting series between the Washington Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Verizon Center.
A week ago, virtually every single NHL betting fan out there had to be wondering where the Lightning were going to be playing golf this weekend. Alas, it is the Pittsburgh Penguins who choked away a 3-1 series lead that are out on the links tonight, as the Bolts are preparing for battle with the Caps in our nation’s capitol. Head Coach Guy Boucher has instilled a ton of trust in his net minder, Dwayne Roloson, who had an absolutely sparkling series for Tampa Bay. Roli had a 1.77 GAA in the first series in the playoffs, and he really did have some games where he practically stood on his head to get the job done. If he can continue this type of play, the rest of the offense is going to fall in line and the Bolts could be well on their way to another Stanley Cup. Of course, it would really help to get some better production out of Steven Stamkos and the sorts. The Stammer was the team’s leading goal scorer this season, but outside of Game 5 when the ‘Ning dropped a snowman in the Steel City, he wasn’t really heard from at all in the opening round of the playoffs.
The Capitals are full of confidence though, as this was probably their best case scenario for the playoffs. They know that they didn’t want any part of the Pittsburgh Penguins, a team that has historically owned them in the second season, while they didn’t want the Montreal Canadiens either after they knocked the Caps out of the postseason last year in that wild first round. Of course, the bad news for Washington is that it hasn’t had a great history against Tampa Bay in the playoffs, losing all three games to it here in our nation’s capitol in the one postseason series that the two had together. The Bolts know what it takes to win here in DC, and the Caps know that they have to diffuse any thoughts of another upset in a series early to keep their pesky black and blue clad behinds out of their way. All eyes will be on Michal Neuvirth in net. He had a great series against the New York Rangers, but alas, that was New York, and this is a significantly better Tampa Bay team. Alexander Ovechkin, who had a good, but not great series against the Rangers, will be called upon for some big time goals again in this series, and if he doesn’t come up with them, the Capitals are in a lot of trouble.
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Though we do think that Washington is winning this series, we don’t think that it’s coming without a fight. The Lightning will draw first blood on Friday and steal home ice advantage right away from the top seed in the East behind another great effort by Roloson.
Free Hockey Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning
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