The Carolina Hurricanes are through to the Stanley Cup semifinals for the fourth time in as many playoff appearances since 2002, following their 5-1 rout of the visiting Islanders last night.
We cashed an easy moneyline winner on Carolina in that one, moving to a season-high +9.4 units on the campaign. New York threw everything it had at the Canes last night, but Carolina’s playing with so much confidence right now that it seemed inevitable they’d finish off the sweep — even when they trailed 1-0 early. It will be interesting to see if extended time off helps or hurts the Canes, who are badly banged up but certainly don’t want to lose the momentum they’ve built.
The other three series in the Stanley Cup playoffs have been much more competitive, each tied 2-2 going into tonight’s action. Columbus and Boston get things underway at 7:15 pm tonight, and the Avs and Sharks provide us a nice nightcap. We’ve got a Best Bet on the late clash which you can read all about below, and we’ve also got a couple of opinions on the Jackets/Bruins game that we may end up pulling the trigger on as well.
Good luck whatever you play tonight and thanks for visiting our site.
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Odds below are at the time we made the pick.
We lost a play on the Sharks Team Total Over in Game 2, but we’re back to take another shot as much of the same logic still applies. San Jose has filled the net at home all season, scoring 4+ goals in 27 of 47 games this year in The Tank, and this spot sets up very nicely for them to do so once again tonight.
Wait, weren’t the Sharks shut out in their last game, a 3-0 loss in Colorado that evened this series at 2-2? Yep, they were, but that might actually make us like them more to bounce back tonight with a solid offensive effort. In the four previous times the Sharks were blanked this season, they’ve come back the next game to score at least 5 goals in three of those four occasions.
Colorado’s attack contributes to this wager a bit as well, as the Avs have scored at least 2 goals in 19 of their last 21 while the Sharks have given up 2+ in 22 of their last 23. Essentially, for the Sharks to win right now, they have to outscore their opponent, which explains why the Over is 14-5-2 in San Jose’s last 21 victories. We like San Jose to take a 3-2 series lead tonight, so it’s only logical that we expect the Sharks to pot at least 3 goals tonight as well.
If you’re interested in tailing along but prefer a plus price, the San Jose Team Total Over 3.5 is available at +120 or higher at Pinnacle, 5Dimes and BetOnline. We strongly considered those options as well, but we think the Sharks get things done in regulation time tonight (San Jose -0.5 +122 was a consideration too) and will trade off the chance at 30 more cents profit for the possibility of a push in a 3-2, 3-1 or 3-0 Sharks victory.
Bet this game at 5Dimes – Reduced juice odds on sides and totals!
Opinions: Blue Jackets First Period Moneyline +113, Blue Jackets/Bruins Under 5.5 -125
Good luck!
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