The reality of a potential Columbus/Carolina matchup in this year’s Eastern Conference final got even stronger last night as the Hurricanes dealt the Islanders a 5-2 defeat to take a 3-0 stranglehold in their second-round series.
If NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wasn’t too busy defending hits to the head yesterday in Ottawa, it’d be interesting to get his perspective on how the league feels about a possible Jackets/Canes showdown for a berth in the Cup final. It’d be great for those two fan bases, especially the long-suffering and passionate fans in southern Ohio who saw the Golden Knights go to the final in their first year of existence, but it’s hard to imagine the TV execs being too thrilled about that matchup.
We sat out both of yesterday’s games after getting Logan Coutured on our Avalanche -1 wager Tuesday, as the Sharks sniper came up huge with a hat trick in San Jose’s 4-2 victory. The edges are getting harder and harder to find, but we do think we’ve found an angle to exploit tonight in the early game between the Bruins and Blue Jackets. Site Supporters can check out 250 words of analysis on that game as we explain the logic that went into our plus-money play.
Good luck if you’re tailing along, or on whatever else you bet tonight, and thanks for visiting our website.
Odds below are at the time we made the pick.
The Blue Jackets have yet to lose in regulation time in this series, but they’re not exactly blowing the doors off the Bruins either. Through nine periods and two OT sessions, Columbus has scored seven goals, failing to score more than twice in regulation in any of the first three games. And three of the Jackets’ seven goals have come on the power play, meaning they’ve struck for just four goals at even strength through 208 minutes of action.
Whenever the Bruins have hit rough waters this season, they’ve typically relied on their defense to turn things around. They’re 22-15 to the Under following a loss, and in games they won to snap losing streaks of two games or more, they allowed 2 goals or less in eight of those nine. In these playoffs, they allowed just five goals in the final three games of their Round 1 series against Toronto, and they come into tonight’s action having allowed 2 or less in regulation in six straight.
As long as the Bruins do a better job staying out of the box tonight — something that should be an emphasis, given the significance of this contest — we don’t see the Blue Jackets’ offense doing a lot here. Ideally, the Bruins grind out a win here to avoid us having to sweat out the possibility of a late Columbus empty-netter to spoil this wager, but the potential of a 2-1 game and the chance at a +125 return is enough for us to make that gamble.
Good luck!