Welcome back to the Betway Bets of the Day as presented by NHLRumors.com.
We’re going to be mixing things up here a little bit and looking at a few series-long wagers in the second round.
Our betwill be taking the Carolina Hurricanes to win their series by -1.5 games. This line sits at -118.
The Canes come in with some juice outright in the series as -211 favourites and it’s no big surprise. Their first-round win against a veteran Boston Bruins team was huge for them and it’s only going to build confidence. The series was quite even the whole way, truth be told.
But when we look at their second-round foe, the New York Rangers, I think the Hurricanes have the ability to expose them a little bit. New York struggled at times against a Penguins team that was on their third-string goaltender and Carolina boasts not only a stronger netminder between the pipes, but a deeper defence, too.
While Igor Shesterkin had a season that has him in the Vezina and Hart conversation, some cracks in the armour started to show. He posted an average .911 save percentage while allowing 3.67 GAA and -.8 goals saved above expected. He also allowed over three goals in all but one game. He’s struggled over the course of his short career against Carolina, too, going 1-2 with a .889 save percentage in three games.
Look for Carolina to handle the Rangers in round one.
Our second bet will be having the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames go to seven games. This line sits at +215.
Despite the odds having Calgary as significant -200 favourites outright, I think this series will be a lot tighter than the books are giving credit for. The Flames struggled in the first round against Dallas, despite having outshot them by a significant margin and dominating the pace of play. They faced a hot goaltender, and still lost three games.
While Mike Smith is no Jake Oettinger, he’s playing some great hockey in these playoffs. In the Oilers’ first-round matchup, he posted a .938 save percentage, a 2.29 GAA and saved a whopping 6.5 goals above average. He was a big reason the Oilers are able to advance.
Edmonton’s play has significantly improved under Jay Woodcroft down the back half of the season. When adjusting for score and venue at 5×5, the Oilers ranked ninth in shot attempt share (53.71%), fifth in goal share (55.87%), 10th in expected goal share (53.25%) and sixth in high danger scoring chance share (56.39%). On top of that, the Oilers were third in points percentage under Woodcroft with a 0.724.
The Oilers also have Connor McDavid. Need I say more?
If you want to take the Oilers as +165 underdogs, I don’t mind that either.