NHL Best Bets
The NHL Eastern Conference Finals begin tonight between the New York Rangers and the Florida Panthers. This is the series that everyone has been anticipating since earlier in the year: the two top dogs in the East going at it for a chance to go to the Stanley Cup Final. This series is going to be worth all the hype. Let’s get into tonight’s NHL best bet.
Florida at NY Rangers (-105, 5.5)
Home-ice advantage will not be much of a factor in this series. The New York Rangers are 4-1 at Madison Square Garden this postseason, but the Florida Panthers are also 4-1 on the road. Both teams have similar characteristics: great goaltending, a ton of firepower up front, and strength on the blue line, but some areas certainly separate the two.Â
You can consider this series a goaltending duel between Igor Shesterkin of the Rangers and Sergei Bobrovsky of the Panthers.
In his postseason career, Shesterkin has played in 38 games and has boasted a .927 save percentage with a 2.43 goals saved above expected. Bobrovsky’s numbers might not be as pretty as Shesterkin’s, but they’re still pretty damn good, plus he has a little more experience. He has appeared in 81 games and has skated to a 2.94 goals-against average with a .905 save percentage.
On the flip side, when it comes to scoring goals, these two teams have a ton of players who can put the buck in the back of the net. The Panthers have been averaging 3.55 goals per game in the playoffs. The Rangers have been right there with them, scoring 3.50 goals per game. With that said, the opening game of this series will be about Shesterkin and Bobrovsky.
This series is going to be a battle. Tonight will be the game where the tone is set.
It all starts in the opening period, let’s see what these goalies got.
NHL Best Bet: Under 1.5 in the first period -120 (play to -135)
May Record: 27-20 (+6.12 units)
2023-24 record: 180–171 (-22.57 units)
