Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Thursday 4/25/19
Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs finally gets underway on Thursday, April 25 with a pair of games. That includes the Cinderella Columbus Blue Jackets, the club that knocked out the best team in the NHL in Round 1, taking on the Boston Bruins, the team that was tied with the second-best record in the league. In other action, the Dallas Stars take on the St. Louis Blues.
Featured Games
Columbus Blue Jackets (+130) vs. Boston Bruins(-155)
The Columbus Blue Jackets are the surprise story of the NHL playoffs, as they swept the Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 1 in fairly easy fashion. Columbus won three of the four games by at least two goals and won the decisive Game 4 convincingly, 7-3. The Boston Bruins fought tooth and nail against the Toronto Maple Leafs before closing out the seven-game series with a 5-1 victory. Boston never led in this series until winning the final game and advanced by winning the final two contests.
Goaltending Matchup:
Sergei Bobrovsky will be in goal for Columbus. He was absolutely brilliant in the first round of the playoffs, posting a 2.01 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage against the highest scoring team in the league. Bobrovsky allowed eight total goals in the series.
Tuukka Rask allowed 11 goals through the first four games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, as he was looking more like a liability than a top-five goalie. However, he allowed just five total goals over the final three games of the series, including one in the decisive Game 7 to lead his team to victory. Rask finished with a 2.31 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage.
Trends to Watch:
The Columbus Blue Jackets are…
7-0 in their last seven games on the road.
11-1 in their last 12 games.
4-0 in their last four games against teams with a winning record.
The Boston Bruins are…
53-22 in their last 75 games at home.
24-11 in their last 35 games.
0-4 in their last four conference semifinals games.
Stat Pack: (Playoff Numbers)
Blue Jackets:
Goals For: 4.75
Goals Against: 2.00
Power-Play: 50.0%
Penalty Killing: 83.3%
Bruins:
Goals For: 3.29
Goals Against: 2.43
Power-Play: 43.8%
Penalty Killing: 81.3%
Prediction
Columbus looked so good in round one. They absolutely dominated Tampa Bay in every way. This was a team that averaged nearly 5 goals per game and connected on 50% of their power-play opportunities. They were just unreal, plus received the best goaltending in the first round of the playoffs. However, they have had a week layoff since closing out the series, and that kind of rust is never good this time of the year. They are simply not going to be as sharp as the Boston Bruins are going to take Game 1.
The total is set at 5.5 for this game. We see that going slightly over here because we expect some sloppy play from Columbus early on as they try to regain their rhythm after the long layoff. We also think Boston’s got to show a little fatigue after a tough seven-game series against Toronto. Take the Boston Bruins to win, 4-2.
Dallas Stars (+136) vs. St. Louis Blues (-150)
Both the Dallas Stars and the St. Louis Blues pulled off surprising upsets in the first round of the playoffs. The first five games of the series between St. Louis and Winnipeg went to the road team, with the Blues winning Game 6 at home to advance. The Dallas Stars fell behind 2-1 in their series with the Nashville Predators, then won the final three games to move on to Round 2.
Goaltending Matchup:
Ben Bishop starts for Dallas. He was brilliant in the first round, posting a 1.89 goals-against average and a .945 save percentage. Dallas killed off every shorthanded situation they faced, which was a credit to their outstanding goaltending. Bishop allowed 12 total goals in the series, only five over the final three games.
Jordan Binnington had a solid first round for St. Louis. He finished with a 2.63 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage, allowing 16 total goals in the series. He held Winnipeg to six total goals over the final three games of the series, all one-goal games.
Trends to Watch:
The Dallas Stars are…
9-3 in their last 12 games on the road.
5-2 in their last seven games.
6-2 in their last eight games against teams with a winning record.
The Boston Bruins are…
8-2 in their last 10 games at home.
12-4 in their last 16 games.
7-2 in their last nine games against teams with a winning record.
Stat Pack: (Playoff Numbers)
Stars:
Goals For: 3.00
Goals Against: 2.00
Power-Play: 18.2%
Penalty Killing: 100.0%
Blues:
Goals For: 2.67
Goals Against: 2.67
Power-Play: 26.3%
Penalty Killing: 78.6%
Prediction
These are two teams coming off surprising upsets, and each has a great deal of confidence entering this series. Two factors seem to favor Dallas, however. First, St. Louis lost two of their three home games in Round 1, and Ben Bishop is just absolutely dominating right now. That’s a tough combination for the Blues to overcome, so we look for Dallas to grab the opening game victory.
The total is set at 5.0 for this game, and that looks like a smart bet. It would be really easy to go with the push on this contest as we expect the game to finish 3-2. If you’re forced to make a choice, go with the under.
Thursday, 25 April 2019 • 06:30 PM
1 DALLAS @ 2 ST LOUIS
Play over ST LOUIS using the puck line in All games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season
The record is 16 Overs and 6 this season (+11.1 units)
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Thursday, 25 April 2019 • 04:00 PM
3 COLUMBUS @ 4 BOSTON
Play over COLUMBUS using the puck line in All games after a 3 game unbeaten streak
The record is 18 Overs and 5 for the last three seasons (+15.05 units)
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Second Round Cheat Sheet
Key:
A – Atlantic
M – Metropolitan
C – Central
P – Pacific
W – Wild Card
Eastern Conference
2A Boston vs. 2W Columbus
Bruins: 49-24-9, 107 points
Blue Jackets: 47-31-4, 98 points
Season series: These two teams didn't meet this season until March as they hooked up three times in the final three weeks. Columbus outlasted Boston in the first matchup at Nationwide Arena, 7-4 on March 12 as the Blue Jackets notched five unanswered goals after falling behind, 1-0. The Bruins captured the final two meetings as Boston edged Columbus, 2-1 in overtime at TD Garden on March 16, followed by a 6-2 blowout in central Ohio on April 2. Dating back to February 2016, these squads have split 10 meetings, while the OVER has cashed nine times.
Previous playoff outcome: The Bruins staved off the Maple Leafs in seven games of the first round for the third time in seven seasons to advance to the semifinals for the second straight season. Last season, Boston won the opener of the conference semifinals against Tampa Bay, but eventually dropped the final four games to the Lightning. The Blue Jackets pulled off the biggest shocker in the opening round by sweeping the top-seeded Lightning in four games to advance to the semifinals for the first time in franchise history. Boston and Columbus are meeting in the playoffs for the first time ever as the Blue Jackets have been eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup champion each of the last two seasons.
Western Conference
3C St. Louis vs. 1W Dallas
Blues: 45-28-9, 99 points
Stars: 43-32-7, 93 points
Season series: Although Dallas finished below St. Louis in the Central division standings, the Stars took three of four meetings from the Blues this season. Dallas grabbed a pair of victories at St. Louis, while limiting the Blues to one goal in each of those wins at Enterprise Center. The Stars ripped the Blues, 5-2 at American Airlines Center on February 21, while the lone win in the series by St. Louis came at Dallas on January 12 in a 3-1 triumph. The UNDER cashed in three of four meetings, while the Stars are 5-1 in the past six matchups with the Blues since December 2017.
Previous playoff outcome: The Stars and Blues each knocked off division counterparts in the opening round. Dallas eliminated division champion Nashville in six games, while St. Louis put away Winnipeg in six games as the Blues won three road contests in the series. Dallas is playing in the second round of the playoffs for only the second time since 2009 as its last appearance in this round came against St. Louis in 2016. The Blues downed the Stars in seven games of that conference semifinal series, capped off by a 6-1 blowout at Dallas in Game 7. St. Louis is seeking its first appearance in the conference finals since 2016, when the Blues lost to the Sharks in six games.
2P San Jose vs. 2W Colorado
Sharks: 46-27-9, 101 points
Avalanche: 38-30-14, 90 points
Season series: The Sharks took care of the Avalanche this season by capturing all three matchups. San Jose edged Colorado at Pepsi Center in early January, 5-4, followed by a 4-3 win on March 1 at SAP Center and a 5-2 home triumph on April 6. All three meetings easily went OVER the total, while the Sharks have won nine of the past 10 home matchups with the Avalanche since February 2013.
Previous playoff outcome: San Jose shocked defending Western Conference champion Vegas in seven games as the Sharks erased a 3-1 series deficit and climbed out of a 3-0 third period hole to beat the Golden Knights, 4-3 in overtime. The Sharks have advanced to the conference semifinals for the third time in four seasons as they seek their first Stanley Cup final appearance since 2016. The Avalanche are playing in the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2008 when Colorado was swept by Detroit. Colorado and San Jose last met in the playoffs in the 2010 first round as the Sharks won in six games.
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NHL
Long Sheet
Thursday, April 25
DALLAS (47-33-0-8, 102 pts.) at ST LOUIS (49-29-0-10, 108 pts.) - 4/25/2019, 9:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 150-145 ATS (-57.1 Units) after a 3 game unbeaten streak since 1996.
ST LOUIS is 34-17 ATS (+7.2 Units) second half of the season this season.
ST LOUIS is 28-18 ATS (+7.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ST LOUIS is 16-6 ATS (+22.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
DALLAS is 10-6 ATS (+17.8 Units) in road games vs. division opponents this season.
DALLAS is 220-241 ATS (+512.0 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
DALLAS is 7-6 (+0.9 Units) against the spread versus ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
DALLAS is 7-6-0 straight up against ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.1 Units)
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COLUMBUS (51-31-0-4, 106 pts.) at BOSTON (53-27-0-9, 115 pts.) - 4/25/2019, 7:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 5-4 (+0.7 Units) against the spread versus COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 5-4-0 straight up against COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
8 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+7.4 Units)
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NHL
Thursday, April 25
Trend Report
Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Columbus is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Columbus's last 21 games
Columbus is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Columbus is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 12 of Columbus's last 15 games on the road
Columbus is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Boston
Columbus is 7-14 SU in its last 21 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Columbus's last 10 games when playing Boston
Columbus is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Boston
Columbus is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against Boston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Columbus's last 5 games when playing on the road against Boston
Boston Bruins
Boston is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Boston is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
Boston is 3-9 ATS in its last 12 games at home
Boston is 14-4 SU in its last 18 games at home
Boston is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston's last 6 games at home
Boston is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Columbus
Boston is 14-7 SU in its last 21 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Boston's last 10 games when playing Columbus
Boston is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Columbus
Boston is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston's last 5 games when playing at home against Columbus
Dallas Stars
Dallas is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games
Dallas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
Dallas is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
Dallas is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games on the road
Dallas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing St. Louis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas's last 6 games when playing St. Louis
Dallas is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
Dallas is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
St. Louis Blues
St. Louis is 4-8 ATS in its last 12 games
St. Louis is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 7 games
St. Louis is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games at home
St. Louis is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 7 games at home
St. Louis is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing Dallas
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 6 games when playing Dallas
St. Louis is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games when playing at home against Dallas
St. Louis is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Dallas
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Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Boston Bruins Preview and Predictions 04-25-2019 in NHL
The Boston Bruins knew if they survived their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the reward would be a matchup against the league's best team. However, with the Tampa Bay Lightning suffering a shocking loss in their opening series, the Bruins kick off a best-of-seven set against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night.
Boston nearly didn't hold up its end of the deal, needing to win Game 6 in Toronto before easing to a 5-1 victory in Tuesday's Game 7 to advance to the conference semifinals versus Columbus. "They're well-rested. They won ... four in a row against arguably a favorite going into the Stanley Cup playoffs," Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said of the Blue Jackets. "They made a lot of changes. They've come together. They present a lot of challenges and we're going to have to be at our best in order to beat them." Columbus, idle since April 16, spotted the Lightning a three-goal lead in Game 1 before roaring back and completing a stunning sweep of the Presidents' Trophy winners for the first series win in franchise history. "Other than Tampa, I think they're probably the best team in the National Hockey League," Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said of Boston, which won two of three meetings this season -- all coming in the final month.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet, CBC, TVA
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS: Columbus, perhaps the most active team at the trade deadline, did not click until a 7-1-0 closing stretch -- the only loss was to Boston -- and carried that momentum into the postseason by outscoring Tampa Bay 19-5 after the first period of the series opener. Matt Duchene, the prime acquisition at the trade deadline, led the team with three goals and seven points versus the Lightning while eight other players had at least three points. The key, however, will be two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky, who turned aside 109 of 117 shots by a team that tied the NHL record for most victories.
ABOUT THE BRUINS: Netminder Tuukka Rask also has a Vezina Trophy on his resume but he had an uneven season, posting a career-worst .912 save percentage and his fewest wins since 2012-13, but he permitted five goals in the last three games versus Toronto. "Hopefully, he can continue to build on his playoff legacy. It's a big Game 7 win," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said after Rask's 32-save performance on Tuesday. "I believe he was our best player." Brad Marchand paced the offense with four goals and five assists as he combined with linemates Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak for 20 points versus Toronto.
OVERTIME
1. Columbus was 5 of 10 and Boston 7 of 16 on the power play in the first round.
2. Pastrnak missed two meetings with Columbus but has scored at least 34 goals in each of the past three seasons.
3. Blue Jackets F Alexandre Texier, signed in each April, scored twice in the clincher over Tampa Bay.
PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Blue Jackets 2
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Dallas Stars vs. St. Louis Blues Preview and Predictions 04-25-2019 in NHL
Ben Bishop has enjoyed a sterling season, one in which he became a Vezina Trophy finalist for the third time in his career and powered the upstart Dallas Stars into the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. Bishop will face his hometown team as well as the one that drafted him in 2005 when the visiting Stars open their series against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday.
"I've been trying not to think about it, obviously trying to worry about this series," the 32-year-old Bishop said. "It kind of gets a smile." Bishop provided plenty of smiles in the first round, making 47 saves in the finale to record a 1.90 goals-against average and .945 save percentage as Dallas eliminated Central Division champion Nashville in six games. St. Louis also needed six games to dispatch Winnipeg, with Jaden Schwartz notching a natural hat trick in a 3-2 win in Game 6 on Saturday. "It's nice to get a few days to get some rest and to regroup," the 26-year-old said. "Rest is important this time of year. It's nice. We haven't really been practicing much as the year went on. It's nice to touch up on a few things."
TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet, TVAS
ABOUT THE STARS: Each member of Dallas' top line recorded six points in the first round, with Alexander Radulov burning his former team for a club-best four goals while Tyler Seguin added two and captain Jamie Benn had a team high-tying five assists. "It's going to be a tough challenge, just like Nashville," the 29-year-old Benn said. "Obviously St. Louis has probably been one of the best teams, if not the best, since January. They've been on a great run, so it's going to be another hard-fought battle." Defenseman John Klingberg, who also had five assists in the first round, recorded seven points in the season series versus the Blues while Benn had five goals to help the Stars win three of the four games.
ABOUT THE BLUES: Rookie Jordan Binnington rebounded from a disastrous Game 3 performance against the Jets in which he yielded six goals on 29 shots to surrender the same total over the last three games. Vladimir Tarasenko, who has scored at least 33 goals in five straight seasons, tallied three times against the Stars in 2018-19. Captain Alex Pietrangelo recorded four of his team-leading six assists at home in the first-round series against Winnipeg.
OVERTIME
1. St. Louis fell to Dallas in both of its home games this season.
2. The Stars were a perfect 15-for-15 on the penalty kill in the first round.
3. The Blues defeated the Stars in their last postseason meeting, ousting their rivals in seven games during a second-round series in 2016.
PREDICTION: Stars 4, Blues 2
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