Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Thursday 5/9/19
The Eastern Conference Finals will get underway on Thursday, May 9, 2019. The Carolina Hurricanes will take on the Boston Bruins. This is the fifth time that these two teams have faced each other in the playoffs, with Boston leading the series 3-1.
Featured Games
Carolina Hurricanes (+128) vs. Boston Bruins (-155)
About Carolina
The Carolina Hurricanes enter this series on a six-game winning streak, winning their first-round series over the Washington Capitals in seven before sweeping the New York Islanders in the second round. Carolina has yet to lose at home in the playoffs, going 5-0.
After defeating the Capitals in a hard-fought series, the Hurricanes were absolutely dominant against the Islanders. New York lost Game 1 of this series 1-0, as Petr Mrazek stopped all 31 shots he faced to lead his team to victory. However, Mrazek would get hurt in Game 2 and was replaced by Curtis McElhinney. McElhinney did not allow a goal in that contest and would allow just four total goals over the final two games of the series, both 5-2 victories for the Hurricanes. It is not known at this point if Mrazek will be back, but McElhinney has clearly proven he can handle the duties.
Teuvo Teravainen was hot in Round 2, scoring 3 goals and adding 2 assists in the four games. He finished with points in each of the last three games. Warren Foegele also has a three-point streak heading into the series.
About Boston
The Boston Bruins also endured a tough seven game series in Round 1, downing the Toronto Maple Leafs. They would have to win Game 6 on the road before winning Game 7 at home. The Bruins then dispatched the Columbus Blue Jackets in six games, which included winning the final three games of the series. That included a Game 6 shutout by Tuukka Rask where he made 39 saves to help his advance.
David Krejci enters this series with five points in his last five games. He has 2 goals and an assist in his final two games.
Charlie McAvoy will not be in Game 1 of this series as he is suspended for an illegal check in Game 6. Kevin Miller is still not ready to go, and neither is John Moore. Noel Acciari should be ready for Game 1.
Goaltending Matchup:
Should McElhinney have to go, Carolina is in good shape. He has a 1.56 goals-against average in his three games and a .947 save percentage. McElhinney finished the regular season with a 2.56 GAA and a .912 save percentage to go along with a 30-11-2 record. If Mrazek is healthy enough to go, he is having a post-season for the ages. In nine games, he has a 2.22 goals-against average with a .913 save percentage, recording two shutouts. Mrazek finished the regular season with a 2.39 GAA and a .914 save percentage.
Rask had a fantastic series against Columbus, allowing 11 goals in the six games. He gave up three goals in two of those contests, and just five more in the other four games. Rask has been great this post-season, posting a 2.02 goals-against average in 11 games with a .938 save percentage. He finished the regular season 27-13-5 with a 2.48 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
Stat Pack:
Hurricanes:
Goals For: 3.09
Goals Against: 2.27
Power-Play: 10.5%
Penalty Killing: 75.0%
Bruins:
Goals For: 3.08
Goals Against: 2.15
Power-Play: 28.6%
Penalty Killing: 83.8%
Trends to Know
Carolina Hurricanes are:
39-17 in their last 56 games.
0-4 in their last four conference finals games.
6-0 in their last six games.
Boston Bruins are:
6-2 in their last eight games.
5-0 in their last five conference finals games.
55-23 in their last 78 games at home.
Prediction
The Carolina Hurricanes enter this series red hot, with six straight victories, but the Boston Bruins are playing exceptionally well as well, winners of three straight. The concern about any kind of series like this is when a team has had a long layoff. It would seem to make sense that the team that is better rested would have an edge, but that is not the case in the Stanley Cup playoffs. It will probably take a game for Carolina to get the rust off, and that works in the favor of the Bruins.
The total is set at 5.5 for this contest. These two teams have gone over in six of their last eight meetings, but we don’t expect to see that happen here. Regardless of who is net for the Hurricanes, there is going to be some exceptional goaltending and that should keep this game under. Take the Boston Bruins to win, 3-1.
NHL Eastern Conference Finals: Hurricanes vs Bruins series preview, odds and best bets
Rohit Ponnaiya
Torrey Krug and the Boston Bruins are favorites to win their NHL Eastern Conference Finals series against the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Boston Bruins eliminated the Columbus Blue Jackets in six games to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals and play the Carolina Hurricanes in a best-of-seven series. We break down the NHL series odds and give you in-depth trends and notes so you can make the best bets on the road to the Stanley Cup.
BOSTON BRUINS VS CAROLINA HURRICANES
Series Winner Odds: Boston -208/Carolina +145 @ Sports Interaction
Stanley Cup Winner Odds: Boston +180/Carolina +375 @ Sports Interaction
Regular Season Head to Head: Boston 2-1
SCHEDULE
Game 1: TD Garden, Boston, MA. Thursday, May 9, 8:00 p.m ET
The rest of the schedule will be confirmed later this week.
BACKGROUND
Both Boston and Carolina had brutal seven-game tests in the opening round but Carolina swept the Islanders in the second round and Boston came back from down 0-1 to win four of the next five games in its series with the Blue Jackets. The Bruins have home-ice advantage for the conference finals.
Boston won two of three games against Carolina during the regular season with each team scoring a total of 10 goals. But backup Jaroslav Halak played in both of those Bruins wins, while Tuukka Rask has been in nets for Boston in every minute of the playoffs.
Carolina could have goalie Petr Mrazek back for Game 1 after he returned to practice with no restrictions Monday. But if backup Curtis McElhinney has to start, he's proven to be more than capable after closing out the series against the Islanders with three straight wins, a GAA of 1.56 and a .947 save percentage.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Boston and Carolina have allowed the fewest goals per game in the playoffs, with the Bruins allowing just 2.15 goals per contest and the Canes giving up just 2.27. Rask has been terrific in between the pipes for Boston with a GAA of 2.02 and save percentage of .938.
Carolina, on the other hand, has made things as easy as possible for its goaltenders, holding opponents to just 27.8 shots per game and 22.8 scoring chances per 60 minutes (both the second-best marks in the playoffs).
These teams have also been two of the highest-scoring squads during the playoffs, with Carolina averaging 3.09 goals and the Bruins right behind them with 3.08 per outing.
YOU MISS 100% OF THE SHOTS YOU DON'T TAKE
The Hurricanes easily had the best shot differential in the league during the regular season at plus-479 but their goal differential of plus-22 ranked just 13th. They'll need to capitalize on their scoring chances against a Bruins squad that had the third-best goal differential at plus-44.
FAST STARTS/SLOW STARTS
Boston has scored 13 first-period goals this postseason while allowing just five in the opening frame. Carolina has managed just six goals in the opening period while allowing 13. Taking the Bruins to score first could be a smart bet. Falling behind against Boston early would be terrible news for Carolina, with the Bruins going 41-9-5 when drawing first blood during the regular season and playoffs.
SPECIAL TEAMS ADVANTAGE
Boston has the clear edge on special teams. During the playoffs it has converted on 28.6 percent of its power plays (best in the NHL) while killing penalties at a rate of 83.8 percent. The Hurricanes have scored on just 10.5 percent of their power plays and kill just 75 percent of their penalties, with both marks being the worst in the league among teams that made it past the first round of the playoffs.
PLAYER TO WATCH: SEBASTIAN AHO, CAROLINA HURRICANES
Aho absolutely wrecked the Bruins during the regular season, scoring four goals and adding three assists in three games. He has four goals and five helpers through 11 games so far in the postseason. Taking Aho to score the most goals in this series pays out at +750.
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NHL
Dunkel
Thursday, May 9
Carolina @ Boston
Game 1-2
May 9, 2019 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Carolina
12.068
Boston
13.619
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Boston
by 1 1/2
5
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Boston
-155
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Boston
(-155); Under
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NHL
Thursday, May 9
Trend Report
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Carolina's last 7 games
Carolina is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Carolina is 15-8 SU in its last 23 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Carolina's last 7 games on the road
Carolina is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Carolina's last 7 games when playing Boston
Carolina is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Boston
Boston Bruins
Boston is 8-4 ATS in its last 12 games
Boston is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games
Boston is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Boston is 16-5 SU in its last 21 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 7 games at home
Boston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Boston's last 7 games when playing Carolina
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Carolina
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NHL
Long Sheet
Thursday, May 9
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CAROLINA (54-31-0-8, 116 pts.) at BOSTON (57-29-0-9, 123 pts.) - 5/9/2019, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CAROLINA is 67-102 ATS (-44.9 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest since 1996.
CAROLINA is 27-55 ATS (+88.7 Units) in road games after a 3 game unbeaten streak since 1996.
CAROLINA is 19-47 ATS (+80.9 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 3 seasons.
BOSTON is 24-8 ATS (+11.2 Units) when playing with 2 days rest over the last 2 seasons.
CAROLINA is 38-17 ATS (+16.0 Units) second half of the season this season.
CAROLINA is 27-11 ATS (+12.9 Units) after a division game this season.
BOSTON is 294-247 ATS (-106.3 Units) in home games second half of the season since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 6-3 (+2.9 Units) against the spread versus CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 6-3-0 straight up against CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+3.0 Units)
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