Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Tuesday 5/14/19
Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals will be on Tuesday, May 14. The Boston Bruins won both of the first two games of this series at home, but now the series shifts to Carolina where the Hurricanes are undefeated in the playoffs. Boston has dominated the first two games of this series, including Game 2 which they won 6-2. The Bruins would take a commanding lead with six unanswered goals, including two on the power play. Matt Grzelcyk opened the scoring with his second goal of the playoffs and would add another in the second period. Torey Krug added three assists in the contest.
Featured Games
Boston Bruins (-106) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (-115)
Boston Keys
The Bruins just need to keep doing what they are doing. They are dominating with their forechecking and are taking advantage of their opportunities. Boston seems to have all the answers right now, and the smartest thing they can do is to keep up the pressure.
If they really want to end any hopes Carolina has in the series, they need to take the crowd out of the game right off. They should focus on getting that early goal, using their relentless forecheck to dominate the play, silencing the crowd.
Controlling rebounds has been another big factor through the first two contests. Tuukka Rask faced 31 shots in Game 1, but just 23 in the last contest. If they can keep the shots low, Carolina is not going to win.
Carolina Keys
The first thing that Carolina needs to do is to protect goaltender Petr Mrazek better. He has not looked the same since leaving Game 2 of the conference semifinals, and Boston is taking advantage of that right now. The defense is going to have to play better.
Mrazek is going to have to play better himself. He has looked abysmal through the first two games of the series, allowing 10 goals on just 52 shots. He has added nearly a goal per game to his average in the first two games of this series alone and simply has to regain his form if this team is going to have any chance of surviving in the series.
The Hurricanes have been deadly at home this postseason, winning all five contests. They are going to have to thrive off of the crowd in their own home arena, as even one loss in these two contests will likely mean their doom.
The penalty killing has to be better. They have allowed three goals in the Bruins six power-play opportunities in this series, and have a 69.8% success rate in killing off penalties in the playoffs. The special teams simply have to get better, as they are connecting on only 11.1% of their power-play opportunities as well.
Goaltending Matchup:
Tuukka Rask has allowed four total goals through the first two games of the series. He has stopped 50 of the 54 shots he is faced. During his 15 games in the playoffs, Rask has a 2.02 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage.
Petr Mrazek has not been himself since the injury. One has to think that if he gets off to a slow start that Curtis McElhinney will be taking over the goaltending duties. You just can’t have a goalie allowing 10 goals on 52 shots at this time of year. Mrazek has a 2.73 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage in his 11 playoff games this year.
Stat Pack:
Bruins:
Goals For: 3.40
Goals Against: 2.13
Power-Play: 33.3%
Penalty Killing: 84.1%
Hurricanes:
Goals For: 2.92
Goals Against: 2.77
Power-Play: 11.1%
Penalty Killing: 69.8%
Trends to Know
Boston Bruins are:
5-0 in their last five games.
4-1 in their last five games on the road.
7-0 in their last seven conference finals games.
Carolina Hurricanes are:
5-0 in their last five games at home.
0-6 in their last six conference finals games.
39-19 in their last 58 games.
Prediction
Carolina has looked terrible. They have been outplayed in virtually every aspect of this series. Their penalty killing is horrible. Their power-play is horrible. Their goaltending has been terrible. However, it’s a whole new series as they head home, a place where they have not lost this postseason. This should give them a boost, which should help them to get out in front in this contest.
The problem is Mrazek. He has given up far too many soft goals through the first two games, which may mean that that injury is not healed properly. The team would be smart to turn to McElhinney right away, but that probably won’t happen. They will probably give Mrazek a chance to reassert himself, but that will likely lead to their demise.
The total is set at 5.5 for this contest. We look for the Bruins to jump out early as Mrazek continues to struggle, and roll on to victory. Take the Boston Bruins to win, 4-2.
Preview: Bruins (49-24) at Hurricanes (46-29)
RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Boston Bruins see no reason for significant changes with the way the Eastern Conference finals are going against the Carolina Hurricanes.
At the very least, the venue will be different for Game 3 as the Bruins look to put a stranglehold on the series Tuesday night at PNC Arena. Boston won each of the first two games at home.
"We know that they play well there (in Raleigh)," Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. "Refocusing, resetting and getting ready to play in a hostile environment, and we just plan to play to our standards and our culture."
The Hurricanes returned home for the second time in this postseason facing a 2-0 deficit. They overcame that in the first round against the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals.
"We've done it before," Hurricanes captain Justin Williams said. "Experience, that's what we lean on right now."
Yet they didn't like the way they played in the two games at Boson. The six-game winning streak that Carolina put together vanished as the Bruins won twice by a combined 11-4 score.
One of the priorities for the Hurricanes is to put the Bruins through some adversity.
"We're certainly going to make it as tough as we can on them, and it won't be easy," Williams said. "Our identity hasn't been established in this series, so far."
The Bruins are aware that the Hurricanes haven't come this far just to fade away. So that's the part that's a bit of the unknown for Boston.
"Teams don't make it to this round if they don't have their tough group of guys," Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask said. "It's 2-0, that's good. We took care of business at home, which is what we wanted to do, now try to transfer that on the road."
Carolina goalie Petr Mrazek has a similar outlook.
"It's 2-0. We've been in this situation before," Mrazek said. "We know what we can do at home."
Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour has been vague about his goalie situation for Game 3, though he has pointed out multiple times that the core of the problems in Boston weren't related to goaltending.
Mrazek was injured in the second-round series against the New York Islanders, and Curtis McElhinney played in Carolina nets in the final two-plus games as the Hurricanes produced a four-game sweep.
Now the Hurricanes must deal with Boston's onslaught of offense. The Bruins have secured contributions up and down the lineup in the postseason.
"Depth scoring is so crucial for playoffs," Bruins defenseman Torey Krug said. "Most of the time when you see a matchup, the two big lines are going head to head, that kind of washes each other out typically over a series, and then you have the depth scoring that comes into play, and that's what wins you games. ... We want to bottle that up and continue to use it to our advantage."
The Bruins have had 21 players post at least one point in this spring's playoffs.
"I think this year because we've scored a lot more up and down the line," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. "It's just a little easier to roll lines and look for your matchup but roll lines and not have to overextend skill guys."
The Bruins are expecting to see an improved Hurricanes team.
"You don't get here by accident, so we know that they are going to be better next game," McAvoy said.
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Bruins vs Hurricanes NHL betting picks and predictions: Carolina rallies behind home crowd
Monty Andrews
Petr Mrazek and the Carolina Hurricanes will look to bounce back at home as -120 favorites against the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The Boston Bruins thoroughly outclassed the Carolina Hurricanes in the opening two games of their Eastern Conference final showdown – but things won't be nearly as easy as the series shifts to Raleigh for Game 3.
The Hurricanes were walloped by a combined 11-4 score in back-to-back losses at TD Garden, and will need a victory Tuesday night to avoid falling into a virtually inescapable 3-0 hole. Fortunately for the hosts, they have been truly dominant at home during the Stanley Cup playoffs, and will look to penetrate a stout Bruins defense and goaltending combo that has been quite stingy on the road.
We break down the odds and give you the best betting notes and leans so you can make a profit on the playoff action on the ice.
Boston Bruins at Carolina Hurricanes (-120, 5.5)
QUICK-HITTER
PNC Arena will be hopping for this one, as it welcomes back a Hurricanes team that looked out of sync at both ends of the ice on the way to allowing 10 consecutive goals to the Bruins between Games 1 and 2. And getting off to a fast start will be critical for a Carolina team that has just seven first-period goals in the postseason; by comparison, Boston has 16. We like both sides to see plenty of scoring chances in the early going, making the O1.5 on the first-period play a great way to get things started.
PREDICTION: Over 1.5 first-period goals (-105)
PERIOD BET
You'll no doubt notice a theme for Game 3, which is that bettors and fans alike should expect plenty of scoring. The Hurricanes will aim to clean things up defensively, but are almost certain to come out swinging against a Boston team that has been unstoppable over the first two games. And these teams love their third-period scoring: Five of Carolina's last nine games have featured three or more third-period goals, while Boston has seen an average of 3.6 third-period tallies in its last five. Think big with this one.
PREDICTION: 3+ third-period goals (+195)
TEAM/PLAYER BET
Going all-in on a high-scoring game allows for access to extra props; in this case, since we believe at least one of these teams will produce three or more goals, it's just a matter of determining which team gets there first. Carolina has won four consecutive playoff games at home, each of the last three by identical 5-2 scores. And while this one might a more closely-contested affair given how well the Bruins are playing, we like the team averaging 4.4 goals per game at home to win a race to three.
PREDICTION: Race to 3 goals: Carolina (+135)
FULL-GAME TOTAL
Do we really need a full write-up here? Perhaps not – but it's certainly worth sharing a few other tidbits that could make the Over a great option for Game 3. Carolina has now finished above the total in seven of its previous nine playoff games, averaging 7.25 total goals in its past four. And the teams have been on an incredible run of high-scoring affairs, producing seven or more goals in eight of their past nine meetings. This could very well be a totals trap – but we don't think so.
PREDICTION: Over 5.5 (+100)
FULL-GAME SIDE
If there is one positive to be taken from that Game 2 shellacking, it's that the Hurricanes limited Boston to 25 shots. And while it didn't matter in terms of the final outcome, it suggests that better goaltending will go a long way in helping Carolina get back into the series. Boston is allowing just two goals per game on the road in the postseason, but PNC Arena has been fantastically hostile for opposing teams – and we don't see the Hurricanes rolling over just yet. We like the home side to prevail.
PREDICTION: Carolina -120
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NHL
Long Sheet
Tuesday, May 14
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BOSTON (59-29-0-9, 127 pts.) at CAROLINA (54-33-0-8, 116 pts.) - 5/14/2019, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CAROLINA is 10-1 ATS (+8.7 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5.5 this season.
CAROLINA is 38-19 ATS (+6.9 Units) second half of the season this season.
BOSTON is 214-169 ATS (+44.9 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5.5 since 1996.
BOSTON is 21-7 ATS (+10.8 Units) on Tuesday nights over the last 2 seasons.
CAROLINA is 13-23 ATS (-14.3 Units) on Tuesday nights over the last 2 seasons.
CAROLINA is 117-131 ATS (-67.6 Units) in home games after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 8-3 (+4.9 Units) against the spread versus CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 8-3-0 straight up against CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
8 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+5.3 Units)
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NHL
Tuesday, May 14
Trend Report
Boston Bruins
Boston is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Boston is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 7 games on the road
Boston is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Carolina
Boston is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Boston's last 9 games when playing Carolina
Boston is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Carolina
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
Carolina is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Carolina's last 5 games
Carolina is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Carolina is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Boston
Carolina is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Carolina's last 9 games when playing Boston
Carolina is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Boston
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NHL
Dunkel
Tuesday, May 14
Boston @ Carolina
Game 11-12
May 14, 2019 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Boston
14.566
Carolina
12.121
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Boston
by 2 1/2
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Carolina
-120
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Boston
(+100); Over
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