On the Ice - Wednesday
By Judd Hall
Wednesday’s slate for the Stanley Cup Playoffs is set up nicely with a troika of postseason hockey. One of those matchups could see our first entrant into the conference semifinals, while the other two could give us the hard fought series that make this time of year so entertaining…if not nerve-rattling for the betting public.
Boston Bruins at Montreal Canadiens
Montreal gave its best effort of the playoffs on Monday in front of 21,273 rabid fans and still wound up falling 4-2 as an EVEN-money ‘dog. Now the Canadiens find themselves in worst possible spots, down 0-3 in a best-of-seven series.
If we have to give the Habs a positive from Game 3, then we’ll go with the fact that they actually held a lead in the series. It only lasted just above six minutes in the first period, but it was a lead nonetheless. And they shut out Boston of its lone power play of the evening. That’s important considering the Canadiens allowed four special teams goals on nine chances in the first two games.
Now the Bruins have all the time in the world to wrap up their first postseason series win since 1999 and just second in 16 years. They’ve reached this point thanks not giving up a power play goal in Montreal’s seven opportunities…pretty impressive feat to pull against a club that ranked 12th in the NHL by converting 19.3 percent of the time.
Tim Thomas has been a man possessed between the pipes for the B’s having won nine straight games when you include the end of the regular season. He’s posted a 1.77 goals against average and stopped 94.8 percent of the shots fired his way.
Most betting shops figure the Bruins will finish the sweep after installing them as $2.00 road faves (risk $200 to win $100) with a total of 5 ½. That line feeds into the first two games in Boston, where they were listed at minus-230 and minus-240 respectively.
If you’re going to take anything out of this contest, play the Bruins on the puck line for a plus-155 return. This team has won all three of this series by at least to goals, which has paid out $485.
The puck drops for this tilt at 7:05 p.m. EDT, but you’ll need the NHL Center Ice package to catch it on television.
Washington Capitals at New York Rangers
Maybe Alex Ovechkin needs to do some more reconnaissance work for the Capitals.
The all-world forward was kicked out of MSG during the Rangers morning skate after watching most of the practice from the visiting bench. It’s doubtful that Ovechkin found out anything enough to help Washington to win 4-0 as a $1.35 road “chalk” on Monday night.
What’s surprising about this win is the fact that Ovechkin hasn’t scored a goal yet (a true testament to the Rangers’ gameplan). He does have a pair of assists to his credit. The only problem is we’re seeing guys like Alexander Semin (three goals against NYR) and will no doubt deal with rear guard Mike Green eventually.
Washington also got a herculean effort out of young backstop Simeon Varlamov. He registered his first career postseason shutout last Monday after denying all 33 of the Rangers’ shots. Pretty impressive when you consider that it was just his seventh start in the NHL. It certainly looks like Varlamov will be running the show from here on out as Jose Theodore rides the pine.
Rookie netminder or not, the betting shops still see the Caps evening this series up at 2-2 by making them $1.45 road favorites with a total of five.
While some believe that the Rangers will let home ice advantage slip away, remember that they’re on an 8-2 run in their last 10 games at Madison Square Garden.
The ‘under’ is on a 6-4 run in New York’s last 10 games. Washington has seen low scores rule the day with a 3-2-1 mark in its past six contests.
You can catch this game on Versus at 7:05 p.m. EDT.
Chicago Blackhawks at Calgary Flames
The best thing a young, inexperienced playoff team can get is its first two games at home. The worst thing they have to deal with is playing its first two road games on the postseason ever.
The Blackhawks definitely weren’t prepared for a hostile environment in Game 3 as they were dropped in Calgary last Monday as $1.30 road ‘dogs, 4-2. Things didn’t go their way from the get go as they won just 30 of the 66 face-offs they had at the Pengrowth Saddledome. That might not sound like much, but really can mean the difference between getting a quick goal or giving up a cheapie.
Chicago was also without Patrick Kane for the third straight game on Monday as he was battling the flu. Early reports show he should be back in the lineup come Wednesday night, but his effectiveness will be the $64,000 question.
The Flames will come into Game 4 with the mindset of being more physical than their counterparts. There is no doubt that Calgary outhitting the ‘Hawks 45-31 on Monday night helped keep its opposition of their game and allowed them a shot at tying the series up with two wins apiece.
Most sportsbooks have labeled Calgary as a $1.50 home “chalk” with a total of 5 ½. You can back the Blackhawks for a return of plus-140.
Something to keep in mind about this game is that Chicago’s Nikolai Khabibulin has owned the Flames on their home turf. Look no further than his 15-3 record with a 2.05 GAA and 93.1 save percentage at the Saddledome for proof.
Another thing to consider is that Calgary hasn’t been able to piece together two straight wins in a while, going 0-8 in its last eight games following a victory. They’ve not won back-to-back matches since March 3 and 5.
Versus will broadcast this matchup at 10:05 p.m. EDT.
vegasinsider.com
BOSTON (56-18-0-11, 123 pts.) at MONTREAL (41-33-0-11, 93 pts.)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
MONTREAL is 18-14 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
MONTREAL is 18-14-0 straight up against BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
17 of 28 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+5.2 Units)
WASHINGTON (51-26-0-8, 110 pts.) at NY RANGERS (45-31-0-9, 99 pts.)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
NY RANGERS is 8-7 (+1.7 Units) against the spread versus WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
NY RANGERS is 8-7-0 straight up against WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
9 of 15 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+2.2 Units)
CHICAGO (48-26-0-11, 107 pts.) at CALGARY (47-31-0-7, 101 pts.)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 10-5 (+7.7 Units) against the spread versus CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
CHICAGO is 10-5-0 straight up against CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
7 of 13 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.4 Units)
BOSTON vs. MONTREAL
Boston is 11-2 SU in its last 13 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games
Montreal is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Montreal's last 5 games when playing Boston
WASHINGTON vs. NY RANGERS
Washington is 6-3 SU in their last 9 games when playing NY Rangers
Washington is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games on the road
NY Rangers are 5-1 SU in their last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of the NY Rangers last 7 games
CHICAGO vs. CALGARY
Chicago is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Calgary
Chicago is 8-10-5 SU in its last 23 games when playing on the road against Calgary
Calgary is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Calgary's last 10 games
NHL Playoffs
Washington has 35-35-40 shots in first three games, in series where road team won all three games. Rangers are 0-11 on power play in last couple games (18:16); Game 3 loss was their first loss in last six games overall. Capitols lost three of last four against Rangers; their win in Game 3 was just their second in last nine visits to Madison Square Garden.
Bruins are 10-2 in last dozen games vs Montreal, winning last eight, with two overtime wins, they're 11-2 in last 13 games overall, with the last six going over total. Montreal is 0-6 on power play in series (14:34)- they lost their last seven games, outscored 27-13. Bruins get F Lucic back for this game, after he was suspended for Game 3.
Chicago is 6-1 against Calgary this season; they've won won eight of last ten games, with under is 10-3-1 in their last fourteen. Flames are just 5-8 in last thirteen games; under is 12-3-1 in their last 16 games. Home team is 3-0 in series-- team that scored first lost all three games. Blackhawks are 2-13 on power play in series, scoring one goal in 11:51 in Game 3.
Hockey Today
SCOREBOARD
Wednesday, April 22
Boston at Montreal (7 p.m. EDT). The Bruins can complete a series sweep of the Canadiens, who have lost seven in a row dating to the regular season.
STARS
Tuesday
— Roberto Luongo and Alex Burrows, Canucks. Luongo made 47 saves and Burrows scored two goals, including the winner with 18.9 seconds left in overtime, as Vancouver swept St. Louis out of the playoffs with a 3-2 victory in Game 4.
— Henrik Zetterberg, Red Wings, scored two goals and Detroit took a commanding 3-0 series lead with a 4-1 win over Columbus.
— Jussi Jokinen, Hurricanes, scored with 0.2 seconds left to lift Carolina over New Jersey 4-3 and even the series at 2 games apiece.
— Patrick Marleau, Sharks, scored the go-ahead goal on a power play with 9:27 left, and San Jose avoided falling into an 0-3 hole in its against Anaheim with a 4-3 victory.
BUZZER BEATER
Jussi Jokinen deflected in Dennis Seidenberg’s slap shot off his skate with 0.2 seconds remaining and the Hurricanes evened their series with New Jersey at two games apiece by beating the Devils 4-3 Tuesday night.
LORDS OF THE RINGS
The Red Wings’ roster has a total of 40 Stanley Cup rings; the Blue Jackets have a combined four.
DEJA VU
Sidney Crosby’s second goal of the series snapped a scoreless tie and helped the Penguins grab a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. Now Crosby and the Penguins can finish off the Flyers in Game 5 Thursday in Pittsburgh. That might sound familiar—the Flyers were knocked out by the Penguins in five games in last year’s conference finals.
SPEAKING
“There’s something about experience. In life, when you don’t have it, you think it’s overrated. When you have it, it’s obviously very, very important.”— Detroit coach Mike Babcock after a 4-1 win over Columbus on Tuesday night gave the Red Wings a commanding 3-0 series lead.
Boston at Montreal
Boston:
10-1 SU off 3 straight wins by 2+ goals
39-16 SU off a win
Montreal:
7-13 SU at home playing with double revenge
11-18 SU after allowing 4+ goals
Washington at NY Rangers
Washington:
21-10 SU after a win by 2+ goals
14-6 SU after allowing 1 goal or less in their previous game
NY Rangers:
6-14 SU after allowing 4+ goals
8-17 SU revenging a same season loss
Chicago at Calgary
Chicago:
5-2 SU at Calgary
8-2 SU in April
Calgary:
21-27 SU when playing their 3rd game in 5 days
6-10 SU in the first round of the playoffs