Senators vs. Rangers Game 3 Pick
Will the New York Rangers get on track in its series with the Ottawa Senators when it moves to New York tonight at 7PM ET for Game 3?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, New York is favored at home in this game, as the Rangers are getting a money line of -165 to win. The Senators are listed with odds of +145 to prevail. The over/under total for the game is set at 5 goals.
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Ottawa established a 2-0 lead in this series with a 6-5 OT win in Game 2 on Saturday. The Senators have now won five of their last six against the Rangers. Ottawa is 50-29-11 overall and 25-17-2 on the road entering Game 2 while the Rangers are now 52-30-8 overall and 23-17-4 at home.
Ottawa overcame a 5-3 deficit in the third period by scoring twice in the final four minutes of regulation. Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored the two goals to tie the game to complete a hat trick. He then got the game-winning goal in double overtime, four minutes into the second OT. New York had a 48-34 edge in shots and a 43-38 edge in hits, but couldn’t quite close out the game. Henrik Lundqvist struggled, allowing the six goals on just 34 shots for a .824 save percentage.
The Rangers can take Game 2 one of two ways. They can let the game demoralize them and eventually cost them a quick series, or they can bounce back even stronger for Game 3 and perhaps spark their way to something greater. I think returning home will do a lot for the Rangers, especially Lundqvist, who had a very poor showing on Saturday. The home team has won four straight between these two and I think New York will make it five straight tonight.
NHL PLAYOFFS PREDICTION: NEW YORK RANGERS -165