Ducks vs. Predators Game 3 Pick
With the series shifting to their place, will the Nashville Predators get back in the lead in the Western Conference Finals as they face the Anaheim Ducks in Game 3 tonight at 8PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, the Predators are favored at home, as they are getting odds of -150 to win, while the Ducks are listed with a money line of +130 to prevail. The over/under total for the contest is listed at 5 goals.
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The Ducks managed to even the series with the Predators thanks to a 5-3 win in Game 2. The Ducks have won three of five meetings with Nashville this season. Anaheim enters tonight’s game 55-26-14 overall and 21-16-9 on the road. Nashville is 50-32-12 overall and 29-9-8 at home.
Nashville got off to a 2-0 start in Game 2 thanks to Ryan Johansen and James Neal scoring. The Ducks rallied to take a 4-3 lead entering the third period. Nick Ritchie got the game-winning goal late in the period and Antione Vermette scored an insurance goal in the third. Pekka Rinne struggled in net for Nashville, stopping just 22-of-26 shots. John Gibson stopped 30 shots in the winning effort.
The Ducks managed a win in Game 2 despite being outshot once again. Nashville has looked like the better team through a pair of games in Anaheim. I think they will continue to look like the better team now that they are at home. They are 5-0 at home in the postseason and still have a great goalie in Rinne. Pekka should bounce back nicely in Game 3. The Ducks will be relying too much on John Gibson, who still hasn’t shown the consistency I’d like to see. Go with the Predators at home tonight.
NHL PLAYOFFS PREDICTION: NASHVILLE PREDATORS -150