The NHL postseason churns ahead on Tuesday, and we're coming off of a fantastic Monday slate that saw a pair of overtime games and a barnburning 6-5 Kings win in Los Angeles. I'll dive into three of tonight's games from a betting perspective, and let you know where I'm laying my money on the ice. Here’s our top NBA picks and predictions for today’s game Devils vs. Hurricanes.
Tuesday's NHL Best Bets: Devils vs. Hurricanes
(Odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook)
Devils vs. Hurricanes
The Hurricanes (1-0) took care of business in Saturday's series-opening contest, handling the visiting Devils (0-1) in a 4-1 contest. The Eastern Conference foes are back at it tonight, and puck drop is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET from the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC.
The goals are going to be tough to come by in this series. For the Devils, they continue to play without Jack Hughes, and his absence has made a difference. Over the final 10 games of the regular season, New Jersey averaged only 2.67 goals per 60 minutes, which was 25th in the NHL. They simply lack the scoring depth that's necessary to contend in this series. The Devils were excellent on the power play this season (28.24%, third), but they're running into a Canes side that owned the best penalty-killing unit in the league at 83.61%.
This means that the pressure is going to be on Jacob Markstrom to perform in this series. He was solid during the regular season, posting the eighth-best GAA (2.50). The Devils also boasted the second-best PK in the NHL at 82.67%. Carolina will gladly opt for a lower-scoring, defensive-minded contest, and I think that's what we'll ultimately be in for tonight. I'm taking the Under at 5.5 goals.
Pick: Under 5.5 Goals (-130)
