The Panthers grabbed the Game 1 victory as they left the Oilers scoreless. Can Florida grab the 2-0 lead, or can the Oilers tie it up? Let’s look at the bet you should lock in for Game 2.
Monday's Best NHL Bet
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Edmonton Oilers (+114) at Florida Panthers (-135) | O/U 5.5 (-110/-110)
Sergei Bobrovsky was the catalyst for the Panthers in Game 1. He stopped the high-intensity offense of the Oilers and all 32 shots for his second shutout of the playoffs. The Oilers were getting plenty of quality chances, but the future Hall of Famer continues to look good.
Florida's offense didn't look as good as in recent games. They're still struggling with pushing the puck into their opponent's zone, but when they do, they move the puck around to get great scoring chances. We saw that early on with a beautiful pass from Sam Bennett to Evan Rodrigues.
The Oilers' offense did everything they could to light the lamp. They dominated the puck possession, and even with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Zach Hyman having a total of 16 shots on goal, they couldn't get through Bobrovsky. They've been going with a more aggressive approach with less setup and more aggressively shooting the puck and trying to get their second-chance shots, and they did have 18 high-danger scoring chances.
The defense didn't have big numbers because they didn't defend their net that much. They don't want the blue line defending in their own zone, so they've been clogging the neutral zone, and it prevents their opponent from setting up in their offensive zone. Stuart Skinner had been great in the last few games, but he hasn't needed to do too much, as he only saw 17 shots. You would think that, with this offense, only allowing two goals would help lead this team to a win.
The Oilers don't have to make too many adjustments except figure out how to get the puck past Bobrovsky. He's allowed 2.08 goals per game in the playoffs, so good luck. You still expect the Oilers to dominate the expected goal share and continue to control the puck possession. While the Panthers have the better chance of taking the 2-0 lead, the better juice is on the Under, and it’s a great bet to hit again.
Pick: Under 5.5 Total Goals (-110)
