Written by Graeme & Scott on Monday, September 7th, 2020
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Well the beginning of the Western Conference Finals was a bit of a surprise.
Two of the most offensively proficient teams in the NHL playoffs – both averaging over 3 goals per game – ended up putting on a rather quiet affair on Sunday.
The first shot of the game by the Dallas Stars saw them score and we thought we were going to be in for a banger of a match. Instead the shot counts were fairly low and the goalscoring was non-existent as the Stars ran out 1-0 winners.
While we’re all for close matches – hopefully we see some more goals in the Islanders vs Lightning game to night.
Here are our thoughts:
Islanders vs Lightning Game 1 Tips:
November 1st: Islanders 5-2 Lightning
December 9th: Lightning 1-5 Islanders
February 8th: Lightning 3-1 Islanders
Graeme: I liked the Islanders a lot in the series with the Flyers. I even said when we covered that Game 7, based on the metrics thus far, the best play was probably Islanders -1.5.
I don’t feel the same way about this series.
It just seems to be Tampas year. Of course we all thought that last year and look what happened. However they were able to overcome the hoodoo that was the Avs, and then they took apart the Bruins. I like Tampa overall and will be taking them at -1.5 to win the series.
For this game – the big thing for me is rest. They are well rested and will be well prepared for this one. I like the Islanders and the fight they have shown and how they have played. However I think it will be hard to transition from that Flyers series to this one.
When you look at the Islanders goalscoring stats they have been fantastic.
I think with the break for the Lightning, they take this one. That’s the big thing for me. Not sure how it will go on a game by game basis but I like Lightning for Game 1 and the Series.
Game 1 performances in the playoffs so far are quite off-putting as well as Tampa have taken a little bit to get settled. So I’m going to switch it up and go with my series bet instead for this one.
Tampa -1.5 to win the series
Canada: 2.00 Odds at Bet365 (Americans: We recommend http://www.bovada.lv.
USA: -106 Odds at BetOnline..
Everyone Else: 2.00 Odds at Bet365 (Americans: We recommend http://www.bovada.lv.
(Odds correct as of 2020/09/07 2:09:18 PM EST but are subject to change.)
Scott: The Islanders are making their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 1993. They beat the Panthers in 4 games in the best of 5 opening round, beat the Capitals in 5 games and then beat the Flyers in 7 games.
The Lightning went 2-1 in the round robin, found a way to finally beat the Blue Jackets in 6 games and beat the Bruins in 5 games winning the last 4 in a row.
The Isles are a team that will continue to frustrate the opposing teams. Pageau is a pain to play against and doesn’t get enough respect for all the little things he does. Barzal has been amazing as has his whole line.
The Lightning are known for their offense and will be looking to set the tone for this series in game 1. Point has been a beast for the Bolts this postseason playing 13 games and he has 18 points. His play and Kucherov’s too, once he returns, help the team and fans forget that Stamkos is still out.
With the Over/Under set at 5 I’ll go with that for the first game. Also gives us a chance to see how these teams will be before I predict a winner.
Over 5 incl OT
Canada: 1.86 Odds at BetOnline..
USA: -115 Odds at BetOnline..
Everyone Else: 1.86 Odds at BetOnline..
(Odds correct as of 2020/09/07 2:09:18 PM EST but are subject to change.)
