Zak’s Puck Picks, NHL Playoff Play-in Preview

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NHL Playoff Play-in Preview

Welcome to Zak’s Puck Picks!! I started in Cash with Flash Handicapping Challenge and have been heating up. I am super excited to keep the momentum going and win some serious money talking Puck Picks with all of you! 

As cook by trade and hockey as a passion since I was 3 years old, let’s get some puck picks in the oven and make some dough shall we?

With the news coming down today from commissioner Gary Betman, that the NHL will go ahead with their 24 team NHL Playoff Play-in, it is time to look at some of these matchups and see what we can exploit. With thanks to Sports Illustrated and Westgate Sportsbook in Nevada, I was able to uncover some early betting odds to break down. Let’s look at the matchups;

Eastern Conference:

• Columbus Blue Jackets +140 vs Toronto Maple Leafs -160
• Montreal Canadiens +170 vs Pittsburgh Penguins -190
• New York Rangers +130 vs Carolina Hurricanes -150
• Florida Panthers -120 vs New York Islanders +100

Western Conference

• Winnipeg Jets -110 vs Calgary Flames -110
• Edmonton Oilers -150 vs Chicago Blackhawks +130
• Arizona Coyotes+105 vs Nashville Predators -125
• Minnesota Wild +120 vs Vancouver Canucks -140

Now with this new system and playing in two different hubs, there really will not be any “home ice advantage” and will be strictly broken down into how teams play. This adds a bit of a wrench into handicapping as these teams are basically staring from training camp, however there are a few numbers in these series I will be looking to take advantage of, and here is why.

New York Rangers+130
Since the beginning of the 2019 season, the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers have played each other seven times. The Hurricanes have only come out a winner in one of those contests. The one time they played in 2020 was a five to two victory for the Rangers in Carolina. The defensive health is the key to this series I feel. If Dougie Hamilton can come back healthy and shore up some of the Hurricanes defensive woes, that might be enough to flip this series. I feel the Rangers have the upper hand in this matchup.

New York Islanders +100
Both the Islanders and the Florida Panthers were playing some questionable hockey before the break and neither team looked geared for a long run into the playoffs. These two teams play very different styles from each other. The Panthers play a more up tempo offensive style, where as the Islanders like to make life hard in the defensive zone and capitalize on their counter attack and constant pressure. Goaltending will be the key to this series and even though he has been brilliant in the past, Sergei Bobrovsky just hasn’t found that level in Florida this season. I believe the defensive minded New York Islanders have a legitimate edge in this series.

Nashville Predators -125
The Nashville Predators were one of the hottest teams going into the break. Jussi Saros had taken over the puck stopping duties from goal scoring tender Pekka Rinne and had seem to rejuvenate the Predators. Arizona has struggles to find comradery and consistency all season and have had issues putting the puck in the net. While Arizona’s defensive stats are impressive they ranked 23rd in the league in goals for per game. With both teams healthy as the should be come return, I give the edge to Nashville in the series.

I am very excited to join this team of highly skilled people at Win Daily. If you have any further questions, please feel free to find me on the Win Daily Discord chat (@Zak PRB) or on Twitter (@PRBpuckpicks) Thank you to you all for reading, let’s go make some bacon.