Florida Panthers Take 2-0 Series Lead Back To Sunrise, Best Bet for Game 3
On Saturday night the Florida Panthers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes by a score of 2-1 in what was the series’ second overtime clash. The Panthers now take a 2-0 series lead back to Florida, where they will host the next two games of the series.
Sergei Bobrovsky
The Florida Panthers won the game on the back of Sergie Bobrovsky who saved 37 of the 38 shots he faced in game 2. Bobrovsky has now stopped 100/103 total Carolina Hurricane shots over 11 periods of play in the series.
Every game in the series has been extremely tightly contested and Game 3, later this evening in Sunrise, Florida, is sure to yield similar results.
What the Oddsmakers Have to Say
The betting odds are hanging -115 on the Panthers moneyline against the slight road dog -105 Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina’s struggles on the road in the playoffs have been well documented over the past few seasons, and it has been what has kept the team from winning the eastern conference the past few years.
The Panthers need to be aware that the Hurricanes will have an extremely difficult time trying to play their slow and low scoring style of hockey on the road in Sunrise, especially if the Panthers jump out to an early lead.
Florida Panthers’ Stars
Matthew Tkachuk has been the overtime savior for the Florida Panthers this series, netting game winning in both games 1 and 2. Tkachuk needs to maintain his level of play to give the Panthers their best shot later on tonight. Aleksander Barkov has also been
Game 3 Best Bet
I expect the Panthers to attack the Hurricanes offensively in a way we have not seen yet this series, as both games have gone safely “under” the full game total of 5.5 goals. Both teams’ goalies have been brick walls, but Bobrovsky will, at some point, begin to feel fatigued and is bound to make a mistake or two.
A safer bet than the Under 5.5 for the full game would be -117 Under 1.5 1st period total. This total has gone under in both games 1 and 2 and bettors can expect Bobrovsky and Andersen or Raanta to be ready for the challenge.
Both NHL fans and bettors should expect another hard fought and entertaining game. The Hurricanes have shown the ability to respond after a home loss, as the team went on the road and beat the New York Islanders in Game 6 to close out their first round series after they lost Game 5 at home.
Read more about the Florida Panthers reaching the conference finals.
