The Carolina Hurricanes and the Boston Bruins renew acquaintances in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. We analyze the Hurricanes-Bruins NHL betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.
Hurricanes vs. Bruins: Projected starting goalies
Petr Mrazak vs. Tuukka Rask
Mrazek is expected to be in between the pipes for Game 1, a rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference Finals. The Hurricanes hope it goes a little better than that last series, as Mrazek and Carolina were overmatched in a series sweep. Mrazek didn’t face the B’s in this regular season. The last time he saw the Bruins he was on the short end of a 6-2 loss in Game 2 of the ECF. Mrazek allowed six goals on 25 shots in that defeat, and he was 0-2-0 with a 5.02 goals-against average and .808 save percentage in the series.
Rask is confirmed for Game 1, and hopefully he and his team will fare better than their round-robin performance – they lost all three games and looked like a non-playoff team. The Bruins feel as if they’ll be able to turn it on now that the “real” playoffs are here, but against a young, hungry team like the Hurricanes, we will see. It wasn’t a problem last season in the ECF, as Rask was a dominant 4-0 with a 1.25 GAA and .956 SV% in the four-game sweep.
Place a legal NHL bet on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ and WV at BetMGM. Bet now!
Hurricanes vs. Bruins: Odds, picks and betting tips
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access them at USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 7:10 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Bruins 4, Hurricanes 2
Moneyline (ML)
The BRUINS (-134) are fairly cheap on the moneyline, based solely on their 0-for-3 showing in the round robin and not their experience in the postseason lately. Take advantage. The Hurricanes (+115) are a good, young team, and they exorcised a lot of demons against the New York Rangers in the qualifying series, as New York was a team which previously dominated them. However, Carolina is expected to skate without star defenseman and former B’s star D Dougie Hamilton due to an injury. That’s a big loss for the team which needs all hands on deck to win four in this series.
New to sports betting? A winning $10 bet on the Bruins returns a net profit of $7.46, while the Hurricanes fetch a profit of $11.50 if they turn out victorious.
Puck Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
The BRUINS (-1.5, +200) can help you double up if you bet this alternate puck line, and that’s a mighty sound bet. Mrazek really struggled against the black and gold last season, and Boston is due for a good outing offensively after stumbling through the round-robin stage like a rudderless ship. Boston will get on track and handle its business in Game 1.
Over/Under (O/U)
OVER 5.5 (+115) is a nice value and worth a small-unit play. This one won’t be a slam-dunk winner, but a late empty-net goal should help you cash tickets.
Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.
Follow @JoeWilliamsVI on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1369]