Announcement

**TheGame** · 05-03-2016, 07:45 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Preview: Sharks (46-30) at Predators (41-27)

Date: May 03, 2016 9:00 PM EDT

(AP) - Joe Pavelski's transformation as an NHL player can be illustrated by the evolution of his nicknames.

The undersized former seventh-round pick who came into league known as 'Little Joe' in comparison to teammate Jumbo Joe Thornton turned into the Big Pavelski when he became a core player in San Jose and is now simply known as the captain.

In his first postseason wearing the 'C,' Pavelski is leading in actions and words. He entered Monday tied for the NHL lead with six goals this postseason, with many coming at key moments like the go-ahead score late in Game 2 on Sunday that helped San Jose take a 2-0 series lead in the second round against Nashville.

Game 3 is Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena.

'It's just an exciting time of the year,' Pavelski said. 'It's what you play for. You play all 82 games to set yourself up to get into this spot, and now that you're here you lay it on the line.'

Pavelski has done that his whole career with 32 postseason goals, including six winners. Pavelski has 10 points this postseason and some of the team's biggest goals as San Jose has won six of its first seven playoff games.

The go-ahead goal with 2:40 remaining in Game 2 against the Predators was just the latest example. Pavelski also scored the winner in the third period of the first-round opener against Los Angeles, opened the scoring in Game 2 and scored the key insurance goal in the Game 5 clincher in Los Angeles.

Most of those goals have come from right near the net, where Pavelski's superior hand-eye coordination makes him one of the best in the league at deflecting shots and pouncing on rebounds like he did Sunday.

'He gets to the right areas,' teammate Tommy Wingels said. 'Guys in this league score goals different ways. The majority of Pav's goals, some are real nice highlight reels but a lot of them are in the dirty areas.

"He's not the biggest of guys or the fastest of guys but he finds a way to get in those areas. That's tough to do. He's so good at it. It's something other guys can take a page out of his book and try to emulate.'

Pavelski has far exceeded expectations as a seventh-round pick in 2003. He is third in the NHL in goals over the past five seasons with 163 and is one of the most versatile players in the league.

He is capable of playing on the wing or at center, killing penalties or on the power play, providing a key goal or shutting down the opposition's top line. He does it all despite standing 5-foot-11 and lacking elite skating speed.

'All he cares about is winning,' coach Peter DeBoer said. 'There's not a selfish bone in his body as far as his own personal numbers or agenda. It's all about winning. Where do you find guys that get 100 points and block shots and kill penalties and win faceoffs and go to the dirty areas of the ice? You can count on one hand the number of guys in the league that do that.'

Pavelski has been called on to do even more the past two seasons for the Sharks. After San Jose blew a 3-0 series lead to lose a first-round series to Los Angeles in 2014, Thornton was stripped of his captaincy in the offseason.

The Sharks rotated the leadership last season with Pavelski one of four players wearing an 'A' as alternate. But he quickly emerged as the leader and face of the franchise dealing with the media and becoming more vocal with his teammates.

So when DeBoer took over as coach this season he promoted Pavelski to the captaincy and the Sharks rebounded from missing the playoffs in 2015 to making the second round for just the second time since 2011.

Now they can move to the verge of making the conference finals for the first time since that year, though the Predators at least sounded confident they could turn the series in their favor after Game 2.

"I think everyone should feel encouraged in here; I think we played a great game," defenseman Mattias Ekholm, whose goal at 12:56 of the third had tied it, told the team's official website. "We have to maybe convert a little bit more in front of the net and score a few more goals - we're not going to win hockey games by scoring one goal or two goals, so that's an area we can improve on, but (compared to the) last game, I thought we played a lot better tonight."

Nashville held a 39-25 shot advantage, but its penalty killing has continued to struggle into this series. San Jose is 3 for 5 on the power play with Logan Couture scoring twice, making Predators opponents 6 for 18 in these playoffs.

"It'll be good to get back home," coach Peter Laviolette told the team's website. "We've been on the road for a while here again; I've said it before in different series, we have to pull the good things from tonight, take the confidence from that and look to be better in Game 3."

**TheGame** · 05-03-2016, 07:46 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Preview: Stars (50-23) at Blues (49-24)

Date: May 03, 2016 9:30 PM EDT

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Alex Pietrangelo is used to playing a lot - especially this time of year. The St. Louis Blues linchpin defenseman plays with a high motor and appears to have no issues piling up the ice time.

Pietrangelo is fourth overall in the playoffs averaging 30 minutes, 34 seconds, including more than 35 minutes in the Blues' overtime victory in Game 2 in Dallas on Sunday. Among the surviving eight teams, he's at the top of the list.

'The more you play him, the better he plays,' coach Ken Hitchcock said Monday, a day ahead of Game 3 against the Stars in a series knotted at a game apiece. 'I think he keeps his focus razor-sharp, and when he's like that, he's going to help us.'

A key to Pietrangelo's success is channeling attention deficit disorder and putting excess energy to good use. He's constantly talking, compensating for soft-spoken defensive partner Jay Bouwmeester.

'He is go, go, go and guys sometimes wish he had a muzzle on him at times,' Backes said. 'He's a big reason why we're still playing.'

Pietrangelo leads the rush at times and has a goal and five assists in the playoffs for a team savoring its first victory in the second round since 2002.

Several teammates believe Pietrangelo, the fourth overall pick in 2008, was the Blues' MVP in the first round. He was instrumental in holding down Blackhawks stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

'I like having the opportunity to play on a big stage,' Pietrangelo said. 'Sometimes it's hard minutes, but I'll take that as long as it's going to help us.'

All of the minutes leaders still in the playoffs are defensemen, with Pittsburgh's Kris Letang right behind Pietrangelo at 29:24 per game entering Monday's action. The Islanders have two players getting heavy rotation, Nick Leddy (28:33) and Travis Hamonic (27:03). Nashville's Roman Josi (27:22) and Tampa Bay's Victor Hedman (27:02) also are high on the list.

Two mainstays are watching now, Chicago's Duncan Keith (31:27) and Los Angeles' Drew Doughty (30:49).

Pietrangelo's minutes stand out even more given he's not on the first power- play unit, duty that's not usually as taxing as regular shifts.

'You have to recognize that those are heavy minutes he's playing,' coach Ken Hitchcock said. 'He's getting challenged, he's playing against top players, he's killing all the penalties.'

The odds of Pietrangelo getting more extremely heavy duty would seem to be high, given the Stars and Blues have met seven times with four going to overtime and one decided in a shootout. He can be a calming influence, although inside he's going 100 mph.

'I'm still amped up, you can ask my teammates,' Pietrangelo said. 'I'm always on the go.'

Dallas has a bit of goalie intrigue. Coach Lindy Ruff yanked Kari Lehtonen after the Blues' three-goal first period in Game 2, and Antti Niemi finished strong, stopping 19 consecutive shots before Backes got the winner in overtime.

'I'll let you guys know (who's starting) about five minutes after warmup tomorrow,' Ruff told reporters.

Lehtonen said only that 'I might know' who's starting Game 3.

**TheGame** · 05-03-2016, 07:46 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

NHL Hockey Odds and Picks: Scouting the Week Ahead
by Alan Matthews

The Pittsburgh Penguins have overtaken the Washington Capitals as Eastern Conference favorites, with the Pens at +140 and Caps at +150 entering Monday's Game 3 of their tied series in the Steel City. Both are +375 to win the Stanley Cup.

But the Capitals will be without one of their key players in Games 3-5 as defenseman Brooks Orpik was suspended for three games for a late hit to the head of Pittsburgh defenseman Olli Maatta in Game 2. Orpik received only a two-minute minor for interference on the play. Maatta was injured on the play and wasn't likely to play in Game 3.

The Capitals are at least used to playing without Orpik. He missed 40 games from Nov. 12 to Feb. 13 because of a lower-body injury and the Capitals went 30-6-4 in that span. He also was out the final three games of the first-round series against Philadelphia with an upper-body injury. In five postseason games, Orpik is scoreless with six penalty minutes. He had three goals and seven assists and was plus-11 during the regular season. To his credit, Orpik accepted his suspension and called the league's decision "fair.'' He used to play on the Penguins with Maatta and considers him a friend.

The Game 3s in the other three series are all on Tuesday. The Lightning and Islanders drop the puck in Brooklyn with that series tied at one. The Bolts are -130 series favorites with New York at +110. Tampa star defenseman Victor Hedman has largely kept Islanders star John Tavares in check, but New York will have the last line change at home and thus Coach Jack Capuano should be able to keep Tavares away from Hedman more. Tavares was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft and Hedman was No. 2. In two games, the Islanders have recorded just 42 shots. Tampa is +525 to win the East and New York +650.

San Jose can take a commanding 3-0 lead against the Predators as that series shifts to Nashville on Tuesday. The Sharks are -700 on the series line and the Preds +525. San Jose probably deserved to lose Game 2 as it was outshot 39-25 and outhit 46-26. But Joe Pavelski scored the tiebreaking goal with 2:40 left in the third period. The Predators went 0-for-3 on the power play Sunday and are 2-for-31 in the playoffs. Pavelski certainly is in the running for the Conn Smythe Trophy thus far as he has had a hand in 10 of the Sharks' 21 total goals. He has scored six and assisted on four others. San Jose is now the +175 Western Conference favorite. Nashville is +1600.

Finally, the Stars-Blues series moves to St. Louis tied at one. The Blues are -135 on the series line and the Stars +115. Dallas' second-leading scorer Tyler Seguin has yet to play in the series but did skate with the team on Monday. Last Friday, general manager Jim Nill said Seguin would not be able to play until four to five days after he starts skating.

Stars coach Lindy Ruff could change goalies for Game 3. Kari Lehtonen made 31 saves in a 2-1 win in Game 1 on Friday but was pulled for Antti Niemi after allowing three goals on five shots in the first period of Game 2. Niemi made 19 saves before allowing the game-winner to David Backes in overtime. Dallas is now +200 to win the West as is St. Louis.

Maple Leafs' Rebuild Gets A Huge Boost

Sportsbooks no doubt will have some NHL draft props available the week of the event, which is June 24-25 in Buffalo. And the big winners of the NHL Draft lottery held over the weekend were the long-suffering Toronto Maple Leafs. They finished with the fewest points in the league and won the lottery (only seventh team with fewest points to do so), meaning also the chance to draft top prospect Auston Matthews, a center.

The Arizona-born Matthews has compared favorably with Jack Eichel and Connor McDavid, the two super prospects from last year's draft. Both those guys lived up to the hype. Matthews. who starred with Zurich in the National League A, the top professional league in Switzerland, will be joining William Nylander, Mitch Marner, among others, on a franchise that is stockpiling young talent. Matthews would be the first American-born player since Patrick Kane in 2007 to be selected first. The 18-year-old is also set to represent the United States at the upcoming world championship.

The Leafs haven't picked first since the 1985 draft, when they selected defenseman/left wing Wendel Clark. Now the question in Toronto is if this makes it more or less likely that Tampa's Steve Stamkos will sign with his hometown Leafs in free agency (some think perhaps less likely because Stamkos considers himself a No. 1 center, which is where Matthews projects). The Winnipeg Jets moved up from sixth to second in the lottery, and the Columbus Blue Jackets moved from fourth to third.

**TheGame** · 05-03-2016, 07:46 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

NHL

Tuesday's games

NY Islanders-Tampa Bay (1-1)
Islanders won five of last seven games with Tampa Bay, winning last three played here, in series where over is 5-1-2 in last eight games. Islanders won three of last four games but are 2-3 in last five games in Brooklyn- under is 3-1-1 in their last five games overall. Tampa Bay won five of its last seven games, going 2-3 in last five road games. NY is 2-9 on power play in series, Lightning 1-7. Tampa Bay outshot NY 54-18 in periods 2-3 first two games of series

St Louis-Dallas (1-1)
Blues scored PP goal 10:58 into OT to even series after they blew 3-1 third period lead; St Louis won seven of last nine games with Dallas overall-- home team won five of last seven series games, with seven of last ten staying under total. Last four St Louis series wins all came in OT or SO. Dallas won seven of last ten games overall; over is 4-1-1 in their last six games. Stars outshot St Louis 76-57 in first two games; Stars are 0-7 on power play in series, St Louis 2-7.

Nashville-San Jose (SJ 2-0)
Sharks scored seven third period goals to win first two games; Pavelski scored GW goal with 2:40 left to snap 1-1 tie in Game 2. Both games were 1-0 after two periods, then opened up in third period. San Jose is 3-5 on power play in series, Nashville is 1-5. Sharks lost three of last four visits here; they've won seven of last eight games overall. Predators lost five of last seven games. Sharks won nine of last 11 games overall- they've won last three games with Nashville. Under is 6-3-1 in last 10 series games.

Playoffs tally: 1st round-- Home: 23-24, Over: 16-17-14
2nd round-- Home: 6-3, Over: 4-2-3

**TheGame** · 05-03-2016, 07:55 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

NHL

Tuesday, May 3

Trend Report

7:00 PM
TAMPA BAY vs. NY ISLANDERS
Tampa Bay is 2-5 SU in their last 7 games when playing NY Islanders
Tampa Bay is 1-8 SU in their last 9 games when playing on the road against NY Islanders
NY Islanders are 8-1 SU in their last 9 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 6 of the NY Islanders last 8 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay

9:00 PM
SAN JOSE vs. NASHVILLE
San Jose is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of San Jose's last 15 games when playing Nashville
Nashville is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Nashville's last 6 games at home

9:30 PM
DALLAS vs. ST. LOUIS
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas's last 7 games when playing St. Louis
Dallas is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 7 games when playing Dallas
St. Louis is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing Dallas

**Satch** · 05-03-2016, 09:48 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Preview: Tampa Bay at NY Islanders

When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

Matchup Edge

TB	Edge in:	NYI
	Offense
	Defense
	Power Play
	Penalty Kill
	Face Offs
	Discipline
	Goaltending

The New York Islanders look to hold on to home-ice advantage in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning for Game 3 at the Barclays Center on Tuesday night. The Islanders captured the first of two contests in Tampa 5-3 before being outshot 26-8 in the final two periods of a 4-1 defeat in Game 2 on Saturday afternoon.

“It’s disappointing when you get that first one that you can’t go out and do it again,” New York center Frans Nielsen told reporters. “But I think going (to Tampa), we would have taken it coming back 1-1. Going home to our building, it’s going to be a different story.” Islanders captain John Tavares said his team needs to find a way to get second and third opportunities on Lightning goalie Ben Bishop, who was named a finalist for the Vezina Trophy. Tampa Bay was much sharper defensively in Game 2 and got two goals from Tyler Johnson, who took over the team lead with 10 points. “That’s one game. We need three more,” Johnson told reporters. “It’s gonna be loud, going to be hard to play in, but we know what we need to do.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, TVAS

ABOUT THE LIGHTNING: Right wing Nikita Kucherov (six playoff goals) did not have a point in Game 2, but was a factor with a plus-2 rating while being reunited with linemates Ondrej Palat and Johnson. Jonathan Drouin, who looked as though he would never play with Tampa Bay again after a trade request and team suspension in midseason, boasts a goal and six assists to go along with 19 shots – third on the team -- in the postseason. Forwards Erik Condra (upper body) and Mike Blunden (upper body) practiced Monday and defenseman Matt Carle (undisclosed) skated on his own.

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS: Tavares had a team-high three shots on goal in Game 2, but the Islanders did not get enough production throughout the forward corps and the line of Shane Prince-Brock Nelson-Ryan Strome was limited to one shot combined. Defenseman Ryan Pulock practiced on Monday and could return to the lineup in place of veteran blue-liner Marek Zidlicky while forward Josh Bailey (upper body) may draw back in as well. Defensemen Nick Leddy (28:31) and Travis Hamonic (27:03) lead the team in average ice time and have a combined plus-1 rating.

OVERTIME

1. Johnson needs one goal to break a tie with Brad Richards (18) for third on the Lightning’s all-time playoff scoring list and Kucherov has 17.

2. New York RW Kyle Okposo is second only to linemate Tavares (35) in shots on goal during the playoffs with 32 and leads the team with six assists.

3. The Lightning have won their last six Game 2s in the playoffs and are 3-2 in Game 3s – 3-1 last season.

PREDICTION: Lightning 4, Islanders 2

**Satch** · 05-03-2016, 09:48 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Preview: San Jose at Nashville

When: 9:00 PM ET, Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee

Matchup Edge

SJ	Edge in:	NAS
	Offense
	Defense
	Power Play
	Penalty Kill
	Face Offs
	Discipline
	Goaltending

Trailing 2-0 in their second-round playoff series against the San Jose Sharks, heading home for Tuesday night's Game 3 might not prove to be that much of an advantage for the Nashville Predators. Not only did the Predators lose twice at home in their first-round series versus Anaheim, but they are facing an opponent that posted the league's best road record.

Not only did the Sharks go 28-10-3 away from home during the regular season, but they also won all three games in Los Angeles in their first-round series. San Jose has scored seven of its eight goals against Nashville in the third period, including three empty-netters, fueling the Predators' optimism that the series is far from over. "No one's hitting the panic button in here or anything," Nashville center Ryan Johansen said. "There's still a lot of hockey to be played. We know it's going to be challenging and they know it's going to be challenging." Nashville did stave off elimination in the opening round with a big victory in Game 6 at Bridgestone Arena before ousting the Ducks in Anaheim.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, USA, Sportsnet 360, TVAS

ABOUT THE SHARKS: San Jose goaltender Martin Jones had been flying under the radar in the postseason, but he outplayed former mentor Jonathan Quick in the opening round and is coming off a 37-save performance in Game 2 against Nashville. "I thought they were better than us for the majority of that game," said Sharks center Logan Couture, who has three goals in the first two games. "A lot of guys didn't bring their best effort tonight, and we got bailed out by Jonesy making some big saves." The power play continues to thrive for San Jose, converting on 3-of-5 chances against Nashville and producing eight man-advantage tallies in seven postseason games.

ABOUT THE PREDATORS: With the tandem of captain Shea Weber and Roman Josi leading the way, Nashville's defensemen led the NHL by posting the most points (203) and goals (55) during the regular season. Fellow blue-liner Mattias Ekholm has been the most clutch performer in the playoffs, tying for the league lead among defensemen with three tallies and either tying the game or putting his team ahead with each of his goals. "It's just the evolution of his game," Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. "I don't think it should surprise anybody that he's got points or goals in the postseason. He's a terrific defenseman that thinks the game offensively."

OVERTIME

1. The Predators continue to struggle on the power play, failing on three chances in Game 2 to fall to 2-for-31 in the postseason.

2. Sharks captain Joe Pavelski has six goals in the postseason while D Brent Burns has one goal and seven assists during a four-game point streak.

3. Predators F Filip Forsberg, the team's leading scorer during the regular season, is mired in a seven-game point drought.

PREDICTION: Predators 3, Sharks 2 (OT)

**Satch** · 05-03-2016, 09:49 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Preview: Dallas at St. Louis

When: 9:30 PM ET, Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri

Matchup Edge

DAL	Edge in:	STL
	Offense
	Defense
	Power Play
	Penalty Kill
	Face Offs
	Discipline
	Goaltending

The St. Louis Blues have benefited from working overtime against the Dallas Stars, venturing past regulation to earn three of their four wins in the regular-season series before drawing a split of the Western Conference second-round set in the same manner. After wresting away home-ice advantage, St. Louis looks to gain the upper hand in the series when it hosts Game 3 on Tuesday.

Captain David Backes celebrated his 32nd birthday in style on Sunday, scoring 10:58 into the extra session of the 4-3 triumph for his second overtime goal of the playoffs. "Jaromir Jagr in all his wisdom at 44 said, 'Who cares who scores,' and that's the way we feel in this room," Backes told reporters. "... We did our job, got one in their building, and now need to go home and play solid hockey for 60 minutes and start to establish our game." Dallas coach Lindy Ruff refused to reveal if his goaltender carousel would take another turn for Game 3, as Kari Lehtonen yielded three goals on five shots before being replaced by Antti Niemi (19 saves). Ruff has consistently shuffled netminders following a difficult start, as Lehtonen won Games 1 and 2 in the first-round series versus Minnesota before faltering in the following contest - only to get the call after Niemi sputtered in Game 5.

TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet, TVAS

ABOUT THE STARS: Captain Jamie Benn is enjoying quite the postseason, assisting on one goal and scoring another with 2:36 remaining in the third period of Game 2 to extend his team-leading point total to 12 (five goals, seven assists). Cody Eakin set up all three of Dallas' goals on Sunday to match Benn with seven assists in the playoffs, much to the pleasure of Ruff. "Really it's the Cody Eakin I was looking for all year long," Ruff told the team's website on Monday. "His puck possession has been way up. What he's done defensively while playing against top lines has been very good. He's a step above where I had him in the regular season and he's right where we need him to be to be effective as a team."

ABOUT THE BLUES: Two-goal leads are proving to be anything but safe for St. Louis, which squandered that advantage for the second time in the playoffs on Sunday. The Blues jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first period of their Game 6 tilt versus Chicago in the first round, only to see the Blackhawks storm back with a vengeance and extend the series. "The worst lead in hockey is a two-goal lead," coach Ken Hitchcock told reporters. "But it's natural; you play the score. You don't want to get caught, so you put a safety net up."

OVERTIME

1. Stars C Tyler Seguin (Achilles) and RW Patrick Eaves (lower body) skated on Monday, but Ruff told the Dallas Morning News that neither would travel with the team to St. Louis.

2. Blues rookie C Robby Fabbri has recorded seven points (one goal, six assists) in nine playoff games.

3. St. Louis has thwarted all seven of its short-handed situations in the series.

PREDICTION: Blues 3, Stars 2

Announcement

NHL Betting Info. 5/3

NHL Betting Info. 5/3

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment