Dallas’ Jake Oettinger should bounce back with a 1.80 goals against average and a .930 save percentage over his last 19 starts.
Thursday has another duo of exciting games with the Rangers travelling south to Raleigh with a 2-0 series lead over the Hurricanes while the Stars look to even things up with the Avalanche after losing Game one in dramatic fashion and blowing a 3-0 lead.
We had a below average Wednesday with a 2-3 record on our picks and give us a record to 8-6 over our last 14 picks. We look to catch fire once again with a handful of favourable picks from tonight's slate.
All betting lines are from BetMGM and are subject to change. Hockey is a difficult sport to predict so please gamble responsibly.
Bet: Hurricanes ML (-175), Martin Necas Over 0.5 points (-120)
The Rangers nearly edged out the Hurricanes for a Game two win thanks to overtime heroics from Vincent Trocheck. It's been a physical series so far with loads of offense that helped elevate both games so far to the over in goals.
The series moving to Carolina creates a new story as the Hurricanes have been a defensive juggernaut at home this season with a 2.41 goals against average that ranked second-best in the league, tied with the Vancouver Canucks.
The Hurricanes did allow three or more goals to the Islanders however in two of their three home games in the first round. They've also struggled to slow down the Blueshirts offense that has scored eight goals through the first two games of the series.
Carolina should hit their stride when returning home as they rep a 11-2-0 record over their last 13 home games that includes their three wins over the Islanders. They will certainly respond and look to regain their footing in the series and should see production from forward Martin Necas.
The 25-year-old Czech forward had been on fire heading into Game two but went without a point and was just his second game of the postseason without a point.
He currently sits third in playoff points for Carolina as he's tied with six through seven games. He finished in the same position during the regular season as he trailed teammates Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis with 24 goals and 53 points. He should help the Canes get on the board and get them one win closer to evening up the series.
Bet: Stars ML (-130), Under 6.5 goals (-120), Jake Oettinger Over 27.5 saves (-110)
The Stars were shocked with a loss at home after being up 3-0 before seeing it quickly roll away as the Avalanche showed their offense is still rolling hotter than ever. It will be hard to fight fire with fire once again but that's what Dallas is built for as their depth scoring helped them secure the fourth-best goals per home game average this season at 3.71 and should show up again for Game two.
Their key to success should be to get themselves in a similar situation and close out the second time around. This should be a great bounce back oppurtnuity for Dallas' Jake Oettinger, who has been on fire lately with a 1.80 goals against average and a .930 save percentage over his last 19 starts including a dominant series over the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Vegas Golden Knights.
He should see a quick response to his bad start along with a better game from Colorado's Alexandar Georgiev, who started off rocky versus Winnipeg with seven goals allowed in Game one but recovered quickly and finished with just eight goals allowed in the Avalanche's four straight wins.
There is a very good case for at least one of these goals to return to their stellar play and help their team win a crucial game. Oettinger has the much better record plus will feel the added pressure of trying to avoid losing both home games to start the series. The Stars should rally around an exceptional game from their netminder and secure the victory.