NHL Wednesday best bets: Oilers to rebound vs. Kings
The NHL playoffs continue to roll along at full speed as we have four Game 2s scheduled for Wednesday night.
Let's dive into the best ways to attack them.
Kings (+190) @ Oilers (-220)The Oilers dropped the series opener in disappointing fashion, but I was largely impressed with what I saw.
They controlled the run of play at five-on-five, winning the expected goal battle 3.47-1.87 and posting the higher xG in all four periods. That did translate to results, as the Oilers outscored the Kings in that game state.
Where the Oilers ran into trouble was on the penalty kill. They took way too many penalties (six, to be exact) and paid the price against the Kings' dangerous power play.
Los Angeles tied the game up in the dying seconds on the man advantage, and that's also how they won in overtime.
Connor McDavid stressed postgame the importance of staying out of the box. We also generally see a lot of penalties called early in the series and the number progressively drop as it goes on.
If we assume the Oilers will come closer to even in power-play opportunities (they were minus-3), they have a strong chance of getting back on track in Game 2.
Without Kevin Fiala and Gabriel Vilardi, the Kings don't pack the same sort of punch at evens. I don't think they have the horses to keep up with McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and this high-flying team.
Expect the Oilers to be on the front foot often in this game and for that to translate to a much-needed victory.
Bet: Oilers in regulation (-130)
David Pastrnak over 4.5 shots (-130)Pastrnak put up a prop dud in Game 1, recording just two shots against the Panthers. I expect more from him this time around.
For one, he's arguably the NHL's best volume shooter right now. He averaged five shots per game in the regular season and had a 60% hit rate for his shot prop.
He has also hit in nine of his past 10 games in Boston, with Game 1 against Florida being the lone exception.
Getting Patrice Bergeron back (he's questionable with an illness) would be huge and allow the Bruins to reset to their regular top six.
Score effects could help the cause, too. Boston led for 55 of the 60 minutes last time out, so there was no need to push the pace and generate shots.
While the Bruins are heavily favored once again, it stands to reason they'll spend more than five minutes level. That would help raise the floor and ceiling for Pastrnak.
Kirill Kaprizov over 3.5 shots (-125)Kaprizov was teeing off in the series opener against the Stars. He generated 11 shot attempts, six shots on goal, and five scoring chances in the double-overtime victory.
While the extra frames obviously helped boost his totals, Kaprizov went over the number inside regulation.
That's nothing new for Kaprizov, especially in the playoffs. Dating back to last season, he has recorded five shots or more in six of seven playoff games. He's getting the job done and then some.
The Stars aren't as good at five-on-five without Joe Pavelski, and they took penalties at an above-average rate over the season. This is a matchup Kaprizov can excel in.
While I expect the Stars to draw even in Game 2, Kaprizov should have his fingerprints all over the Wild's offense.
Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.
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