Posted on
4/9/2008 2:50:35 PM
Hockey Betting Preview – Wednesday Night Lights!
By Dave Golokhov
New York Rangers @ New Jersey Devils
The New York Rangers lost to the New Jersey Devils in the final game of the regular season, which means they lost home ice advantage in their first round meeting.
These two teams have played eight times in the regular season with the Rangers coming up victorious in seven of the eight matchups. But keep in mind that four of the games went to overtime.
The Rangers have been the hotter team of late, though, and have seemingly found the right chemistry on their lines.
The Devils are what the Devils typically are: Martin Brodeur plus one line of scoring.
Without Brian Rafalski this year, their defensive corps has been a bit weaker than usual, paving the way for a first-round upset.
But given the way the Rangers have been dominating this series, it would be hard to call their advancement an upset – if they did win the series.
Look for low-scoring games between these two teams but the Rangers should be particularly confident in this matchup and should make a move to the second round.
NHL Free Picks: New York -115
Ottawa Senators @ Pittsburgh Penguins
Rumors are circulating that the Pittsburgh Penguins purposely lost the final game of the regular season in order to avoid the Philadelphia Flyers in order to face the Ottawa Senators in a first round matchup instead.
Be careful what you wish for.
The Ottawa Senators have been a train wreck in the second half of the season. After starting the season 15-2, they barely made the playoffs but they are an experienced team. They went to the Stanley Cup Finals last year, disposing of the Pittsburgh Penguins along the way.
The Senators have been a disbanding bunch for a while now but this is the type of tool that they can use for motivation. Their head coach Bryan Murray has already talked about the fact that Pittsburgh chose Ottawa instead of Philadelphia because they believe them to be the weaker opponent.
The Penguins have been one of the best teams in the East this year but the playoffs are a different animal. Their one-two punch in net with Marc-Andre Fleury and Ty Conklin have to prove that their success in the regular season can carry over.
The Penguins don’t have an experienced team, which means that they could be ripe for the NHL Free Picksing at any point. Expect Ottawa to give them a run for their money in the first round.
NHL Free Picks: Ottawa +200
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