Posted on
5/5/2008 4:27:56 PM
NHL Furious Playoff Betting Preview – Eastern Conference Championship
By Tim Furious
Philadelphia Flyers (42-29-11) vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (47-27-8)
Season Series: Phi 5-3
NHL Betting Favorite: Pittsburgh +350
It’s the Battle of Pennsylvania! The struggle between the Flyers and a bird that can’t fly! The old guard versus the new kids on the block. It’s Briere and a band of upstart underdogs taking on the next generation in the NHL. Who is your online betting money going to be on? Let’s take a look and get you set up properly for what promises to be a thrilling Eastern Conference Championship.
Penguins Punish Senators, Rangers
The Penguins have gone 8-1 SU in the past 9 playoff games, losing one “no chance” game against the Rangers. In the last series alone, the Penguins routed the Rangers with 3.0 goals per game, outscoring them 15-12 in the process. They took everything the Rangers had – physically and mentally – and brought the noise. Everyone who hopped on the Pittsburgh betting bandwagon has been rewarded thus far. Quite frankly, there’s no reason to bat an eyelash now.
Flyers Luck Out Against Montreal, Washington
The Flyers looked like they were in doubt as the road dogs in both series up until this point. They took the Caps to seven-games and withstood the offensive onslaught of Alexander Ovechkin, the most violent goal scorer in the league.
Against Montreal, they scored 4.0 goals per game, got a ton of lucky bounces and pounced all over the mistake-prone Habs. Granted, their defense stepped up when it had to, and Martin Biron was somewhat sensational. He’s allowed. 2.72 goals per game, which isn’t going to cut it against a team like Pittsburgh. His luck has to run out, but that doesn’t mean yours has to.
Why To Bet On Pittsburgh
1) Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin. Anymore questions?
2) They are virtually unstoppable at home, and they have home-ice advantage
Why To Bet On Philadelphia
1) They have the scoring (3.02 goals per game) to keep up on the scoreboard
2) Martin Biron has a four-leaf clover stuck up his pads somewhere
3) The Flyers more than held their own against the Penguins in the regular season
Final Verdict
The Penguins are the hottest team in the entire NHL playoffs right now. They’ve lost a single game, and their offense is putting teams on their heels. They notch 3.01 goals per game. While Philadelphia has scored 3.02 goals per game, that was against Cristobal Huet and Carey Price, both of whom lacked strong playoff experience. Fleury is not that deflatable.
The dark horse in this whole race will be Marc Andre-Fleury, who has been as steady as a beating drum in the playoffs, rewarding the Penguins betting faithful. Fleury is so used to playing from behind that he’ll be stalwart for the Penguins. I don’t have the same faith in Biron, who played with a lead in every single game last series except Game 5 against Montreal.
For teams that are generally offensively omnipotent, and defensively challenged, it all comes down to goal tending. Martin Biron’s Trade-Revenge tour ends in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins will slam the Flyers up against the wall leaving the lucky Flyers searching for answers that they don’t have.
NHL Furious Series Prediction: Penguins in 5
Score big with online sports betting in the BetUS.com sportsbook, where you’ll find NHL odds and lines for every NHL hockey game of the year. If you like to bet on NHL hockey, you’ll love the NHL player and game props in our online sportsbook. Join BetUS today!