by Vegas Writer
Friday, May 19, 2023How many of you were able to last the entire Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final? Quite a marathon that lasted nearly a full four overtimes, save for about 15 seconds.
Nevertheless, the Florida Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the series against the Carolina Hurricanes, when Matthew Tkachuk beat Frederik Andersen in the final seconds of the fourth overtime to deliver a 3-2 victory.
It was the sixth-longest game in NHL history.
Florida won its seventh straight road game in these playoffs and improved to 5-0 in overtime.
Carolina, which is in the Eastern final for the second time in five years, its ninth straight game in the conference-final round dating to 2009. The Hurricanes' losing streak in the NHL semifinals dates to Pittsburgh’s sweep of the Hurricanes in 2009.
NHL Notes:
Nevertheless, the Florida Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the series against the Carolina Hurricanes, when Matthew Tkachuk beat Frederik Andersen in the final seconds of the fourth overtime to deliver a 3-2 victory.
It was the sixth-longest game in NHL history.
Florida won its seventh straight road game in these playoffs and improved to 5-0 in overtime.
Carolina, which is in the Eastern final for the second time in five years, its ninth straight game in the conference-final round dating to 2009. The Hurricanes' losing streak in the NHL semifinals dates to Pittsburgh’s sweep of the Hurricanes in 2009.
NHL Notes:
- Road teams are 42-32 in the postseason, the most wins by visitors at this stage of a postseason (74 games played) in league history.
- Underdogs are 36-37 in the postseason, with a $100 wager on the pups turning a profit of roughly $1300.
- The Over is 39-34-1 after the first two rounds, but the Under has cashed 25 of the last 44 games.
- There have been 19 overtime games, and road teams are 14-5 in those games.
- NHL favorites higher than -150 are 14-31 on the puck line this postseason.
Game 1 of the Western Conference Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars is tonight, and I have the total available as part of a three-pack of totals that includes an MLB Division Total of the Month and Game 2 of the NBA's Eastern Conference Finals.
In the NBA, I lost by a half-point when the Denver Nuggets managed just a five-point win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals.
While everyone had their eyes peeled for Nikola Jokic, it was Jamal Murray scoring 23 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter, to lift the Nuggets to a 108-103 come-from-behind win over Los Angeles for a 2-0 lead in the series.
Anthony Davis and LeBron James were a combined 13 of 36 from the floor.
The series shifts for Games 3 and 4, to Los Angeles, where the Lakers have covered six in a row.
Despite last night's setback by one-half point with the Nuggets, I'm on a 77-61-3 overall run for $12,890 net profit since 4/17, including a 39-24-3 NBA run for $12,550. I'm in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final tonight with my NBA SIDE WINNER # 27 of 42.
On the MLB diamond, five of the six underdogs won Thursday. No doubt about it the most notable was the St. Louis Cardinals at +130 (DraftKings), as they stroked seven home runs en route to a 16-8 victory over Los Angeles. The Redbirds have now won nine of 11 behind an offense that is hitting .281 and averaging 7.8 runs per game since May 7.
Since the start of the MLB season, I've hit four of my first six BLANK CHECK releases. Tonight I've isolated one specific game for you, and you have my permission to fill in the blank. Whatever you want to put on this game, feel free. It's my MLB BLANK CHECK WINNER # 5 of 7.
